Shots:

• Xyphos to receive $120 upfront- up to $545M as development milestones- making a total deal value as ~$665M. Xyphos will act as a wholly own subsidiary of Astellas
• The focus of the acquisition is to bolster Astellas’ immuno-oncology pipeline with the addition of Xyphos’ ACCEL (Advanced Cellular Control through Engineered Ligands) technology platform
• Xyphos’ platform directs cells of the immune system to target single/ multiple tumor antigens while controlling the immune cell proliferation and endurance. Xyphos’s molecules utilizes its CAR technology which is based on a modification to NKG2D with the expected initiation of clinical study for its first CART cell therapy in 2021

Click here to­ read full press release/ article | Ref: Astellas | Image: Xyphos