AstraZeneca to buy Omthera for $323 million

PRINCETON, N.J. — Anglo-Swedish drug maker AstraZeneca will buy Omthera Pharmaceuticals for $323 million, the two companies said Tuesday.

Omthera, based in Princeton, N.J., develops drugs for dyslipidemia, conditions that result in abnormal levels of lipids in the blood. Its lead products include Epanova, an experimental drug for patients with high triglycerides that's based on omega-3 fatty acids; Omthera has finished late-stage clinical trials of the drug and plans to file for Food and Drug Administration approval in mid-2013.

"The number of people with elevated triglyceride levels is rising rapidly across the world, due in part to the increasing prevalence of obesity and diabetes," AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot said. "There is a clear need for effective and convenient alternatives to some of the existing treatments."