Avanir Pharmaceuticals Inc
A California biopharmaceutical company built around a pioneering medicine for the brain and nerves. Its flagship product, NUEDEXTA, treats pseudobulbar affect, a neurological condition in which people suddenly break into uncontrollable laughing or crying fits, often after a stroke, ALS, or multiple sclerosis. The company began in 1988 as Lidak Pharmaceuticals, renamed itself Avanir in 1998, and was later acquired by Japan's Otsuka Pharmaceutical.