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PerkinElmer to Acquire Cell Engineering Company Horizon Discovery for $383 Million (£296 Million)

On November 2, 2020 PerkinElmer, Inc. (NYSE: PKI) ("PerkinElmer") and Horizon Discovery Group plc (LSE: HZD) ("Horizon") reported that they have reached an agreement on the terms of a recommended all cash offer whereby PerkinElmer will acquire Horizon for approximately $383 million (£296 million) (Press release, PerkinElmer, NOV 2, 2020, View Source [SID1234569742]). The transaction has a total enterprise value of approximately $368 million (£284 million), is expected to close in the first quarter of 2021 subject to customary closing conditions.

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With this investment, PerkinElmer will expand its portfolio of leading, automated life sciences discovery and applied genomics solutions to include gene editing and gene modulation tools. The acquisition will enable PerkinElmer to better partner with academic and pharma/biopharma scientists to help meet today’s research challenges. It will also provide an opportunity to provide important tools for exploring next generation cell engineering and customized cell lines for relevant biological models – important for the future of precision medicine.

Headquartered in Cambridge, UK, Horizon is a leading provider of CRISPR and RNAi reagents, cell models, cell engineering and base editing offerings which help scientists better understand gene function, genetic disease drivers and biotherapeutics delivery. Horizon has approximately 400 employees across multiple countries, including the UK, the US and Japan and reported revenue from continuing operations of $75.5 million (£58.3 million) in 2019.

PerkinElmer’s discovery and applied genomics solutions feature a range of immunoassay platforms, high content screening (HCS) and in vivo imaging, along with microfluidics, robotic liquid handling technologies and next-generation sequencing library preparation kits.

Unifying PerkinElmer’s and Horizon’s complementary offerings across the genotypic and phenotypic approaches for drug discovery and development will help researchers accelerate decision making with better information, automated workflows and greater quality and control over data.

Commenting on the agreement, Prahlad Singh, President and Chief Executive Officer, PerkinElmer said, "One of the key fundamentals for molecular research and drug discovery is being able to knock down a gene or function and explore the results to discover actionable insights and new clinical trial candidates faster. We’re excited to team up with Horizon to not only add CRISPR and RNAi capabilities into our existing portfolio, but also to leverage our combined life sciences screening and applied genomics solutions to help propel the next phase of cell and gene research for precision medicine. PerkinElmer leads with science and creates total solutions to bring today’s leading innovations together for our customers, while also working at the cutting edge of what’s next. Today’s announcement delivers on both of these fronts."

In total, PerkinElmer’s life sciences solutions span across early-stage research, drug discovery, drug development and QA/QC for drug manufacturing. For more information please visit: View Source

In terms of financial impact, PerkinElmer expects the acquisition to be modestly accretive to non-GAAP earnings in year-one following the close, and the Company forecasts Horizon’s business to be attractively positioned in markets that are projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of high-single digits over the next few years.

CARsgen Therapeutics Closes a USD 186 Million Series C Equity Financing to Accelerate Global Clinical Trials of its Cell Therapy Product Candidates

On November 2, 2020 CARsgen Therapeutics Holdings Limited ("CARsgen"), a leading biotechnology company focused on innovation and development of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapeutics, reported the completion of a USD 186 million Series C Equity Financing (Press release, Carsgen Therapeutics, NOV 2, 2020, View Source [SID1234569738]). The Series C funding was led by a leading private equity firm Loyal Valley Capital and joined by Lilly Asia Ventures, Shiyu Capital, and Summer Capital. Existing investor South China Venture Capital also participated in the round.

"I am pleased that CARsgen has repeatedly received recognition and support from leading financial institutes and professional investors. This Series C funding will accelerate CARsgen’s ongoing clinical trials in China, the United States, and Europe, and will support expanding our commercial manufacturing facilities," said Dr. Zonghai Li, Founder, President, CEO, and CSO of CARsgen. He added, "It advances the company’s global development activities as we work to launch CARsgen’s leading products for the benefit of cancer patients worldwide."

Mr. Roy (Ronggang) Xie, Partner at Loyal Valley Capital said, "It is a great honor for us to lead the investment in CARsgen’s Series C equity financing. Loyal Valley Capital focuses on supporting the exceptional entrepreneur who constantly strives for excellence, through long-term and continuous efforts, to build a world-class enterprise. Under the leadership of Dr. Zonghai Li, CARsgen has generated a broad and competitive pipeline of first-in-class and best-in-class therapeutic candidates. We believe the Series C funding will help CARsgen accelerate its ongoing clinical programs and achieve market approval of its leading assets, improving the standard of care in cancers with tremendous unmet medical need. Loyal Valley Capital is pleased to support the company’s global R&D and commercialization and looks forward to CARsgen’s successful advancement of important medicines in the coming years."

