Palatine's Acura Pharma gets $20M Oxecta payment

Palatine-based Acura Pharmaceuticals Inc. said Friday it received a $20 million payment from its partner Pfizer Inc. for work on a pain drug that received regulatory approval in June.

Its shares climbed 34 cents, or 8.8 percent, to $4.21 in premarket trading.

The companies collaborated on the painkiller Oxecta, which received marketing approval on June 17. Oxecta is an immediate-release drug that contains oxycodone, the active ingredient in OxyContin, and it is approved for the treatment of moderate to severe pain.

Acura developed technology that is designed to make the drug tamper-resistant, meaning it is more difficult for patients to crush or dissolve the drug so they can use it to get high. It is also intended to irritate the nose if snorted.

Acura reported $3.3 million in revenue in 2010, and all of that revenue was related to Oxecta. The company recognized $1.1 million in revenue from an upfront payment on Oxecta, and was reimbursed for $2.2 million in research and development costs.