New Jersey-based drug developer PTC Therapeutics Inc. announced Thursday that it is purchasing Agilis Biotherapeutics Inc., a Lynnfield gene therapy biotech, for $200 million in cash and stock.
PTC said it would pay $50 million in cash and $150 million in PTC stock to acquire Agilis. The privately held biotech is developing gene therapies for rare and often fatal nervous system diseases, including a disorder called AADC Deficiency that inhibits motor control and the ability to swallow and breathe.
PTC said it plans to seek FDA approval of the AADC Deficiency drug candidate, called GT-AADC, next year. PTC will also request approval next year to launch clinical studies of another Agilis drug targeting Friedreich ataxia, a rare neurodegenerative disease, it said.
“This acquisition places PTC in the lead position in gene therapy,” PTC CEO Stuart Peltz said in a statement. “This is the next step in building our rare disease infrastructure.”
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The South Plainfield, New Jersey-based company did not answer questions about retention of Agilis’ employees and the future of Agilis’ Lynnfield headquarters.
Agilis CEO Mark Pykett and chief operating officer Jodi Cook will move to PTC’s leadership team, according to the announcement. The acquisition is expected to be finalized in the third quarter of 2018.
Date: July 23, 2018
Source: bizjournals
