Merck Signs $2.75B Pharma Acquisition Deal with VelosBio

Merck recently signed a $2.75 billion pharmaceutical acquisition deal to purchase all outstanding shares of VelosBio, subject to certain customary adjustments.

Clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, VelosBio, specializes in cancer therapies that target receptor tyrosine kinase-like orphan receptor 1 (ROR1). 

Currently, the company is developing a preclinical pipeline of next-generation antibody-drug conjugates and bispecific antibodies targeting ROR1. The antibodies may also offer alternative methods of tumor cell killing, according to the announcement from Merck.

“Pioneering work by VelosBio scientists has yielded VLS-101, which in early studies has provided notable evidence of activity in heavily pretreated patients with refractory hematological malignancies, including mantel cell lymphoma and diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.”

Roger M. Perlmutter, MD, president of Merck Research Laboratories. 

VelosBio’s lead antibody-drug conjugate VLS-101, is being evaluated in a Phase 1 and Phase 2 clinical trial for the treatment of patients with hematologic malignancies and solid tumors, respectively. 

VLS-101 showed antitumor activity in preclinical mouse models of human hematologic malignancies and solid tumors. In early clinical trials, VLS-101 also demonstrated a viable safety profile and early signs of anti-tumor activity. 

Merck also noted that results of a Phase 1 clinical trial showed that VLS-101 stimulated complete responses in 47 percent of patients with mantle cell lymphoma and 80 percent of patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. 

Patients in the Phase 1 trial were previously treated with other anticancer medications, but all of their cancers either failed to respond or the medication caused relapse.

Overall, the acquisition of VLS-101 will strengthen Merck’s oncology pipeline. 

“We are very pleased that Merck has recognized the value of our first-in-class ROR1-directed investigational therapeutics. As part of Merck’s oncology pipeline, our lead product candidate, VLS-101, is now well-positioned to achieve its maximum potential to benefit appropriate cancer patients in need,” said Dave Johnson, founder and chief executive officer at VelosBio. 

The companies anticipate closing the deal by the end of 2020, subject to approval under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act and other conditions. 

Unlike conventional chemotherapy treatments that can damage healthy cells, antibody drug conjugates are targeted medicines that deliver chemotherapy agents to cancer cells.

Antibody-drug conjugates are made up of three components: the antibody, the linker, and the cytotoxic agent. Each component of the antibody must be carefully selected in order to target therapies with the correct safety and efficacy profiles.

Key considerations in the development of antibody-drug conjugates include target identifications, antibody engineering, linker chemistry, toxin selection, and clinical translation.

At the end of June, AbbVie and Genmab signed a broad collaboration agreement to jointly develop and commercialize Genmab’s three early-stage investigational antibody therapeutics for cancer. 

Genmab said it will leverage AbbVie’s clinical expertise, innovative antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) platform, and global commercial leadership in hematological cancers. 

AbbVie’s ADC technology ensures the delivery of therapeutic toxin directly to cancer cells while keeping healthy cells protected. 

Together, the companies will develop Genmab’s next-generation bispecific antibody programs, which target CD20 on the B-cells technology and engage cytotoxic T cells selectively to tumors to elicit an immune response towards malignant tumor cells, Genmab said. 

“This transformative collaboration will allow us to accelerate, broaden and maximize the development of some of our promising early-stage bispecific antibodies, including epcoritamab, with the ultimate goal of bringing these potential therapies much faster to cancer patients,” Jan van de Winkel, PhD, chief executive officer of Genmab, said in the announcement.