Abbott is to acquire worldwide development and commercialisation rights to Action Pharma’s AP214, an alpha-MSH (melanocyte-stimulating hormone) peptide derivative in Phase IIb development for the prevention of acute kidney injury associated with major cardiac surgery, for a one-time cash payment of US$110 M. Zealand Pharma, from which Action licensed the SIP® (structure induced probe) peptide modification technology that has been used in the development of AP214, also stands to benefit from the deal.