New flexibility and a new Celgene deal for Jounce

With BMS's acquisition of Celgene nearly complete, the big biotech and Jounce ended an immuno-oncology option deal on Tuesday, giving Jounce control over programs that would have overlapped with BMS's pipeline. But the companies will remain partners as Celgene is in-licensing a preclinical macrophage candidate from Jounce in a deal featuring a $50 million upfront payment.

Jounce Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:JNCE), which gained $1.33 (33%) to $5.42 in after-hours trading Tuesday, will keep full rights to its lead candidate, ICOS agonist vopratelimab (JTX-2011), and PD-1 inhibitor JTX-4014, along with its entire discovery pipeline. ...