Eli Lilly spends nearly $4bn to beef up infectious diseases portfolio

(Sharecast News) - American pharma giant. Eli Lilly and Co on Tuesday announced three acquisitions to beef up its infectious diseases portfolio, spending a combined $3.83bn to buy Curevo, LimmaTech Biologics and Vaccine Company. The three companies have developed treatments to address viral pathogens linked to long-term neurological and oncological risk, as well as bacterial pathogens that are difficult to prevent or treat, Lilly said in a statement.

Curevo, whose lead product is shingles vaccine amezosvatein, will be acquired for up to $1.5bn in cash; LimmaTech Biologics, which develops vaccines against bacterial pathogens that face rising antimicrobial resistance, will be purchased for up to $780m; while Vaccine Company, which is developing proprietary In Vivo Nanoparticle (IVN) technologies, will be acquired for up to $1.55bn.

All three transactions values include upfront payments and subsequent payments if certain or regulatory milestones are met.

"These acquisitions reflect a deliberate strategy to prevent disease at its source rather than treat its consequences," said Daniel M. Skovronsky, the chief scientific and product officer, and president of Lilly Research Laboratories.

"Decades of evidence now link common infections to diseases that potentially emerge years later, including neurological disease, cancer and infertility. And as antimicrobial resistance erodes our ability to treat bacterial infections, vaccines are increasingly the only path to prevention. Combining these companies' platforms and teams with Lilly's global scale positions us to change that trajectory."

Lilly futures were up 1.2% at $1,078 in pre-market trade on Tuesday.