UCB (Union Chimique Belge) is a multinational

biopharmaceutical A biopharmaceutical, also known as a biological medical product, or biologic, is any pharmaceutical drug product manufactured in, extracted from, or semisynthesized from biological sources. Different from totally synthesized pharmaceuticals, t ...

company headquartered in

Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...

, Belgium. UCB is an international company with revenue of €4.178 billion in 2016 which focuses primarily on research and development, specifically involving medications centered on epilepsy, Parkinson's disease, and Crohn's disease. The company's efforts are focused on treatments for severe diseases treated by specialists, particularly in the fields of

central nervous system The central nervous system (CNS) is the part of the nervous system consisting primarily of the brain, spinal cord and retina. The CNS is so named because the brain integrates the received information and coordinates and influences the activity o ...

(CNS) disorders (including

epilepsy Epilepsy is a group of Non-communicable disease, non-communicable Neurological disorder, neurological disorders characterized by a tendency for recurrent, unprovoked Seizure, seizures. A seizure is a sudden burst of abnormal electrical activit ...

), inflammatory disorders (including

allergy Allergies, also known as allergic diseases, are various conditions caused by hypersensitivity of the immune system to typically harmless substances in the environment. These diseases include Allergic rhinitis, hay fever, Food allergy, food al ...

), and

oncology Oncology is a branch of medicine that deals with the study, treatment, diagnosis, and prevention of cancer. A medical professional who practices oncology is an ''oncologist''. The name's Etymology, etymological origin is the Greek word ὄγ ...

. Every three years, the company presents the UCB Award under the patronage of the Queen Elisabeth Medical Foundation to promote neuroscience research. The winner of this award is selected by an independent scientific committee.

History

UCB was founded on 18 January 1928 by Emmanuel Janssen, a Belgian businessman. Initially focused on

industrial chemical The chemical industry comprises the companies and other organizations that develop and produce industrial, specialty and other chemicals. Central to the modern world economy, the chemical industry converts raw materials (oil, natural gas, air, wa ...

s (it was one of the first companies to distill ammonia from coal), the company also included a small pharmaceutical division based around Meurice Laboratories. In the early 1950s, UCB set up a research centre where new medicines such as Atarax ( hydroxyzine) were developed. Successful sales enabled the pharmaceutical division to expand, and led to the discovery of another important compound, called

piracetam Piracetam is a drug that has efficacy in cognitive disorders, vertigo, cortical myoclonus, dyslexia, and sickle cell anemia; sources differ on its usefulness for dementia. Piracetam is sold as a medication in many European countries. Piracetam ...

. This was marketed in the 1970s as Nootropil and used to treat memory and balance problems. It remains one of UCB's key products. At this time, UCB was a company focusing on three core areas:

pharmaceutical Medication (also called medicament, medicine, pharmaceutical drug, medicinal product, medicinal drug or simply drug) is a drug used to diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent disease. Drug therapy ( pharmacotherapy) is an important part of the ...

chemical A chemical substance is a unique form of matter with constant chemical composition and characteristic properties. Chemical substances may take the form of a single element or chemical compounds. If two or more chemical substances can be combin ...

s and

film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

s. The success of Nootropil made it possible for UCB to build a modern pharmaceutical site in

Braine-l'Alleud Braine-l'Alleud (; ; ) is a Municipalities in Belgium, municipality of Wallonia, in the Provinces of Belgium, province of Walloon Brabant, Belgium, about south of Brussels. The municipality consists of the following districts: Braine-l'Alleud ...

, south of Brussels. There, UCB developed Zyrtec (

cetirizine Cetirizine is a second-generation antihistamine, second-generation Peripherally selective antihistamine used to treat allergic rhinitis (hay fever), dermatitis, and urticaria (hives). It is taken by mouth. Effects generally begin within thirty ...

), a blockbuster

antihistamine Antihistamines are drugs which treat allergic rhinitis, common cold, influenza, and other allergies. Typically, people take antihistamines as an inexpensive, generic (not patented) drug that can be bought without a prescription and provides ...

