Trimeris, Arigene deal

Arigene proposed to acquire HIV company Trimeris in a tender offer of $3.60 per share, or about $81 million in cash. The price is a 40% premium to Trimeris' close of $2.57 on Oct.1, the day before the deal was announced. Arigene, which develops and manufactures medical equipment in South Korea, said the deal will expand its business into biotechnology.

Trimeris' Fuzeon enfuvirtide, a viral fusion inhibitor peptide analog based on HIV gp41, is marketed by Roche (SIX:ROG; OTCQX:RHHBY, Basel, Switzerland) to treat HIV infection. The company's next-generation HIV fusion inhibitor, TRI-1144, is in Phase I testing for the indication. ...