It was previously reported that CARsgen Therapeutics Corporation, the US entity of CARsgen, received regenerative medicine advanced therapy (RMAT) and orphan drug designations from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and PRIority Medicine (PRIME) and orphan drug designations from the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for CT053 fully human CAR-BCMA T-cell therapy. In addition, the company received investigational new drug (IND) clearance and orphan drug designation from the U.S. FDA for CT041 CAR-Claudin18.2 T-cell therapy. CT041 is the first CAR-Claudin18.2 T-cell therapy targeting solid tumors entering clinical trials. CARsgen Therapeutics Co., Ltd., the China entity of CARsgen, also received IND clearance from the NMPA for four innovative CAR T-cell therapy programs, including CAR-GPC3 T-cell therapy, CAR-Claudin18.2 T-cell therapy, CAR-BCMA T-cell therapy, and CAR-CD19 T-cell therapy.

IDEAYA to Participate in Upcoming November 2020 Investor Relations Events

On November 2, 2020 IDEAYA Biosciences, Inc. (Nasdaq:IDYA), an oncology-focused precision medicine company committed to the discovery and development of targeted therapeutics to treat cancer,reported that management will present at the following upcoming investor relations events (Press release, Ideaya Biosciences, NOV 2, 2020, View Source [SID1234569737]).

Stifel 2020 Healthcare Conference (Virtual)
Company Presentation
Monday, November 16th, 2020, at 1:00 pm PT / 4:00 pm ET
Jefferies London Healthcare Conference (Virtual)
Fireside Chat hosted by Analyst Maury Raycroft
Wednesday, November 18th, 2020 at 9:35 am PT / 12:35 pm ET / 5:35 pm GMT
A live audio webcast of each presentation will be available by visiting the "Investors/News and Events/Investor Calendar" section of the IDEAYA website at View Source A replay of the webcasts will be available for 30 days following the live event.

Compugen Further Expands Patent Portfolio for TIGIT Inhibitor COM902 with Composition of Matter Patent in China

On November 2, 2020 Compugen Ltd. (Nasdaq: CGEN), a clinical-stage cancer immunotherapy company and leader in predictive target discovery, reported that the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) has granted the Company a new patent covering the composition of matter of COM902, its immuno-oncology therapeutic antibody targeting TIGIT (Press release, Compugen, NOV 2, 2020, View Source [SID1234569736]).

China Patent No. CN 110088132 B, titled "Anti-TIGIT Antibodies, Anti-PVRIG Antibodies and Combinations Thereof," relates to the composition of matter of COM902, alone or in combination with a second antibody targeting an immune checkpoint, including PD-1 and PVRIG (specifically COM701). The patent further relates to the COM902 antibody composition for use in treating cancer by activating T cells. This patent is expected to expire no earlier than August 2037 in the China.

This first patent issued in China expands the intellectual property protection for COM902 beyond the United States and Europe where similar composition of matter and use patents have been granted. This patent, as well as other patents the Company is pursuing for COM902, are part of Compugen’s global intellectual property and patent strategy across its innovative immuno-oncology pipeline.

About COM902

COM902 is a high affinity, fully human antibody that blocks the interaction of TIGIT with PVR, its ligand, and consequently enhances T cell function. It is currently being evaluated in a Phase 1 clinical trial in patients with advanced malignancies who have exhausted all available standard therapies. Compugen has demonstrated in preclinical studies that simultaneous inhibition of TIGIT and PVRIG, the two coinhibitory arms of the DNAM axis, can increase antitumor immune responses, which may be further enhanced with the addition of PD-1 blockade. These data suggest that treatment with COM701 and COM902, targeting PVRIG and TIGIT, respectively, alone or in combination with a PD-1 inhibitor, has the potential to expand immuno-oncology treatment to patient populations who are non-responsive or refractory to existing immunotherapies.

The discovery of TIGIT, using the Company’s computational discovery platform, was published by Compugen in October 2009 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

Evogene Financial Results and Earnings Announcement Schedule for the Third Quarter of 2020

On November 2, 2020 Evogene Ltd. (NASDAQ: EVGN) (TASE: EVGN), a leading computational biology company aiming to revolutionize life-science product development across several market segments, reported that it will release its financial results for the third quarter of 2020 on Wednesday, November 18, 2020 (Press release, Evogene, NOV 2, 2020, View Source [SID1234569735]). Dr. Elran Haber, CEO of Evogene’s human microbiome subsidiary, Biomica Ltd., will join the conference call to discuss Biomica’s activity.

On the day of the announcement, the Company’s management will host a conference call to discuss the results at 09:00 AM Eastern time, 16:00 Israel time. To access the conference call, please dial 1-888-281-1167 toll free from the United States, or +972-3-918-0609 internationally. Access to the call will also be available via live webcast through the Company’s website at www.evogene.com.

A replay of the conference call will be available approximately three hours following the completion of the call. To access the replay, please dial 1-888-326-9310 toll free from the United States, or +972-3-925-5901 internationally. The replay will be accessible through November 20, 2020, and an archive of the webcast will be available on the Company’s website for the following 30 days.