OncoC4 is taking AcroImmune—and its in-house clinical manufacturing capabilities—under its wing in an all-stock merger.
Both cancer biotechs were co-founded by OncoC4 CEO Yang Liu, Ph.D., and OncoC4 Chief Medical Officer Pan Zheng, M.D., Ph.D, according to a Sept. 25 release.
OncoC4 is a spinout from Liu- and Zheng-founded OncoImmune, which was acquired in 2020 by Merck & Co. for $425 million. Now, the private, Maryland-based biotech is acquiring 100% of all AcroImmune’s outstanding equity interests. The companies have a similar shareholder base, according to the release.
The new biotech will operate under OncoC4’s name and will continue to be led by CEO Liu. Specific financials of the deal were not disclosed.
The merger adds AI-081, a preclinical bispecific antibody targeting PD-1 and VEGF, to OncoC4’s pipeline. The AcroImmune asset is prepped for an investigational new drug (IND) filing, with the submission expected in the last quarter of this year, according to the companies.
AI-081 could expand checkpoint therapy’s potential across cancers, CMO Zheng said in the release.
OncoC4 also gains AI-071, a phase 2-ready siglec agonist that is set to be studied in an acute respiratory failure trial and an immune-related adverse advents study. The novel innate immune checkpoint was discovered by the OncoC4 co-founders and is designed for broad application in both cancer and excessive inflammation.
The merger also grows OncoC4’s geographical footprint with in-house clinical manufacturing capabilities in China, according to Liu.
“Collectively, these synergies further strengthen the potential of OncoC4 to deliver differentiated and novel immunotherapies spanning multiple modalities for difficult to treat solid tumors and hematological malignancies,” Liu said in the release.
OncoC4 already touts a siglec program, dubbed ONC-841, which is a monoclonal antibody (mAb) designed that just entered phase 1 testing. The company’s preclinical assets include a CAR-T cell therapy, a bispecific mAb and ADC.
The biotech’s latest-stage program is gotistobart, a next-gen anti-CTLA-4 antibody candidate in joint development with BioNTech. In March 2023, BioNTech paid $200 million upfront for development and commercial rights to the CTLA-4 prospect, which is currently in phase 3 development for immunotherapy-resistant non-small cell lung cancer.