Pediatric Praziquantel Consortium

What Pediatric Praziquantel Consortium does

The Pediatric Praziquantel Consortium is an international not-for-profit public-private partnership established in July 2012 and coordinated by Lygature (a Dutch foundation headquartered in Utrecht, the Netherlands). Its core mission is to develop, register, and provide access to a suitable pediatric formulation of praziquantel for treating schistosomiasis in preschool-aged children (3 months to 6 years), addressing a treatment gap affecting an estimated 50 million preschool-age children globally and roughly 206 million people infected overall. The Consortium's core product is arpraziquantel, a 150mg orodispersible tablet formulation designed to be child-friendly, palatable, and stable in tropical climates, developed through a structured program comprising preclinical development, Phase II and Phase III clinical trials, and registration activities. The formulation has secured EMA positive scientific opinion (December 2023), WHO prequalification (May 2024), WHO Essential Medicines List inclusion (2025), and a first marketing authorization in Tanzania (2025), with the first preschool-aged child treated in Uganda in March 2025 under the ADOPT Program.

The Consortium operates as a partnership of five core members — Merck KGaA (Darmstadt, Germany) as program lead, Astellas Pharma Inc. (Tokyo, Japan), Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Basel, Switzerland), Fiocruz/Farmanguinhos (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) as the first global producer, and Lygature — supplemented by implementation partners including the Schistosomiasis Control Initiative, Kenya Medical Research Institute, Université Félix Houphouët-Boigny, and contract manufacturer Universal Corporation (Kenya). The business model is grant-funded rather than commercial: the treatment is provided free of charge to patients through national NTD control programs and mass drug administration campaigns operated by ministries of health in endemic countries. Funding has flowed from the GHIT Fund (five grants since 2014 totaling approximately US$15.6M), EDCTP (co-funding the €12.10M Phase III program), and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, alongside in-kind contributions from pharmaceutical partners. In February 2026, the Consortium held its final meeting in Utrecht, marking the conclusion of its core development, registration, and access mission after more than a decade of collaboration.

Name

Pediatric Praziquantel Consortium

Legal name

Lygature

Website

https://pediatricpraziquantelconsortium.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Pediatric Praziquantel Consortium is an international not-for-profit public-private partnership that developed arpraziquantel, a child-friendly 150mg dispersible tablet for treating schistosomiasis in preschool-aged children aged 3 months to 6 years, and delivered it free of charge through national NTD programs in endemic African countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Pediatric Antischistosomal Pharmaceuticals

NAICS

Scientific Research and Development Services (5417)

SIC

Services-Misc Health & Allied Services, Nec (8090)

akta.pro primary industry

Clinical Development (Phase I–III Trial Design & Execution) (HLAIALAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Rare Infectious Disease Therapies (HLAIAIAF)

Keywords

• Pediatric drug development
• Schistosomiasis treatment
• Neglected tropical diseases
• Public health partnership
• Dispersible tablet formulation

Headquarters

HQ city

Utrecht

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Not-for-profit public health initiative: The Consortium is a not-for-profit international public-private partnership. The new pediatric treatment is provided free of charge to young patients in need through the ADOPT Program and mass drug administration programs supported by ministries of health and global health organizations.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Pediatric Praziquantel Consortium develops, registers, and provides access to arpraziquantel, a 150mg dispersible tablet formulation of praziquantel designed specifically for preschool-aged children (3 months to 6 years) with schistosomiasis. The product is supported by a Development & Registration Program and an Access Program (including the ADOPT implementation research program) that integrates the treatment into national neglected tropical disease control programs in endemic sub-Saharan African countries.

Product overview

The Pediatric Praziquantel Consortium is an international public-private partnership developing and providing access to a child-friendly treatment for schistosomiasis in preschool-aged children. The core product is arpraziquantel, a 150mg dispersible tablet formulation designed for children aged 3 months to 6 years. The Consortium's work encompasses the Development & Registration Program (preclinical, clinical development, and registration phases) and the Access Program (including the ADOPT Program for implementation research and delivery). The arpraziquantel tablet is child-friendly, palatable, and stable in tropical climates, specifically developed to address the treatment gap for preschoolers who previously had no approved, age-appropriate treatment option for schistosomiasis.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ADOPT Program: Implementation research program that paves the way for large-scale delivery of the new pediatric medication to treat schistosomiasis in preschool-age children in endemic countries, once registered.
• arpraziquantel

