Roche acquires GlycArt Biotechnology

Published: 19-Jul-2005

Roche has signed an agreement to acquire 100% of Swiss biotech company GlycArt Biotechnology for approximately CHF235m (€150m) in cash.


Roche has signed an agreement to acquire 100% of Swiss biotech company GlycArt Biotechnology for approximately CHF235m (€150m) in cash.

The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2005. The deal will further strengthen Roche's expertise in therapeutic antibody research and development.

GlycArt owns the proprietary GlycoMAb glycosylation technology, which is a method of increasing the potency of therapeutic antibodies targeting undesirable cells by engineering the carbohydrate component present in all such antibodies. In particular, GlycoMAb specifically increases antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC), an immune effector mechanism crucial for the in vivo target-cell killing activity of antibodies. In addition Roche will acquire GlycArt's development pipeline which includes three monoclonal antibodies in preclinical development for cancer.

GlycArt was founded in 2000 as a spin-off from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich. Roche plans to maintain the GlycArt facility in Zurich-Schlieren as a fully integrated part of the Roche Pharma research organisation.

'This acquisition is an excellent strategic fit with our Therapeutic Protein Initiative and our focus on developing clinically differentiated proteins and antibodies for areas of unmet medical need, such as oncology,' said Franz B. Humer, chairman and ceo of the Roche Group. 'We are excited about this significant addition of cutting-edge technology to our r&d organisation.'

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