Bayer to Acquire US Biotech Vividion Therapeutics
In a deal potentially worth $2 billion, German drugs and agriculture company Bayer is acquiring Vividion Therapeutics, a San Diego-based US biotech. The California company focuses on using protein surface screening to unlock high value, traditionally undruggable, targets.
The terms foresee Bayer paying $1.5 billion upfront and up to $500 million for milestones not publicly defined. Closing of the transaction is expected during the current third quarter, subject to all approvals.
With the perspective of being acquired, US reports said Vividion has canceled its recently announced plans for an initial public offering. In future, the company will continue to operate separately from its new owner, however.
As part of the agreement, Bayer will gain full rights to Vividion’s proprietary discovery platform, which comprises what the biotech said are three integrated, synergistic components: a novel chemoproteomic screening technology, an integrated data portal and a proprietary chemistry library.
Vividion’s approach identifies previously unknown binding pockets in undruggable targets to generate first-in-class novel compounds in indications of high unmet medical need. The company said its technology “has already proven its applicability pre-clinically in oncology and immune-related diseases, with potential to expand into additional therapeutic areas.
“Despite advances in genomics, structural biology and high-throughput screening, about 90% of disease-causing proteins cannot be targeted by current therapies due to the lack of a known addressable binding site,” said Vividion CEO Jeff Hatfield.
For Bayer, Stefan Oelrich, managing board member and president of the pharmaceuticals division, said the acquisition reflects the Leverkusen-based group’s drive to fuel its platform with breakthrough innovation. “Vividion’s technology is the most advanced in the industry, and it has demonstrated its ability to identify drug candidates that can target challenging proteins,” he commented.
Leveraging Vividion’s and Bayer’s own knowhow, Oelrich said the German pharma will be able to develop first-in-class drug candidates and increase the value of its pipeline with a view to providing innovative therapies for patients with unmet medical needs.
Bayer is the second major pharma player in a week to announce plans to acquire a small, highly specialized US biotech. Earlier, French drugmaker Sanofi said it would buy Translate Bio, with which it is developing a Covid-19 vaccine. Vividion currently collaborates with several major pharmaceutical producers, including Switzerland’s Roche and Bristol Myers Squibb of the US, in immunology and oncology.
Author: Dede Williams, Freelance Journalist