Products and services

• arpraziquantel (150mg dispersible tablet) A child-friendly, palatable, 150mg dispersible tablet formulation of praziquantel designed for preschool-aged children (3 months to 6 years) to treat schistosomiasis, stable in tropical climates and suitable for endemic regions.
• ADOPT Program Implementation research program that paves the way for large-scale delivery of the new pediatric medication to treat schistosomiasis in preschool-age children in endemic countries, focusing on real-world delivery, acceptability, and health system integration.
• Development & Registration Program Pediatric drug development program structured into preclinical development, clinical development, and registration & access stages, aimed at developing and registering a suitable pediatric praziquantel formulation for preschool-aged children.
• Access Program Strategy exploring new procurement and business models and conducting implementation research to ensure the new pediatric treatment is available free of charge to young patients in need.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 250 million people affected by schistosomiasis globally
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Universal Corporation Ltd. (Kenya)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 15 July 2021Contract manufacturing agreement signed with Merck for production of the new pediatric treatment. Technology transfer to Universal (Kenya) advanced significantly, supporting large-scale, regional production and long-term supply security.
• Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 May 2018Provides expertise on local disease epidemiology, clinical trials and clinical care. Responsible for conduct of trials in Kenya according to Good Clinical Practice and national/local regulatory and ethics standards. Located at Centre for Global Health Research in western Kenya along Lake Victoria.
• Université Félix Houphouët-Boigny (Côte d'Ivoire)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 May 2018Involved in Phase II and Phase III clinical trials. Provides expertise on local disease epidemiology, clinical trials and clinical care. Responsible for trials in Côte d'Ivoire according to Good Clinical Practice and regulatory standards. Based in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire.
• Schistosomiasis Control Initiative (SCI)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 12 October 2016Non-profit initiative at Imperial College London that supports treatment programs against schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminthiasis in sub-Saharan African countries and Yemen. Facilitates preparation and implementation of the Access and Delivery plan.
• Farmanguinhos (Instituto de Tecnologia em Fármacos/Fiocruz)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 25 March 2014Federal governmental pharmaceutical laboratory of the Fiocruz Foundation in Brazil. Brings unique expertise to produce and distribute the new pediatric formulations in endemic countries. First global producer of the Consortium's new pediatric treatment. Av. Brasil, 4365, Manguinhos, Rio de Janeiro - RJ, ZIP Code 21045-900.
• Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, GermanycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 July 2012Leads the Consortium program and provides expertise and support relating to PZQ, including internal resources from drug product manufacturing, preclinical, clinical, and regulatory areas. Also responsible for development and manufacturing of the L-PZQ Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient (API). Frankfurter Strasse 250, 64293 Darmstadt, Germany.
• Astellas Pharma Inc. (Japan)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 July 2012Developed the new pediatric PZQ formulations and provides expert advice on clinical development in children and pharmacokinetic modeling. 5-1, Nihonbashi-Honcho 2-chome, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 103-8411, Japan.
• Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 July 2012Not-for-profit institute internationally renowned for research, services, teaching and training in global health. Contributes extensive experience in helminths biological and pharmacological research, epidemiology, and clinical research in endemic regions. Socinstrasse 57, 4051 Basel, Switzerland.
• Lygature (formerly Stichting Top Institute Pharma)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 July 2012Acts as independent coordinator of the Consortium, providing governance in terms of progress, finance and collaboration. Since 2006, Lygature has supported close to a hundred public-private partnerships in life sciences & health. Galileiweg 8, 2333 BD Leiden, The Netherlands (registered office at Jaarbeursplein 6, 3521 AL Utrecht, The Netherlands).

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• FIND (Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics): Global health not-for-profit driving diagnostic innovation for poverty-related diseases, with similar PPP structure, WHO collaboration, and focus on access to health technologies in low-resource settings.
• Concept Foundation: Not-for-profit organization improving access to sexual and reproductive health products in low- and middle-income countries, with similar focus on product development partnerships, public health access, and free-of-charge distribution models.
• European Vaccine Initiative (EVI): Not-for-profit organization supporting vaccine R&D for diseases of poverty, with similar PPP structure involving academia, industry, and global health funders and comparable EU/EDCTP funding relationships.
• Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV): Public-private partnership focused on developing and delivering new antimalarial treatments, including pediatric formulations, with similar funding structure from foundations and government grants and comparable access-focused mission.
• TB Alliance: Not-for-profit product development partnership developing faster, better tuberculosis treatments, including pediatric formulations, using a consortium model with global health partners and similar EMA/WHO regulatory pathway.
• International Vaccine Institute (IVI): International organization dedicated to developing and introducing new vaccines for global health, headquartered in Seoul with similar multi-stakeholder governance model, country implementation focus, and donor dependency.
• GARDP (Global Antibiotic Research & Development Partnership): Public-private partnership developing new antibiotic treatments addressing global public health needs, with similar focus on access programs, public health partnerships, and inclusion of pediatric populations.
• Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi): Not-for-profit R&D organization developing treatments for neglected diseases including pediatric formulations, using a similar public-private partnership model with pharma, academic, and government partners and a comparable focus on access for low- and middle-income countries.

Broad incumbents

• Innovative Health Initiative (IHI / former IMI): Large European public-private partnership funding health research and innovation, including pediatric drug development, with similar coordination model via Lygature-like intermediary organizations and EDCTP-style EU funding mechanisms.
• GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance: Public-private partnership focused on vaccine access in lower-income countries, using similar PPP model with industry, governments, and philanthropies to address global health challenges for pediatric populations.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/pedpzq
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/pediatric-praziquantel-consortium

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Pediatric Praziquantel Consortium