Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. exercised its option to acquire GammaDelta Therapeutics Ltd. to expand its immuno-oncology and immune cell therapy portfolio.
Takeda, which has a manufacturing facility in Thousand Oaks, will obtain GammaDelta’s gamma-delta T-cell therapy platforms, which can potentially be used for the treatment of solid tumors and hematological malignancies. Takeda will also obtain GammaDelta’s early-stage cell therapy programs.
“Collaborating with scientific innovators with unique technology platforms and deep domain expertise, such as the GammaDelta team, allows Takeda to identify and accelerate the most promising approaches that can be developed into products to impact the lives of cancer patients,” Christopher Arendt, head of oncology cell therapy and therapeutic unit of Takeda, said in a statement.
The acquisition arrives after a multi-year collaboration between the two companies to develop GammaDelta’s T-cell therapy platforms and allowed Takeda to receive an equity stake and an exclusive right to purchase GammaDelta.
This year, Takeda exercised the option to acquire GammaDelta for a pre-negotiated upfront payment, the amount of which has not been disclosed, and potential development and regulatory milestones.
The GammaDelta acquisition is expected to be finalized in the first quarter of Takeda’s next fiscal year.
“Takeda’s exercise of their acquisition option is the culmination of years of a fruitful collaborative partnership and recognizes GammaDelta Therapeutics’ promising progress in developing novel platform technologies to treat solid tumors and hematological malignancies,” Dr. Paolo Paoletti, GammaDelta’s chief executive, said in a statement.