( Reuters ) - Bristol-Myers Squibb Co said on Monday it would pay $430 million for Adnexus Therapeutics, a privately held biotechnology company whose lead product is a cancer drug in the earliest stages of human trials.
Bristol-Myers agreed in February to pay about $30 million over three years to help tiny Adnexus develop its class of drugs, called Adnectins. They include an experimental cancer drug called Angiocept (CT-322), now in Phase 1 trials, and a range of other products in test-tube and animal studies.
Although Adnexus last month said it had filed with U.S. regulators for a public stock offering, it and Bristol-Myers jointly announced their merger deal on Monday.
The net price is $415 million after deducting Adnexus' cash holdings. Bristol-Myers said it could pay up to $75 million more if Adnexus achieves certain development and regulatory milestones.
Waltham, Massachusetts-based Adnexus is owned by a handful of venture capital companies, including Venrock.
Anders Hove, a Venrock general partner, said Adnectins have properties similar to those of monoclonal antibodies, the popular class of biotech drugs now being used to treat an ever-increasing range of cancers and inflammatory diseases.
"But Adnectins are smaller and different from monoclonal antibodies, and thereby avoid (infringing) all patents of monoclonal antibodies," he said.