 | |
| Company type | Sociedade Anónima |
|---|---|
| Industry | Major drugs,health care |
| Founded | April 19, 1924 |
| Headquarters | Trofa,Portugal |
Key people | António Horta Osório, Chairman (Appointed from April, 2021 onwards) |
| Products | Pharmaceuticals |
Number of employees | 924 (2018) |
| Website | www.bial.com |
Bial (Portela e C.ª, S.A.) is apharmaceutical company headquartered inSão Mamede do Coronado, inTrofa,Porto district,Portugal. It was founded in 1924, being among the largest companies of its kind in Portugal. Its products are sold in pharmacies in more than 58 countries on 4 continents: Europe, America, Africa, and Asia.
On 21 September 2015, theEuropean Investment Bank signed a EUR 45 million financing agreement for Bial's R&D over the next 3 years. It was directed to "discover, develop and provide therapeutic solutions in [...] three major areas of research: central nervous system (CNS), cardiology and allergen immunotherapy". The EIB found Bial not to have the status of acontracting entity, and therefore, Bial has not been subject toEU rules on public procurement.[1]
In 2008, Bial completed a clinical evaluation ofeslicarbazepine acetate, a drug for the adjunctive use in partial seizures in adults withepilepsy. The Japanese companyEisai gained the sole license to market, promote, and distribute it as Zebinix or Exalief in Europe.[2] In America, it is marketed bySunovion under the name Aptiom.[3] Its use in epilepsy treatment in children is under development. A clinical trial of eslicarbazepine acetate as therapy in persons with diabetic neuropathic pain was prematurely halted.[4]
Etamicastat (BIA 5–453) is a dopamine-β-hydroxylase inhibitor decreasingnorepinephrine levels in peripheral sympathetically innervated tissues, without effect in brain tissues of spontaneously hypertensive rats.[5]
BIA 5-1058 is another reversibledopamine beta-hydroxylase inhibitor that decreases norepinephrine levels in peripheral sympathetically innervated tissues, without CNS effects.[6]
Opicapone (BIA 9-1067), Bial's second pharmaceutical, is aCOMT inhibitor for the treatment of Parkinson's disease.[7] It is under review by theEuropean Medicines Agency (EMA).
On 9 September 2015, Bial entered into an agreement with theHelsinn Group for the exclusive distribution and license rights to theHelsinn Group's druganamorelin in Spain, Portugal, Angola, and Mozambique.[8]
In 2015, Bial commissioned acontract research organization, Biotrial, to run aphase oneclinical trial forBIA 10-2474, anFAAH inhibitor[9] that targets theendocannabinoid system.[10] The research inRennes commenced in July 2015, evaluating male and female subjects aged between 18 and 55 years old receiving a single dose. On 7 January 2016, a trial involving multiple doses was started on six non-placebo subjects. The first patient receiving the multiple doses was hospitalized atRennes University Hospital on 10 January, leading Biotrial to suspend the study on 11 January. Five patients were hospitalized, with the first one receiving multiple doses and becoming brain-dead.[11][12][13]
On June 25, 2024, Bial was awarded the title of Honorary Member of theMilitary Order of Saint James of the Sword.[14]
{{cite web}}:|author= has generic name (help){{cite web}}:|author= has generic name (help)