Novartis to acquire IFM Tre to expand immunology pipeline

Privately-held Boston, USA-based IFM Therapeutics has reached a definitive agreement for Swiss pharma giant Novartis (NOVN: VX) to acquire all of the outstanding capital stock of its subsidiary IFM Tre.

Upon the closing of the agreement, which is expected during the second quarter of 2019, IFM will receive $310 million in upfront payments and will be eligible for up to $1.265 billion in milestone payments, for a total of $1.575 billion in total consideration. IFM Tre launched in July 2018, with a focus on developing a suite of NLRP3 antagonists for the treatment of inflammatory diseases.

The acquisition will give Novartis full rights to IFM Tre’s portfolio of NLPR3 antagonists, which consists of one clinical and two pre-clinical programs: IFM-2427, a first-in-class, clinical stage systemic antagonist for an array of chronic inflammatory disorders including atherosclerosis and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH); a pre-clinical stage gut-directed molecule for the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease; and a pre-clinical stage central nervous system (CNS)-penetrant molecule.