Serial investor Nigel Wray holds an eight per cent stake in AIM-quoted Alliance, which says Posidorm will need between £4 million and £6 million to take to market in three to four years.
Posidorm addresses the sleep hormone melatonin and does not have either the side effects or addictive qualities of traditional sedative treatments for sleeplessness, argues Dawson. The drug has successfully completed the pilot phases of Phase III trials on shift workers and elderly patients, but changes in regulatory procedures mean the expected launch date has been deferred until 2010 or 2011.
If all goes well, that implies peak sales
for Posidorm by 2016. Meanwhile, Alliance Pharma, which last year turned a pre-tax loss of £660,000 into a £500,000 pre-tax profit on turnover up 17 per cent to £17.3 million, is
driving other products, having raised £2.5 million at 17p last year.
These include Forceval, a nutritional supplement for pregnant women, for which the company now has global distribution rights. Alliance Pharma, whose shares have halved to 11p in three years, is also looking to acquire niche brands being divested by big drugs groups.
If it finds a friend for Posidorm, recovery could be strong.

Alliance Pharma	AIM	£7.49m	4.62p	0.00p
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