Oxford based DJS Antibodies acquired by US Company in $255m deal
Oxford-headquartered biotechnology firm DJS Antibodies dedicated to discovering and developing antibody medicines that target difficult-to-drug disease-causing proteins has been bought in a $255m deal. The firm has been bought by AbbVie in North Chicago, whose mission it is to discover medicines that solve serious health issues today and “address the medical challenges of tomorrow”.
Jonathon Sedgwick, Ph.D, vice president and global head of discovery research at AbbVie, said:
“We are excited to bring the innovative science behind DJS-002 and the talented team at DJS to AbbVie. This acquisition will deliver new capabilities to enhance our current antibody research activities, an opportunity to strengthen our immunology portfolio, and provide a strong foothold for expanded research efforts in the dynamic bioscience hub in Oxford, UK.”
David Llewellyn and Joe Illingworth, co-founders of DJS, added:
“DJS was built on the principles of scientific curiosity and an aspiration to discover clinically meaningful innovative medicines. We’ve been privileged to grow the company within the world-class scientific and entrepreneurial community of Oxford, from an initial concept through to a successful biotech comprising an extremely talented team.”
Under the terms of the agreement, AbbVie will pay DJS shareholders approximately $255m in cash at closing.
About DJS Antibodies
Based in Oxford, UK, DJS Antibodies is a biotechnology company dedicated to creating the next generation of antibody therapeutics. DJS Antibodies utilizes their proprietary HEPTAD platform to enable antibody discovery to GPCRs and other intractable targets. Using HEPTAD, the company has generated a unique pipeline including DJS-002, a novel antibody targeting LPAR1 for the treatment of chronic fibrotic diseases. www.djsantibodies.com
About AbbVie
AbbVie’s mission is to discover and deliver innovative medicines that solve serious health issues today and address the medical challenges of tomorrow. We strive to have a remarkable impact on people’s lives across several key therapeutic areas: immunology, oncology, neuroscience, eye care, virology and gastroenterology, in addition to products and services across its Allergan Aesthetics portfolio.