On January 7, Savara, a privately held emerging specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the treatment of rare respiratory diseases, and Mast Therapeutics, a publicly traded biopharmaceutical company, announced that the two companies have entered into a definitive merger agreement under which the stockholders of Savara would become the majority owners of Mast, and the operations of Mast and Savara would be combined. Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati is representing Savara in the transaction.

According to a press release, the combined company will advance a pipeline of novel inhalation therapies for the treatment of diseases with significant unmet medical needs, featuring three product candidates, each in advanced clinical development. The transaction is expected to close by the second quarter of 2017, subject to approvals by the stockholders of Mast and Savara and other customary closing conditions.

The Wilson Sonsini team representing Savara in the matter includes:

Corporate:
Robert Suffoletta

M&A:
Robert Ishii
Ethan Lutske
Matthew Baudler

Tax:
Myra Sutanto Shen

Employee Benefits and Compensation:
Madeleine Boshart

Technology Transactions:
Farah Gerdes