Eli Lilly has announced that it will be acquiring Verve Therapeutics in a deal worth approximately $1.3bn, marking a significant boost to the company’s cardiovascular disease (CVD) capabilities.
The deal will give Lilly access to Verve’s pipeline of single-course gene editing medicines designed to address the drivers of atherosclerotic CVD (ASCVD), which accounts for around 85% of all cardiovascular deaths and is caused by the development and growth of plaques in the inner lining of the arteries.
Verve’s lead programme, VERVE-102, is currently being evaluated in a phase 1b clinical trial and has already been granted fast track designation by the US Food and Drug Administration.
The candidate targets PCSK9, a gene associated with cholesterol levels and cardiovascular health, and could be used to treat patients with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia, as well as certain patients with premature coronary artery disease.
“VERVE-102 has the potential to be the first in vivo gene editing therapy for broad patient populations and could shift the treatment paradigm for CVD from chronic care to one-and-done treatment,” said Ruth Gimeno, Lilly group vice president, diabetes and metabolic research and development.
“Lilly is eager to welcome our Verve colleagues… and continue the development of these promising potential new medicines aimed at improving outcomes for patients with CVD and addressing the significant unmet medical need in this space,” Gimeno added.
Under the terms of the agreement, which is expected to close this year, Lilly will acquire all outstanding shares of Verve for $10.50 per share in cash. Verve shareholders will also be eligible to receive up to an additional $3 per share if a phase 3 trial of VERVE-102 is launched in the US within ten years.
Sekar Kathiresan, Verve’s co-founder and chief executive officer, said: “Under Lilly’s stewardship, we are excited to realise the next chapter in cardiovascular care where a single treatment can lead to lifelong reduction of cardiovascular risk factors and make life better for millions of patients living with CVD.”
The announcement comes less than a month after Lilly revealed that it would be acquiring SiteOne Therapeutics, a biotech focused on developing small molecule inhibitors of sodium channels to treat pain and other neuronal hyperexcitability disorders, in a deal worth up to $1bn.
Lilly also said in January that it would be acquiring Scorpion Therapeutics’ PI3Kα inhibitor programme for up to $2.5bn.