Novartis slated to purchase Nektar’s pulmonary drug delivery unit

ZURICH, Switzerland Novartis has announced an agreement with Nektar Therapeutics to purchase Nektar’s pulmonary drug delivery arm for $115 million. The deal should be wrapped by the end of the year, if all regulatory approvals are met, Novartis said.

About 140 Nektar staff members would be absorbed into Novartis, reports said.

Nektar has created groundbreaking methods in drug delivery systems to the lungs, specializing in inhaled powders. Novartis has said that it hopes the purchase will help speed up its expansion efforts to develop treatments for such diseases as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and cystic fibrosis, the company said.