Bayer acquires Maxygen haemophilia portfolio

Bayer HealthCare has announced an expansion to its haemophilia portfolio with the acquisition of the programme assets from Maxygen in this area.

This purchase includes lead therapeutic candidate Maxy VII, a next-generation recombinant Factor VIIa protein expected to enter phase I of clincial testing by the third quarter of this year.

Under the terms of the deal, Bayer will pay Maxygen an upfront transaction fee of $90 million (45.2 million pounds) with a potential final milestone payment of $30 million.

The deal also includes a license for the use of Maxygen’s innovative research platform for the exploitation of gene targets known as MolecularBreeding.

Dr Gunnar Riemann, member of the executive Ccmmittee of Bayer HealthCare, said: “Maxy-VII has the potential to be an important expansion of therapeutic options for people living with haemophilia and we are pleased to add this to our global development portfolio.”

He added that the deal fits into the company’s speciality pharmaceutical growth strategy and builds on the company’s expertise in the production and marketing of protein therapeutics.

Last month, Bayer published its latest sustainable development programme and announced it had achieved a 37 per cent decrease in carbon emissions since 1990.