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 (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

, 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 and spinal cord. The CNS is so named because the brain integrates the received information and coordinates and influences the activity of all p ...

(CNS) disorders (including

epilepsy Epilepsy is a group of non-communicable neurological disorders characterized by recurrent epileptic seizures. Epileptic seizures can vary from brief and nearly undetectable periods to long periods of vigorous shaking due to abnormal electrica ...

), inflammatory disorders (including

allergy Allergies, also known as allergic diseases, refer a number of conditions caused by the hypersensitivity of the immune system to typically harmless substances in the environment. These diseases include hay fever, food allergies, atopic derm ...

), 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 etymological origin is the Greek word ὄγκος (''ó ...

. 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 that produce industrial chemicals. Central to the modern world economy, it converts raw materials (oil, natural gas, air, water, metals, and minerals) into more than 70,000 different products. The pla ...

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 marketed as a treatment for myoclonus. It is also used as a cognitive enhancer to improve memory, attention, and learning. Evidence to support its use is unclear, with some studies showing modest benefits in specific popula ...

. This was marketed in the 1970s as Nootropil and used to treat memory and

balance problems A balance disorder is a disturbance that causes an individual to feel unsteady, for example when standing or walking. It may be accompanied by feelings of giddiness, or wooziness, or having a sensation of movement, spinning, or floating. Balance ...

. It remains one of UCB's key products. At this time, UCB was a company focusing on three core areas:

pharmaceutical A medication (also called medicament, medicine, pharmaceutical drug, 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 medical field and ...

chemical A chemical substance is a form of matter having constant chemical composition and characteristic properties. Some references add that chemical substance cannot be separated into its constituent elements by physical separation methods, i.e., w ...

s and

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmospher ...

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

Braine-l'Alleud Braine-l'Alleud (; nl, Eigenbrakel ; wa, Brinne-l'-Alou) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Walloon Brabant, Belgium, about south of Brussels. The municipality consists of the following districts: Braine-l'Alleud (includ ...

, south of Brussels. There, UCB developed Zyrtec (

cetirizine Cetirizine, sold under the brand name Zyrtec among others, is a second-generation antihistamine used to treat allergic rhinitis (hay fever), dermatitis, and urticaria (hives). It is taken by mouth. Effects generally begin within thirty minutes a ...

), a

blockbuster Blockbuster or Block Buster may refer to: *Blockbuster (entertainment) a term coined for an extremely successful movie, from which most other uses are derived. Corporations * Blockbuster (retailer), a defunct video and game rental chain ** Bl ...

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 provide ...

. Other important products have followed, including Keppra (

levetiracetam Levetiracetam, sold under the brand name Keppra among others, is a medication used to treat epilepsy. It is used for partial-onset, myoclonic, or tonic–clonic seizures and is taken either by mouth as an immediate or extended release formu ...

), Xyzal (

levocetirizine Levocetirizine, sold under the brand name Xyzal among others, is a second-generation antihistamine used for the treatment of allergic rhinitis (hay fever) and long term hives of unclear cause. It is less sedating than older antihistamines. It is ...

), and Cimzia (

certolizumab pegol Certolizumab pegol, sold under the brand name Cimzia, is a biologic medication for the treatment of Crohn's disease, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis. It is a fragment of a monoclonal antibody specific to tu ...

), which arrived through the acquisition of Celltech. At the end of 2002, the chemicals and films divisions were merged and UCB added the

resin In polymer chemistry and materials science, resin is a solid or highly viscous substance of plant or synthetic origin that is typically convertible into polymers. Resins are usually mixtures of organic compounds. This article focuses on nat ...

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 advant ...

s activities of

Solutia Solutia Inc. was an American manufacturer of materials and specialty chemicals including polyvinyl butyral (PVB), ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA), and thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) interlayers for laminated glass, aftermarket window films, pro ...

to form the surface specialties division. The films part was then sold to

Innovia Films Innovia Films, a division of CCL Industries, is an international manufacturer and supplier of biaxially-oriented polypropylene (BOPP) films for speciality packaging, labelling, tobacco overwrap and industrial products. It was once known as UCB F ...

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 Celltech Group plc was a leading British-based biotechnology business based in Slough. It was listed on the London Stock Exchange and was a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. History Celltech was founded by Gerard Fairtlough in 1980 with financ ...

, followed in March 2005 by the sale of the surface specialties to Cytec Industries. 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 its only current meaning in English. * 1,000,000,000,000, i. ...

. , 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 represent ...

. 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 of medication through the skin and into the bloodstream. An advantage of a transdermal drug delivery route over other types of medica ...

for treatment of

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a long-term degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that mainly affects the motor system. The symptoms usually emerge slowly, and as the disease worsens, non-motor symptoms beco ...

, and Vimpat (

lacosamide Lacosamide, sold under the brand name Vimpat among others, is a medication used for the treatment of partial-onset seizures and primary generalized tonic-clonic seizures. It is used by mouth or intravenously. It is available as a generic medic ...

), an

anticonvulsant Anticonvulsants (also known as antiepileptic drugs or recently as antiseizure drugs) are a diverse group of pharmacological agents used in the treatment of epileptic seizures. Anticonvulsants are also increasingly being used in the treatment of ...

. 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 c ...

, Toviaz ( fesoterodine), a compound to treat

overactive bladder Overactive bladder (OAB) is a 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. If there is loss ...

, was licensed to

Pfizer Pfizer Inc. ( ) is an American multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology corporation headquartered on 42nd Street in Manhattan, New York City. The company was established in 1849 in New York by two German entrepreneurs, Charles Pfize ...

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

Beryllium Beryllium is a chemical element with the symbol Be and atomic number 4. It is a steel-gray, strong, lightweight and brittle alkaline earth metal. It is a divalent element that occurs naturally only in combination with other elements to for ...

, 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 November 2014, UCB announced its intention to sell off its generics subsidiary (Kremers Urban Pharmaceuticals) for more than $1.5 billion to two private equity firms. In 2015, UCB announced the sale of its branded generics business in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), 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 and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

and South Asia to Dr. Reddy's Laboratories for INR 8 billion ($128.38 million). In September of the same year the company offloaded its generics business 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) * Briviact ( Brivaracetam) * Nootropil (

) * Zyrtec (

), an OTC

* Keppra (

), an

medication used to treat

* Xyzal (

), a third-generation non-sedative antihistamine * Cimzia (

), a monoclonal antibody to TNF-α 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 (which may be bloody if inflammation is severe), fever, abdominal distensi ...

and

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

* Neupro ( rotigotine), a

for treatment of

* Vimpat (

), an

* Atamet (

carbidopa/levodopa Carbidopa/levodopa, also known as levocarb and co-careldopa, is the combination of the two medications carbidopa and levodopa. It is primarily used to manage the symptoms of Parkinson's disease, but it does not slow down the disease or stop it ...

) for Parkinson's disease

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 Princeton is a municipality with a borough form of government in Mercer County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It was established on January 1, 2013, through the consolidation of the Borough of Princeton and Princeton Township, both of w ...

. 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