Mergers & acquisitions
Novartis acquired Vedere Bio in a deal totaling up to $280 million. The takeout broadens Novartis’ footprint in gene and cell therapy, with Vedere Bio’s gene therapy platforms for ophthalmic disorders.
The deal, which is worth up to $2.15 billion, is expected to close in the first quarter of 2021 and is subject to regulatory approval.
Bayer is paying $2 billion upfront for AskBio’s AAV-based gene therapy pipeline of treatments for Pompe disease, among others, and could pay an additional $2 billion in potential milestones.
Bay Area-based insitro snapped up neighboring Haystack Sciences to bolster its machine-learning drug discovery programs with that company’s higher resolution dataset-producing technology.
OT-58 is Orphan’s novel investigational enzyme replacement therapy. It is currently in Phase I/II development for classical HCU, a rare metabolic disorder marked by increased levels of plasma homocysteine.
Arixa Pharmaceuticals announced on Thursday that Pfizer’s hospital business has agreed to acquire the company. Arixa has been developing oral antibiotics for antibiotic-resistant Gram-negative infections.
Eli Lilly is betting on a new approach to axonal degeneration, announcing a definitive agreement to acquire Disarm Therapeutics, a privately-held biotech company committed to solving this mystery.
Astellas Pharma is building on a 2019 collaborative relationship and snapping up California-based iota Biosciences and that company’s bioelectronics technology in order to accelerate its Rx+ business.
10X Genomics just agreed to acquire ReadCoor, Inc., an innovator in the nascent field of in situ technology. The $350 million deal comes on the heels of 10x Genomics’ August acquisition of CartaNA AB, a Stockholm-based developer of in situ RNA analysis technology.
The transaction between BridgeBio and Eidos is expected to close in the first quarter of 2021.
PRESS RELEASES