Celgene, Juno in 10-year pact
Juno Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:JUNO) gained $17.20 (37%) to $63.50 in after-hours trading after announcing a 10-year deal with Celgene Corp. (NASDAQ:CELG) to develop immunotherapies for cancer and autoimmune diseases, with an initial focus on chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell and T cell receptor ( TCR) therapies. Juno will receive $150.2 million in upfront cash plus $849.8 million through the sale to Celgene of 9.1 million newly issued Juno shares at $93, which is a 100% premium over Juno's Monday close.
Celgene will receive options to develop and commercialize Juno's cancer and cell therapy autoimmune candidates outside North America, including its CAR T programs against CD19 and CD22. Juno's three most advanced programs -- JCAR015, JCAR017 and JCAR014 -- use autologous T cells expressing CARs specific to CD19 to treat hematologic malignancies. The company said last month it expects to begin a Phase II study in mid-2015 of JCAR015 to treat acute myelogenous leukemia (ALL), and a Phase I/II trial of JCAR017 this year to treat non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). The National Cancer Institute is conducting a Phase I study of Juno's JCAR018, a CAR T therapy targeting CD22, to treat ALL or NHL. ...