Idorsia’s treatment for insomnia disorder wins the inaugural Prix Galien Bridges Award in the ‘Best Biotechnology & Pharmaceutical Product’ category
- Idorsia’s dual orexin receptor antagonist, the first and only drug of its kind approved in Europe for the treatment of insomnia disorder, has been awarded the inaugural Prix Galien Bridges Award in the category of “Best Biotechnology & Pharmaceutical Product”
- Inaugural winners are honored for breakthrough innovations in life sciences
Allschwil, Switzerland – December 9, 2025
Idorsia Ltd (SIX: IDIA) announces that its novel treatment for insomnia disorder has been awarded the inaugural Prix Galien Bridges Award in the category of “Best Biotechnology & Pharmaceutical Product”. The award recognizes groundbreaking medicines, including biologics, gene therapies, and traditional pharmaceutical compounds, that advance patient care through scientific innovation.
Bettina Blosse, General Manager of Idorsia Nordics, commented:
"We are immensely proud to have been awarded the prestigious Prix Galien, particularly the first of its kind in the Nordics. The recognition from the jury is a wonderful endorsement of Idorsia 's commitment to innovation in healthcare and the value that the new treatment brings to improving patient care for insomnia disorder. My team is working to make this medicine accessible to all patients in the Nordic region.”
Martine Clozel, MD and Chief Scientific Officer added:
“Our research team began work on the science of orexin and orexin receptors immediately after they were first described in 1998. Our initial work led to the understanding that antagonism of the orexin system induced a very physiological sleep. With a treatment of insomnia disorder in mind, the team set the target to design a dual orexin receptor antagonist that, among a number of criteria, would achieve a rapid onset of effect and a duration of action sufficient to cover the totality of the night at optimally effective doses, avoiding morning carry-over effects. It took us more than 10 years, and we had to synthesize and characterize more than 25,000 compounds to arrive at the molecule which has now been recognized with the Prix Galien Bridges Award – for improving not only the nights of patients with insomnia disorder, but also most importantly their daytime functioning.”
The Prix Galien Awards were created in 1970 by Roland Mehl in honor of Galien, the father of medical science and modern pharmacology, to recognize outstanding innovation and scientific advancement. With chapters in 16 countries and Africa, Prix Galien is regarded worldwide as the equivalent of the Nobel Prize for the life science industry.
For more information about the Foundation, visit: https://www.galienfoundation.org/
For more information about Prix Galien Bridges, visit: https://www.galienfoundation.org/prix-galien-bridges.
Notes to the editor
About The Galien Foundation
The Galien Foundation fosters, recognizes, and rewards excellence in scientific innovation to improve the state of human health. Our vision is to be the catalyst for the development of the next generation of innovative treatments and technologies that will impact the state of medical practice and save lives. The late Professor Elie Wiesel, 1986 Peace Nobel Laureate, is The Honorary Founding President of The Galien Foundation
The Foundation oversees and directs activities in the US for the Prix Galien, an international awards program dedicated to progress through innovative medicines development, with chapters in 14 countries, Africa and an inaugural chapter established in India in 2024. The Prix Galien was created in 1970 by Roland Mehl in honor of Galen, the father of medical science and modern pharmacology.
About insomnia disorder
Insomnia disorder is defined as difficulty initiating or maintaining sleep, causing clinically significant distress or impairment in important areas of daytime functioning. This impact on sleep quantity or quality should be present for at least three nights per week, over the period of at least three months, and occurs despite an adequate opportunity to sleep.1
Insomnia is a state of overactive wake signals and studies have shown that in patients with insomnia, brain regions associated with wakefulness remain more active during sleep.2,3 Insomnia disorder is a common problem with an estimated prevalence in Switzerland of 9.2% of the working-age population.4
Insomnia as a disorder is distinctly different from a short period of poor sleep and it can affect both physical and mental health.1,5 It is a persistent condition that has a negative impact on daytime performance.1 Idorsia 's research has shown that poor sleep quality can affect many aspects of daily life, including the ability to concentrate, mood and energy levels.
