As EliLilly’s Kisunla (donanemab) enters the Alzheimer’s treatment space, its leading competitor Biogen is undergoing therapy diversification after completing its $1.15bn acquisition of Human Immunology Biosciences (HI-Bio).
Biogen’s head of development Priya Singhal said the company is “very excited” about the addition of felzartamab to its rosters in a 2 July press release, adding that Biogen will advance the candidate to Phase III now the transaction is complete.
Biogen is known for its neuroscience focus, having co-developed the next-generation Alzheimer’s treatment Leqembi (lecanemab-irmb) with Eisai. The drug is predicted to see US sales of $4.6bn by 2030, according to GlobalData’s Pharma Intelligence Centre.
In a previous earnings call, Biogen’s CEO Chris Viehbacher stated the importance of diversifying therapeutic scopes, adding that neuroscience is a “high-risk area.” EliLilly has now consolidated that – at least in the Alzheimer’s space – having secured US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval yesterday [2 July] for Leqembi rival Kisunla.
Biogen’s acquisition of HI-Bio’s “pipeline-in-a-product” will expand the former company’s immunology presence. As per a press release announcing the agreement in May, Biogen will keep employees from HI-Bio and establish a team in the San Francisco Bay Area. At the time, Singhal stated that felzartamab is a “strategic addition to the Biogen portfolio” and “will augment [its] pipeline and build on [its] expertise in immunology”.
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