* Says in final marketing deal talks on fidaxomicin
* Sees no need to raise capital
* Sees 'sizeable' upfront payment from partnership
* Sees second late-stage study showing positive results
* Says generic Vancocin not to hurt fidaxomicin
By Vidya L Nathan
BANGALORE, Aug 18 (Reuters) - Optimer Pharmaceuticals Inc is in advanced partnership discussions on its experimental antibiotic, fidaxomicin, and expects a second late-stage study to confirm findings from a prior study, its Chief Executive said in an interview.
"The results so far are very similar... we would be extremely surprised if it does not track the first trial," CEO Michael Chang told Reuters.
Optimer's drug to treat clostridium difficile infection -- a bacterial infection in the gut -- is being tested in a second late-stage trial which the company expects to complete before the end of the year.
"With partnering discussions in such an advanced stage, we have no plans to raise capital," Chang said.
"Any kind of partnership should come with a sizeable upfront payment," Chang, who expects to announce a deal in the fourth quarter, said.
While the CEO declined to comment on the upfront payment, he said the company's current $51.2 million in cash is expected to last 18 months.
Optimer said it would prefer finding a partner who would market the drug outside the United States.
Optimer expects fidaxomicin to have global peak sales potential of between $300 million and $600 million.
Most analysts expect Optimer's fidaxomicin to compete with ViroPharma Inc's Vancocin -- generically known as vancomycin -- the only approved drug for the treatment of clostridium difficile infection.
However, CEO Chang does not see potential fidaxomicin's sales getting hurt by generic Vancocin -- hitting the market by late 2009 -- as the first late-stage study of fidaxomicin showed a reduction in the number of patients who suffer a relapse of the infection, as compared with Vancocin.
Instead, Chang identifies the broad-spectrum antibiotic metronidazole, the common first-line treatment for the infection, as the chief competition.
Vancocin's 2008 sales of $232.3 million, represented only between 20 percent and 25 percent of the clostridium difficile infection treatment space, while the larger part of the market is dominated by metronidazole.
Chang sees the lower-priced Vancocin generics taking market share away from metronidazole, making it easier for fidaxomicin to gain a foot-hold.
"The overall vancomycin use is not very high, so having a cheaper generic will help to erode the metronidazole space." (Reporting by Vidya L Nathan in Bangalore; Editing by Anthony Kurian)