The goal of treating insomnia is to improve sleep quality and quantity, as well as daytime performance, while avoiding side and after-effects the next morning. The currently recommended treatment for insomnia includes sleep hygiene, cognitive behavioral therapy and pharmacotherapy.4
About the orexin system
Wake and sleep signaling is regulated by intricate neural circuitry in the brain. One key component of this process is the orexin system, which helps promote wakefulness.6,7 There are two forms of orexin neuropeptides – small protein-like molecules used by nerve cells (neurons) to communicate with each other in the brain – orexin A and orexin B.6,8 Orexin promotes wakefulness through its receptors OX1R and OX2R. 6,8 Together, these neuropeptides and receptors make up the orexin system. The orexin system stimulates targeted neurons in the wake system – leading to the release of several chemicals (serotonin, histamine, acetylcholine, norepinephrine) – to promote wakefulness.9 Under normal circumstances, orexin levels rise throughout the day as wakefulness is promoted and then fall at night.10 Overactivity of the wake system is an important driver of insomnia.7
The Idorsia research team has been studying the science of orexin and orexin receptors since they were first described in 1998. The team 's initial work led to the conclusion that antagonism of the orexin system is key to maintaining natural sleep architecture in patients with insomnia. With this goal in mind, the team developed dual antagonists with the aim of a rapid onset of action and a duration of action sufficient to bridge the night but short enough to minimize any negative residual activity the next morning at optimally effective doses.
References
- The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.; DSM–5; American Psychiatric Association, 2013).
- Buysse, D.J., et al. Drug Discov Today Dis Models. 2011;8(4):129-137.
- Levenson, J.C., et al. Chest. 2015;147(4):1179-1192.
- Hafner, Marco, et al., 2023. Santa Monica. CA: RAND Corporation.
- Wardle-Pinkston S., et al. Sleep Med Rev. 2019;48.
- Muehlan, C., et al. J Psychopharmacol. 2020;34(3):326-335.
- Boof, M.L., et al. Eur J Clin Pharmacol. 2019;75(2):195-205.
- Muehlan, C., et al. Expert Opin. Drug Metab. Toxicol. 2020;16(11):1063–1078.
- Clifford, B.S., et al. Trends Neurosci. 2001;24(12).726-31.
- Gotter, A.L., et al. BMC Neuroscience. 2013;14(1):14-19.
About Idorsia
The purpose of Idorsia is to challenge accepted medical paradigms, answering the questions that matter most. To achieve this, we will discover, develop, and commercialize transformative medicines – either with in-house capabilities or together with partners – and evolve Idorsia into a leading biopharmaceutical company, with a strong scientific core.
Headquartered near Basel, Switzerland – a European biotech hub – Idorsia has a highly experienced team of dedicated professionals, covering all disciplines from bench to bedside; QUVIVIQ™ (daridorexant), a different kind of insomnia treatment with the potential to revolutionize this mounting public health concern; strong partners to maximize the value of our portfolio; a promising in-house development pipeline; and a specialized drug discovery engine focused on small-molecule drugs that can change the treatment paradigm for many patients. Idorsia is listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange (ticker symbol: IDIA).
For further information, please contact:
Investor & Media Relations
Idorsia Pharmaceuticals Ltd, Hegenheimermattweg 91, CH-4123 Allschwil
+41 58 844 10 10
investor.relations@idorsia.com – media.relations@idorsia.com – www.idorsia.com
The above information contains certain "forward-looking statements ", relating to the company 's business, which can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as “intend”, "estimates ", "believes ", "expects ", "may ", "are expected to ", "will ", "will continue ", "should ", "would be ", "seeks ", "pending " or "anticipates " or similar expressions, or by discussions of strategy, plans or intentions. Such statements include descriptions of the company 's investment and research and development programs, business development activities and anticipated expenditures in connection therewith, descriptions of new products expected to be introduced by the company and anticipated customer demand for such products and products in the company 's existing portfolio. Such statements reflect the current views of the company with respect to future events and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Many factors could cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the company to be materially different from any future results, performances or achievements that may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described herein as anticipated, believed, estimated or expected.
Attachment
© 2025 GlobeNewswire, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
