Merck has announced the completion of Verona Pharma’s acquisition. The company is now a wholly-owned subsidiary of Merck and the American Depositary Shares (ADS) of Verona Pharma will no longer be listed or traded on the Nasdaq Global Market.

Robert M Davis, Chairman and CEO, Merck, said, “The Verona Pharma acquisition strengthens and complements our portfolio of treatments for patients with cardio-pulmonary diseases to include Ohtuvayre, while delivering near and long-term growth as well as value for shareholders. The addition of Ohtuvayre is another strong example of our business development strategy, which focuses on opportunities where compelling science and value align. Ohtuvayre is a novel, first-in-class maintenance treatment targeting an important unmet need for adult patients with COPD. We look forward to applying our commercial capabilities and working with our talented new colleagues from Verona Pharma to build on the strong uptake and performance to date to reach even more patients with this important medicine.”

Through this acquisition, Merck has added Ohtuvayre (ensifentrine), a first-in-class selective dual inhibitor of phosphodiesterase 3 and 4 (PDE3 and PDE4), to its growing cardio-pulmonary pipeline and portfolio.

The US Food and Drug Administration approved Ohtuvayre in June 2024 for the maintenance treatment of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) in adult patients. Ohtuvayre is the first novel inhaled mechanism for the maintenance treatment of COPD in over 20 years and combines bronchodilator and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory effects.

Ohtuvayre is also being evaluated in clinical trials for the treatment of non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis.