AUSTRALIAN-LISTED biotech firm CSL has announced that its CSL Behring offshoot will acquire Calimmune, a US-based stem cell biotechnology company with R&D facilities in Pasadena, California and Sydney, Australia.
The $91m deal will provide CSL Behring with Calimmune's pre-clinical asset, CAL-H, an "hematopoietic stem cell" (HSC) gene therapy for the treatment of sickle cell disease and -thalassemia, which complements CSL Behring's current product portfolio and deep expertise in haematology.
In addition, CSL Behring will acquire two unique proprietary platform technologies, Select+ and Cytegrity, technologies designed to address some of the major challenges currently associated with the commercialisation of stem cell therapy, including the ability to manufacture consistent, high-quality products, and to improve engraftment, efficacy and tolerability, the company said.
"Calimmune shares in our promise and focus to improve the lives of patients with rare and serious medical conditions," said CSL Limited ceo and md Paul Perreault.
"While Calimmune is still in the early stages, we believe that our combined strengths have tremendous potential to change treatment paradigms, and most importantly, significantly improve the lives of our patients."
Calimmune ceo Louis Breton said he was excited to become part of CSL Behring, saying "Together, we are well positioned to take our achievements to the next level".
Both proprietary technologies have the potential to be used in treatments for a wide range of other rare diseases that would complement CSL Behring's business, including those in its current product portfolio, the announcement said.
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