BioGen to acquire Human Immunology Biosciences for $1.15bn
Betsy Goodfellow | May 23, 2024 | News story | Business Services | Biogen, HI-Bio, Immunology, acquisition, immunology
BioGen and Human Immunology Biosciences (HI-Bio) have announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement for Biogen to acquire HI-Bio for $1.15bn upfront, alongside up to $650m in potential milestone payments.
HI-Bio’s lead asset is felzartamab, a fully human anti-CD38 monoclonal antibody which has demonstrated its ability to selectively deplete CD38+ cells including plasma cells and natural killer (NK) cells through its clinical studies. The drug has many potential additional applications such as various immune-mediated diseases.
Felzartamab has already gained a Breakthrough Therapy Designation (BTD) and Orphan Drug Designation (ODD) from the US Food and Drug Administration for development for the treatment of primary membranous nephropathy (PMN) as well as gaining an ODD for the treatment of antibody-mediated rejection (AMR) in kidney transplant recipients.
Biogen is intending to use its existing global development and commercialisation capabilities within the rare diseases space and its expertise in immunology in order to further the development of the drug as well as the rest of the HI-Bio pipeline.
Priya Singhal MD MPH, head of development at Biogen, commented: “We believe this late-stage asset, which has demonstrated impact on key biomarkers and clinical endpoints in three renal diseases with serious unmet needs, is a strategic addition to the Biogen portfolio as we continue to augment our pipeline and build on our expertise in immunology. We look forward to welcoming HI-Bio employees into Biogen and, together, working to advance potential therapies for patients with rare immune diseases with high unmet need.”
Betsy Goodfellow
Related Content
FDA accepts Eisai’s Leqembi sBLA for early AD treatment
Eisai and Biogen have announced that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted …
Merck to acquire EyeBio for an upfront $1.3bn
Merck, known as MSD outside of the US and Canada, and EyeBiotech Limited, have announced …
Merck to acquire Mirus Bio for $600m
Merck has announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Mirus Bio for …