. Other important products have followed, including Keppra (

levetiracetam Levetiracetam, sold under the brand name Keppra among others, is a novel antiepileptic drug. (medication) used to treat epilepsy. It is used for Focal seizure, partial-onset, Myoclonic epilepsy, myoclonic, or tonic–clonic seizures, and is ta ...

), Xyzal ( levocetirizine), and Cimzia ( certolizumab pegol), which arrived through the acquisition of Celltech. At the end of 2002, the chemicals and films divisions were merged and UCB added the

resin A resin is a solid or highly viscous liquid that can be converted into a polymer. Resins may be biological or synthetic in origin, but are typically harvested from plants. Resins are mixtures of organic compounds, predominantly terpenes. Commo ...

s, additives and

adhesive Adhesive, also known as glue, cement, mucilage, or paste, is any non-metallic substance applied to one or both surfaces of two separate items that binds them together and resists their separation. The use of adhesives offers certain advantage ...

s activities of Solutia to form the surface specialties division. The films part was then sold to Innovia Films in September 2004. The chemicals division methylamines and derivatives was spun off and later sold to form the company Taminco. In May 2004, UCB acquired the British biotechnology company Celltech, followed in March 2005 by the sale of the surface specialties to

Cytec Industries Cytec Industries Incorporated, based in Woodland Park, New Jersey was a speciality chemicals and materials technology company with pro-forma sales in 2004, including the Surface Specialties acquisition, of approximately $3.0 billion. Cytec is ...

. By divesting all of its non-pharmaceutical activities and acquiring Celltech (for $1 billion), UCB transformed itself into a global biopharmaceutical company. In 2006, UCB started the purchase of the German pharmaceutical company Schwarz for €4

billion Billion is a word for a large number, and it has two distinct definitions: * 1,000,000,000, i.e. one thousand million, or (ten to the ninth power), as defined on the short scale. This is now the most common sense of the word in all varieties of ...

. , UCB holds approximately 87% of Schwarz's

outstanding shares Shares outstanding are all the shares of a corporation that have been authorized, issued and purchased by investors and are held by them. They are distinguished from treasury shares, which are shares held by the corporation itself, thus representi ...

. The purchase of Schwarz enabled UCB to introduce two new drugs against CNS disorders: Neupro ( rotigotine), a

transdermal patch A transdermal patch is a medicated adhesive patch that is placed on the skin to deliver a specific Dose (biochemistry), dose of medication through the skin and into the bloodstream. An advantage of a transdermal drug delivery route over ot ...

for treatment of

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a neurodegenerative disease primarily of the central nervous system, affecting both motor system, motor and non-motor systems. Symptoms typically develop gradually and non-motor issues become ...

, and Vimpat ( lacosamide), an

anticonvulsant Anticonvulsants (also known as antiepileptic drugs, antiseizure drugs, or anti-seizure medications (ASM)) are a diverse group of pharmacological agents used in the treatment of epileptic seizures. Anticonvulsants are also used in the treatme ...

. Another drug in the Schwarz

portfolio Portfolio may refer to: Objects * Portfolio (briefcase), a type of briefcase Collections * Portfolio (finance), a collection of assets held by an institution or a private individual * Artist's portfolio, a sample of an artist's work or a ...

, Toviaz (

fesoterodine Fesoterodine (International Nonproprietary Name, INN, used as the fumarate under the brand name Toviaz) is an antimuscarinic drug developed by Schwarz Pharma AG to treat overactive bladder, overactive bladder syndrome (OAB). It was approved by th ...

), a compound to treat

overactive bladder Overactive bladder (OAB) is a common condition where there is a frequent feeling of needing to urinate to a degree that it negatively affects a person's life. The frequent need to urinate may occur during the day, at night, or both. Loss of bl ...

, was licensed to

Pfizer Pfizer Inc. ( ) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Pharmaceutical industry, pharmaceutical and biotechnology corporation headquartered at The Spiral (New York City), The Spiral in Manhattan, New York City. Founded in 184 ...

in 2006. In 2008, UCB established a multi-year collaboration with

Beryllium Beryllium is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Be and atomic number 4. It is a steel-gray, hard, strong, lightweight and brittle alkaline earth metal. It is a divalent element that occurs naturally only in combination with ...

