Pfizer may be eyeing deal with Israeli biotech

Pfizer Inc. is wooing up-and-coming Israeli biotech Protalix Biotherapeutics for a possible buyout or partnership, the financial newspaper TheMarker reported Monday.

Protalix shares, which have quintupled in price already this year thanks to the company's development of a promising new Gaucher's disease therapy, rose another 7 percent in early trading Monday.

Protalix previously had been linked to reports of a possible acquisition by Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. Protalix and Teva have deep connections, with Teva chairman Eli Hurvitz serving as chairman of Protalix and Teva vice chairman Phillip Frost owning nearly 10 percent of Protalix, according to the Israeli business site Globes Online.

And Protalix is looking for a deal. Chief Executive David Aviezer has said he expects a partnership to be lined up by the end of the year, according to TheMarker.

The Israeli newspaper said Protalix's Uplyso drug to treat Gaucher's disease - a buildup of fatty substances in some of the body's most vital organs - apparently caught the eye of Pfizer, which is on the hunt for new compounds as some of its blockbuster medications near patent expirations.

Uplyso in the past few months has won Food and Drug Administration go-aheads for both fast-track approval and so-called "orphan drug status," which lowers the bar for a new drug application based on its being the only known therapy.

TheMarker reported that a delegation from Pfizer visited Protalix's facilities last week as it sought a development deal or buyout.

Pfizer does not comment on reports of possible acquisitions, labeling them "rumors and speculation" until completed.