Aquestive Therapeutics, Inc. is a pharmaceutical company founded in 2005 as MonoSol Rx LLC, with headquarters and research facilities in Warren, New Jersey, and manufacturing operations in Portage, Indiana. The company adopted the Aquestive Therapeutics name in 2017 and became publicly traded on the Nasdaq under the ticker AQST in 2018. Its business centers on developing, manufacturing and commercializing medicines using alternative drug-delivery technologies, particularly formulations designed to make treatments easier to administer without relying on conventional tablets, liquids or injections.
A key part of Aquestive's technology portfolio is PharmFilm, its proprietary oral film platform that allows medications to dissolve in the mouth or under the tongue. These films can deliver active pharmaceutical ingredients through formats designed to be portable, convenient and suitable for patients who have difficulty swallowing pills or need medication administered quickly. The company uses this technology both for its own pharmaceutical products and through licensing and manufacturing agreements with other drug developers. Its established products and partnerships include Suboxone, used to treat opioid dependence, Sympazan for Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, and other oral film medicines distributed by commercial partners in different markets.
Aquestive's proprietary drug pipeline focuses on conditions where administration methods can be especially important. Libervant, a diazepam buccal film, is designed for the acute treatment of seizure clusters in patients with epilepsy and received U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval for children aged two to five in 2024. Another major program is Anaphylm, a sublingual epinephrine film being developed as a needle-free alternative for emergency treatment of severe allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis. The company is also developing the AdrenaVerse platform, which explores epinephrine-based prodrugs for different applications, including allergy treatments and dermatological conditions such as alopecia areata.
Beyond developing its own medicines, Aquestive provides formulation development, pharmaceutical manufacturing, packaging and licensing services to companies seeking alternatives to traditional drug-delivery formats. Its manufacturing expertise allows it to support products throughout development and commercial production, while licensing agreements give its technologies and medicines access to markets beyond its direct commercial reach. The company's longer-term direction is centered on expanding its proprietary medicine portfolio, advancing alternative delivery systems for complex drugs and building on its experience supplying oral film products internationally. Its combination of drug development and contract manufacturing gives Aquestive a business that extends beyond individual medicines to the underlying technologies used to formulate and deliver them.