AC Immune Partners with Takeda in $100M Deal for Alzheimer’s Disease Treatment; Shares Surge 57%
Shares in precision medicine company, AC Immune SA (Nasdaq: ACIU), surged 57% in trading on Monday and Tuesday after the company announced it had entered an exclusive, worldwide option and license agreement with Takeda (NYSE: TAK) for AC Immune’s active immunotherapies targeting toxic forms of amyloid beta (Abeta), including ACI-24.060 for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease.
Under the terms of the agreement, AC Immune will receive an upfront payment of $100 million upon closing and will be eligible for an option exercise fee and additional potential milestones of up to approximately $2.1 billion. Takeda will receive an exclusive option to license global rights to ACI-24.060.
ACI-24.060 is a potential first-in-class active immunotherapy designed to delay or slow Alzheimer’s disease progression. ACI-24.060 is being investigated in the company’s ongoing ABATE randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase 1b/2 trial to assess the safety, tolerability, immunogenicity and pharmacodynamic effects of the investigational immunotherapy in subjects with prodromal Alzheimer’s disease and in adults with Down syndrome.
Dr. Andrea Pfeifer, CEO of AC Immune, said, “This agreement allows us to leverage the developmental expertise, strategic vision and financial capacity of an accomplished organization that has demonstrated its ability to execute the type of comprehensive global program required for Phase 3 trials in Alzheimer’s disease while allowing us to focus on completing Phase 1b/2 development and accelerating our efforts to replicate this success with enhanced funding for our early-stage pipeline.”
About AC Immune SA
AC Immune SA is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company that aims to become a global leader in precision medicine for neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and NeuroOrphan indications driven by misfolded proteins. The Company’s two clinically validated technology platforms, SupraAntigen® and Morphomer®, fuel its broad and diversified pipeline of first- and best-in-class assets, which currently features sixteen therapeutic and diagnostic programs, five of which are currently in Phase 2 clinical trials and one of which is in Phase 3. AC Immune has a strong track record of securing strategic partnerships with leading global pharmaceutical companies, resulting in substantial non-dilutive funding to advance its proprietary programs and >$4.5 billion in potential milestone payments.
