WuXi looks to plasmid-free gene therapy manufacturing with Oxgene acquisition

WuXi AppTec’s cell and gene therapy unit is gaining a foothold in the U.K. and a path to plasmid-free vector manufacturing through its $135 million acquisition of CRO Oxgene, yielding outsized returns for founding investor Mercia Asset Management.

In a deal announced Tuesday, WuXi AppTec Co. Ltd. (Shanghai:603259; HKEX:2359) established the first European outpost of its WuXi Advanced Therapies unit (WuXi ATU), which was founded in Philadelphia about 12 years ago, and has been growing in Shanghai over the past two and half years...