UK-based pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca has agreed to acquire EsoBiotec, a Belgian biotechnology firm focused on vivo cell therapies, to enhance its cell therapy capabilities.
Under the terms of the agreement, AstraZeneca will purchase all outstanding equity shares of EsoBiotec for a total of up to $1bn, in cash.
The British drugmaker will make an initial payment of $425m upon closing, with up to $575m contingent on achieving development and regulatory milestones.
The acquisition is anticipated to be completed in the second quarter of 2025, pending customary conditions and regulatory approvals.
Upon closing, EsoBiotec will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of AstraZeneca, continuing its operations in Belgium.
The transaction is not expected to impact AstraZeneca’s financial guidance for 2025.
AstraZeneca oncology haematology R&D executive vice president Susan Galbraith said: “We are excited about the acquisition of EsoBiotec and the opportunity to rapidly advance their promising in vivo platform.
“We believe it has the potential to transform cell therapy and will enable us to scale these innovative treatments so that many more patients around the world can access them.
“EsoBiotec will accelerate and expand the impact of our recent investments and marks a major step forward in realising our ambition to harness the full potential of cell therapy.”
EsoBiotec has developed the Engineered NanoBody Lentiviral (ENaBL) platform, which showed promising early clinical results in strengthening the immune system to fight cancer.
The ENaBL platform is designed to leverage targeted lentiviruses to deliver genetic instructions to immune cells such as T cells.
The process programmes the cells to identify and eradicate tumour cells, offering potential applications in cancer treatment and immune-mediated diseases.
It allows cell therapies to be administered through a simple IV injection, eliminating the need for immune cell depletion.
EsoBiotec said that its in-vivo method directly engineers immune cells within the patient’s body, potentially overcoming many challenges associated with traditional cell therapies.
The process could significantly reduce complexities and manufacturing timelines, enhancing patient access to advanced treatments.
EsoBiotec CEO Jean-Pierre Latere said: “We look forward to working with AstraZeneca, a global leader in drug development, to advance our shared goal of bringing transformative cost-effective cell therapies to more patients globally.
“By combining our expertise and resources, we can accelerate the development of our in vivo platform which has a novel delivery technology we believe will have broad therapeutic applicability.”
Last month, FibroGen, a Nasdaq-listed biopharmaceutical company, agreed to sell its China subsidiary to AstraZeneca for up to $160m.
