Gilead Sciences’ (GILD.O) unit Kite Pharma said on Thursday it will acquire privately-held biotech firm Interius BioTherapeutics for $350 million in cash to advance CAR T-cell cancer therapies that are delivered directly into patients.
The acquisition will enable Kite to use Interius’ platform to deliver cell therapy directly into patients, simplifying treatment processes and reducing costs, the company said.
Kite said the deal, expected to close pending regulatory approvals, will reduce Gilead’s 2025 profit per share by about 23 cents to 25 cents.
In CAR T-cell therapy, a patient’s T-cells, a key part of the immune system, are modified to better recognize and attack cancer cells.
Traditional CAR T-cell therapies, including Kite’s approved blood cancer treatments Yescarta and Tecartus, involve taking immune cells from a patient. These are modified in a lab, and then put back into the patient’s body – a process that is both complex and expensive.
Interius’ so-called “in-vivo” approach uses intravenous infusion to deliver DNA directly into cells, potentially accelerating and simplifying treatments, according to the Kite.
