NEW YORK (AP) -- Forest Laboratories Inc. said Thursday it filed for marketing approval of its depression drug levomilnacipran.
Forest and its partner Pierre Fabre Laboratories asked the Food and Drug Administration to approve levomilnacipran as a treatment for major depressive disorder in adults. The FDA usually takes 10 months to review an application for a new drug, meaning the agency could make a decision on the application in late July.
Levomilnacipran is a serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor, or SNRI. SNRIs are commonly used to treat depression and anxiety, and examples include Eli Lilly and Co.'s Cymbalta, Pfizer Inc.'s Effexor and Pristiq. Pierre Fabre discovered the drug and Forest helped develop it in the U.S. and Canada. The French drugmaker will supply the active ingredient in levomilnacipran to Forest.
Shares of Forest Laboratories fell a penny to $35.90 in morning trading.
