Jennerex Biotherapeutics, SillaJen deal
CRO SillaJen is acquiring cancer company Jennerex for up to $150 million in cash in an undisclosed upfront payment, plus milestones. SillaJen has provided Jennerex with trial support services since 2007 and owns about 25% of Jennerex, which will become a subsidiary of the CRO.
Jennerex is developing Pexa-Vec, a recombinant vaccinia virus that expresses granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF; CSF2) and lacks thymidine kinase. By 4Q14, the company plans to start a Phase III trial of the product for first-line treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). In September, Jennerex's partner Transgene S.A. (Euronext:TNG, Illkirch, France) said Pexa-Vec as second-line treatment for HCC missed the primary endpoint in the Phase IIb TRAVERSE trial. Transgene holds an 8.5% stake in Jennerex (see BioCentury, Sept. 9). ...