MISSISSAUGA, ON, July 12, 2016 /CNW/ - Cipher Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:CPHR; TSX:CPH) ("Cipher" or "the Company") today announced that its New Drug Submission for Ozenoxacin has been accepted for review by Health Canada. Ozenoxacin is a topical treatment proposed for use in adult and paediatric patients with impetigo, a highly contagious bacterial skin infection. Cipher acquired the Canadian commercialization rights to Ozenoxacin from Ferrer International SA ("Ferrer"), a privately-held Spanish pharmaceutical company, in January 2015.

"This represents another important milestone on our path to commercialization of this alternative treatment for one of the most common bacterial skin infections in children – a condition that has become more challenging with the emergence of treatment-resistant bacterial pathogens," said Joan Chypyha, GM of Cipher Canada. "As we continue to expand our Canadian product portfolio, we believe Ozenoxacin has high potential in the topical impetigo market, should it receive approval."

Ozenoxacin belongs to a new generation of non-fluorinated quinolones that have demonstrated improved tolerability and safety over fluorinated quinolones.  Phototoxicity, photoallergenic sensitization and articular toxicity were not observed in local tolerability studies¹.  Ozenoxacin  also demonstrated in vitro and in vivo antibacterial activity against a broad range of pathologically relevant bacteria, including methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) strains and clinical isolates of organisms with emerging resistance to quinolones and other topical antibiotics.

In July 2015, Ferrer successfully completed the second phase III clinical trial for Ozenoxacin. The study, which involved Ozenoxacin formulated as a topical treatment for impetigo in adults and peadiatric patients aged 2 months and older, demonstrated the superiority of Ozenoxacin 1% cream, applied twice daily for 5 days, versus placebo on both the clinical and bacteriological endpoints by end of therapy visit (day 6-7). In addition, Ozenoxacin 1% cream demonstrated superior bacteriological cure compared to placebo as early as visit 2 (day 3-4).  Ozenoxacin 1% cream was shown to be safe and very well tolerated in the adult and paediatric population.

About Ferrer
Founded in 1959, Ferrer is a privately-held Spanish pharmaceutical company. It is present in more than 90 countries, with 23 international affiliates. Ferrer is active in the pharmaceutical, health, fine chemicals and food sectors; key areas for contributing to people's health and quality of life. The main therapeutic areas covered by Ferrer's pharmaceutical production are dermatology, cardiovascular, CNS, cancer, gastrointestinal, analgesics, bone metabolism, anti-infectives, immunology, diagnostics, OTC and dermocosmetics. www.ferrer.com

About Cipher Pharmaceuticals Inc.
Cipher Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:CPHR; TSX:CPH) is a rapidly growing specialty pharmaceutical dermatology company with a diversified portfolio of commercial-stage products with the goal of becoming the most customer-centric dermatology company in North America.

Cipher completed seven transactions in 2015, including the acquisition of Innocutis and its nine branded dermatology products, to build its U.S. commercial presence, expand its Canadian dermatology franchise and broaden its pipeline. Cipher is well-capitalized to drive long-term, sustained earnings growth by leveraging its proven clinical development capabilities and efficient commercial execution. For more information, visit www.cipherpharma.com.

Forward-Looking Statements
Statements made in this news release may be forward-looking and therefore subject to various risks and uncertainties. The words "may", "will", "could", "should", "would", "suspect", "outlook", "believe", "plan", "anticipate", "estimate", "expect", "intend", "forecast", "objective", "hope" and "continue" (or the negative thereof), and words and expressions of similar import, are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Certain material factors or assumptions are applied in making forward-looking statements and actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in such statements. Factors that could cause results to vary include those identified in the Company's Annual Information Form, Form 40-F and other filings with Canadian and U.S. securities regulatory authorities. These factors include, but are not limited to, our ability to enter into in-licensing, development, manufacturing and marketing and distribution agreements with other pharmaceutical companies and keep such agreements in effect; our dependency on a limited number of products; integration difficulties and other risks if we acquire or in-license technologies or product candidates; reliance on third parties for the marketing of certain products; the product approval process is highly unpredictable; the timing of completion of clinical trials; reliance on third parties to manufacture our products; we may be subject to product liability claims; unexpected product safety or efficacy concerns may arise; we generate license revenue from a limited number of distribution and supply agreements; the pharmaceutical industry is highly competitive; requirements for additional capital to fund future operations; dependence on key managerial personnel and external collaborators; no assurance that we will receive regulatory approvals in the U.S., Canada or any other jurisdictions; certain of our products are subject to regulation as controlled substances; limitations on reimbursement in the healthcare industry; limited reimbursement for products by government authorities and third-party payor policies; various laws pertaining to health care fraud and abuse; reliance on the success of strategic investments and partnerships; the publication of negative results of clinical trials; unpredictable development goals and projected time frames; rising insurance costs; ability to enforce covenants not to compete; risks associated with the industry in which it operates; we may be unsuccessful in evaluating material risks involved in completed and future acquisitions; we may be unable to identify, acquire or integrate acquisition targets successfully; operations in the U.S.; inability to meet covenants under our debt obligations; compliance with privacy and security regulation; our policies regarding returns, allowances and chargebacks may reduce revenues; certain regulations could restrict our activities; additional regulatory burden and controls over financial reporting; reliance on third parties to perform certain services; general commercial litigation, class actions, other litigation claims and regulatory actions; being a foreign private issuer may limit the information available to U.S. shareholders; we may lose our foreign private issuer status which could result in significant additional costs; the potential violation of intellectual property rights of third parties; our efforts to obtain, protect or enforce our patents and other intellectual property rights related to our products; changes in U.S., Canadian or foreign patent laws; litigation in the pharmaceutical industry concerning the manufacture and supply of novel and generic versions of existing drugs; inability to protect our trademarks from infringement; shareholders may be further diluted; volatility of our share price; a significant shareholder; we do not currently intend to pay dividends; our operating results may fluctuate significantly; and our debt obligations will have priority over the Common Shares in the event of a liquidation, dissolution or winding up. All forward-looking statements presented herein should be considered in conjunction with such filings. Except as required by Canadian or U.S. securities laws, the Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements; such statements speak only as of the date made

¹ S.Itoh, S. Nakayama, H. Shimada, In vitro photochemical clastogenicity of quinolone antibacterial agents studied by a chromosomal aberration test with light irradiation, Mutation Research 517 (2002) 113-121.

SOURCE Cipher Pharmaceuticals Inc.