, a developer of treatments for immune and CNS disorders. By 2014, this collaboration had yielded "significant scientific breakthroughs", which led to UCB acquiring a minority stake in the company. In 2015, UCB announced the sale of its branded generics business in

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

and South Asia to

Dr. Reddy's Laboratories Dr. Reddy's Laboratories Ltd. is an Indian multinational Pharmaceutical industry, pharmaceutical company based in Hyderabad. The company was founded by Kallam Anji Reddy, who previously worked in the mentor institute Indian Drugs and Pharmace ...

for INR 8 billion ($128.38 million). In September of the same year, the company offloaded its generics subsidiary (Kremers Urban Pharmaceuticals) to Lannett for $1.23 billion. In October 2019 UCB announced that it would acquire immune system disease specialist Ra Pharma for $2.1 billion. On April 2, 2020, UCB announced that the acquisition has been successfully completed. In January 2022, the company announced it would acquire Zogenix for $1.9 billion ($26 per share).

Notable drugs developed by UCB

* Atarax ( hydroxyzine) * Bimzelx ( bimekizumab) * Briviact (

Brivaracetam Brivaracetam, sold under the brand name Briviact among others, is a chemical analog of levetiracetam, a racetam derivative with anticonvulsant (antiepileptic) properties. It has been approved since 2016. It is marketed by the pharmaceutical co ...

) * Nootropil (

) * Zyrtec (

), an OTC

* Keppra (

), an

medication used to treat

* Xyzal ( levocetirizine), a third-generation non-sedative antihistamine * Cimzia ( certolizumab pegol), a monoclonal antibody to

TNF-α Tumor necrosis factor (TNF), formerly known as TNF-α, is a chemical messenger produced by the immune system that induces inflammation. TNF is produced primarily by activated macrophages, and induces inflammation by binding to its receptors o ...

for the treatment of

Crohn's disease Crohn's disease is a type of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) that may affect any segment of the gastrointestinal tract. Symptoms often include abdominal pain, diarrhea, fever, abdominal distension, and weight loss. Complications outside of the ...

and

rheumatoid arthritis Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a long-term autoimmune disorder that primarily affects synovial joint, joints. It typically results in warm, swollen, and painful joints. Pain and stiffness often worsen following rest. Most commonly, the wrist and h ...

* Neupro ( rotigotine), a

for treatment of

* Vimpat ( lacosamide), an

* Atamet ( carbidopa/levodopa) for Parkinson's disease * Nayzilam (

midazolam Midazolam, sold under the brand name Versed among others, is a benzodiazepine medication used for anesthesia, premedication before surgical anesthesia, and procedural sedation, and to treat psychomotor agitation, severe agitation. It induces ...

) for Seizure Clusters

Corporate governance

Jean-Christophe Tellier became the CEO of UCB in January 2015. He was succeeding Roch Doliveux, who was the CEO from 2004 until December 2014.

Operations

UCB has operations in over 40 countries and employs more than 7500 people. The United States specialty generics subsidiary was Kremers Urban Pharmaceuticals, established in 1904 and based in

Princeton, New Jersey The Municipality of Princeton is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. It was established on January 1, 2013, through the consolidation of the Borough of Princeton, New Jersey, Borough of Princeton and Pri ...

. By November 2015, Lannett Company had acquired Kremers for .

Scandals

In 2004, UCB was fined €10.4 million by the EU for its involvement in a vitamin B4 price fixing cartel. In 2011, UCB was fined $34 million in the US for fraud arising from the mispromotion of Keppra for migraines, despite company research showing it was ineffective for this purpose. In 2015, UCB was investigated by Chinese authorities for corruption and bribery.

References

External links

*
Presscentre.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ucb (Company) Multinational companies headquartered in Belgium Belgian brands Pharmaceutical companies of Belgium Pharmaceutical companies established in 1928 Belgian companies established in 1928 Manufacturing companies based in Brussels Companies listed on Euronext Brussels Companies in the S&P Europe 350 Dividend Aristocrats