BI acquires ViraTherapeutics

Boehringer Ingelheim has acquired the immuno-oncology company ViraTherapeutics for €210m. ViraTherapeutics is an oncolytic virus specialist that has been working alongside BI for the last two years, and this new collaboration will see them jointly develop the next generation oncolytic virus platform and lead candidate VSV-GP, a cancer therapy that works by infecting tumours with a virus that both destroys malignant cells directly and mobilises an immune response against them. VSV-GP is still in preclinical development.

Michel Pairet, Boehringer’s head of R&D, said: “We are very excited about this new collaboration with ViraTherapeutics, a company for which the Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund is a core investor. Oncolytic viruses are among the most promising new therapy approaches in cancer research and the technology developed by ViraTherapeutics may offer significant advantages compared to others currently under development. The new collaboration is an example of Boehringer Ingelheim’s increasing focus on partnering and further complements the company’s growing immuno-oncology pipeline that includes among others, a therapeutic cancer vaccine and next generation checkpoint inhibitors. Our approach is rooted in transforming ‘cold’ tumours – or immunologically inactive tumours that are not responsive to the checkpoint blockers – to ‘hot‘ tumours – those that are most susceptible to immune system attack. We are committed to investing in early research with promise and where our expertise best complements the strengths of our partners.”

CEO and scientific founder of ViraTherapeutics, Prof. Dr. Dorothee von Laer, said: “This is an important milestone for the development of ViraTherapeutics. The team has worked hard on our technology platform and lead candidate. In addition to its oncolytic activity, VSV-GP has demonstrated the ability to prime and boost an anti-cancer immune response and does not appear to prompt effective antiviral immune responses. These properties are expected to allow ground-breaking applications of this novel treatment approach. In the collaboration with Boehringer Ingelheim we can now fully explore the platform and therapeutic potential of our VSV-GP oncolytic virus. We will also continue to investigate VSV-GP’s potential to be armed with therapeutic genes as well as antigens for its use as a prophylactic or therapeutic vaccine vector.”