Shares of Sweden-based Hansa Biopharma AB (NASDAQ:HNSA) jumped 32.7% to SEK53.90 (US$5.81) on July 2 as Sarepta Therapeutics Inc. became the first partner to license its lead asset, imlifidase, to enable gene therapies to treat muscular dystrophy patients harboring neutralizing antibodies to the adeno-associated virus (AAV) vectors the medicines employ.
Carmine Therapeutics Inc. said Tuesday that Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. has engaged it in a research collaboration aimed at the discovery, development and commercialization of new nonviral gene therapies for two rare disease targets. Terms of the deal included an up-front payment of undisclosed value for Carmine, plus research funding, and more than $900 million in potential milestone payments.
CSL Behring has licensed global rights to Uniqure NV's late-stage hemophilia B gene therapy candidate, AMT-061, for $450 million up front, plus up to $1.6 billion in potential milestone payments and royalties. Uniqure positioned the deal as a boon for its broader gene therapies pipeline, anchored by a Huntington's disease (HD) program. But the move appeared to sour investors hoping for a rumored near-term M&A takeout, sending company shares (NASDAQ:QURE) falling 21.8% to $49.22 on June 25. Despite the market reception, analyst reaction was largely supportive of the move, embracing CSL as a natural fit for the program and, in the words of SVB Leerink analyst Joseph Schwartz, appreciating the transfer of "any potential remaining risk in hemophilia B to CSL Behring as QURE rings the cash register."
LONDON – Sosei Heptares has attracted a third pharma partner to its G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) discovery platform, signing a potential $1 billion-plus deal with Abbvie Inc. in inflammatory and autoimmune diseases.
Yumanity Therapeutics Inc. said that Merck & Co. Inc. is making a big bet on its nascent neurodegenerative disease pipeline, licensing exclusive rights to programs addressing amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and a rare type of dementia in a deal with up to $500 million in potential milestone payments. The collaboration also includes an up-front payment, money toward a series C financing and potential royalties on net sales of the licensed programs, though the value of those elements wasn't disclosed.
Gilead Sciences Inc. has acquired a 49.9% equity interest in privately held Pionyr Immunotherapeutics Inc., which could receive up to $1.15 billion in potential future milestone payments in the deal.
DUBLIN – Translate Bio Inc. is the first beneficiary to gain from Sanofi SA’s massive $11.7 billion addition to its balance sheet, following its recent disposal of its holdings in long-time partner Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. Lexington, Mass.-based Translate Bio is getting $300 million up front, another $125 million in equity investment and up to $1.9 billion in milestones under a major expansion of an existing agreement with Paris-based Sanofi to develop mRNA-based vaccines for infectious disease.
The worldwide option and license agreement Alpine Immune Sciences Inc. drew up with Abbvie Inc. for ALPN-101, a dual CD28/ICOS co-stimulation antagonist for treating systemic lupus erythematosus and other autoimmune diseases, heartily strengthened Alpine’s stock and supports its planned operations into 2023.
Glaxosmithkline plc (GSK) will collaborate in three of Ideaya Biosciences Inc.’s synthetic lethality programs, MAT2A (methionine adenosyltransferase 2a), Pol Theta (polymerase theta) and Werner Helicase, in a deal that Ideaya estimated could be worth billions.
Neurocrine Biosciences Inc.’s chief business development and strategy officer, Kyle Gano, said “there was really no playbook” for the deal in which his firm is paying Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. $120 million up front for an exclusive license to seven programs, including three clinical-stage assets targeting the notoriously difficult indications of schizophrenia and treatment-resistant depression (TRD), as well as depression-related anhedonia.
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