Swiss-Dutch company Calypso Biotech leading the development of Interleukin15 (IL-15) targeted therapies, has entered an agreement to be acquired by pharma giant Novartis. Calypso’s shareholders will receive an upfront payment of $250 million upon closing and are eligible to receive development milestones of up to $175 million based on the achievement of certain predetermined milestones.
Calypso Biotech is focused on the research and development of monoclonal antibodies for an array of autoimmune indications, with an expertise in IL-15 biology. IL-15 is a broad, untapped immune axis that controls barrier function and downstream immune cascades in many chronic autoimmune diseases. Calypso’s lead product candidate, CALY-002 is a clinical stage highly potent monoclonal antibody, neutralizes all forms of IL-15 through a uniquely effective molecular mode of action to reduce inflammation and prevent tissue destruction. Thus, CALY-002 has the potential to be a game-changing treatment in multiple indications. The current clinical program for CALY-002 focuses on two gastrointestinal indications - Celiac Disease (CeD) and Eosinophilic Esophagitis (EoE) - characterized by large unmet needs and driven by dysregulated expression of IL-15.
The startup’s acquisition by Novartis, gives the pharma giant full rights to CALY-002. Novartis intends to further explore CALY-002 across a wide variety of autoimmune indications with high unmet medical need. CALY-002 is currently evaluated in a Phase 1b trial in patients with Celiac Disease and Eosinophilic Esophagitis.
Alain Vicari, Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder, Calypso, commented: “We are excited for this transaction with Novartis, a company with relentless commitment to the development of innovative therapies for autoimmune conditions. As part of the Novartis portfolio, CALY-002 is in the best position to be developed effectively, so that it can promptly address unmet medical needs in multiple indications.”
Under the terms of the agreement, Novartis will make an upfront payment of $250 million to Calypso Biotech upon closing the deal in addition to development milestones of up to $175 million based on the achievement of certain predetermined milestones.
Richard Siegel, Head of Immunology Research at Novartis, commented: “Novartis is committed to bringing innovative treatment options forward for patients living with immunological diseases. We’re thrilled to add Calypso’s potential best-in-class antibody to our Immunology pipeline and explore it in a spectrum of autoimmune indications.”
Founded as a spin-off of Merck, Calypso Biotech is headquartered in Amsterdam (The Netherlands) and has offices and laboratories in Geneva (Switzerland). Calypso Biotech is also a resident company of Johnson & Johnson Innovation JLABS at Beerse in Belgium (JLABS@BE).
(Press release/RAN)
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