On April 10, 2024, according to Endpoints News, Sanofi willDivestiture of a site and assets from Amunix Pharmaceuticals, Inc.Amunix Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is an immuno-oncology biotechnology company that was acquired by Sanofi in December 2021 for an upfront payment of approximately $1 billion. In addition, itsWill also lay off 100 people at the San Francisco plant。The company is "actively seeking a buyer to take over research, CMC, and clinical activities," a Sanofi spokesperson told Endpoints News. "We have made progress and are actively discussing with potential partners. WeThe final decision is expected to be made in the coming months.。”According to the requirements of the U.S. Federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act, enterprises with 100 or more employees must provide 60 days' notice before conducting a mass layoff. Employers may offer workers 60 days' worth of severance pay in lieu of notice.Sanofi's layoffs will take effect on June 3。In 2021, Sanofi acquired Amunix's HER2-targeting T-cell engager AMX-818, which is currently in IND studies. According to clinicaltrials.gov, the Phase 1 trial of AMX-818 is currently recruiting patients with locally advanced or metastatic HER2-expressing cancers.In addition, Sanofi also obtained Amunix'sThree major technology platforms——Pro-XTENTM, XPAT®, and XPACTM, complement the existing R&D platform.. The core of these three technology platforms is XTEN technology. XTEN polypeptides are composed of six amino acids: A, G, E, P, S, and T. These polypeptides lack secondary structures and are disordered peptides with high solubility and anti-aggregation properties. XTEN can be fusion-expressed with protein drugs or conjugated to drugs. XTEN peptides of different lengths have different half-lives, with longer lengths corresponding to longer half-lives. Since XTEN does not contain hydrophobic amino acids, it has low immunogenicity (most immunogenicity is associated with hydrophobic amino acids).Figure 1: Amunix's Three Major Technology Platforms
In fact, SanofiThe company's restructuring plan was first announced in October 2023.At that time, it was indicated that the "pipeline resource reallocation" from oncology to immunology alone could save the company 700 million euros (751.9 million US dollars). Previously, SanofiHas already abandoned the oncology projects acquired from Denali Therapeutics, Principia, and Kymab.In December of the same year, Sanofi articulated its ambition to increase the number of Phase III projects by 50% within the next two years at its Research and Development Day.The focus is on immunology, neurology, and vaccines.。Based on this, Sanofi's research projects will be reduced in order to allocate more funds to the advancement of high-potential projects.Last month, Sanofi announced it would close its UK R&D site, acquired through a previous deal, resulting in 90 job cuts. Just a few days ago, Fierce Biotech reported that Sanofi is undertaking a "full pipeline reprioritization project."Involving layoffs and the cancellation of several oncology research projectsAt that time, Sanofi had not yet disclosed which projects would be cut, the number of layoffs, or the timeline. Now, there are finally specific actions being reported.The reason why Sanofi is carrying out the restructuring plan is mainly based on the plan previously announced by the company's CEO, Paul Hudson.Company Plans to Become "Immunology Giant" as Prepares for Dupixent's Loss of ExclusivityHudson proposed the vision of "developing first-in-class or best-in-class drugs and vaccines" shortly after joining Sanofi, followed by the introduction of the 2020-2025 five-year strategy — Play to Win, which includes four key modules: focusing on growth, leading innovation, improving efficiency, and reshaping ways of working.Figure 2: Sanofi's Play to Win Strategy
In January this year, Sanofi entered into a global collaboration with Synthekine to develop and commercialize an IL-10 receptor agonist for the treatment of inflammatory diseases. Under the terms of the agreement, Sanofi will take full responsibility for subsequent preclinical, clinical, and commercialization activities for the IL-10 drug; Synthekine will receive a $40 million upfront payment from Sanofi and is eligible for additional payments, including potential preclinical, development, regulatory, and commercial milestones, as well as tiered royalties on net sales. This move is also likely part of Sanofi's preparation for the upcoming patent cliff of its blockbuster atopic dermatitis drug, Dupixent.Notably, Endpoints News recently reported that Sanofi will close Kiadis Pharma, an NK cell therapy company acquired for nearly $400 million. The acquisition provided Sanofi with an "off-the-shelf" NK cell platform to develop NK cell-based therapeutics. This move was quietly announced during the recent update of clinical trial information for SAR445419 (K-NK003), an NK cell therapy developed by Sanofi. SAR445419 is an allogeneic NK cell therapy targeting relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukemia. According to the U.S. clinical trial database, the phase 1 study of SAR445419 was terminated due to Kiadis' withdrawal.[1]Sanofi to divest cancer biotech it bought for $1B, axe 100 staffers in California.Endpoints News.April 10, 2024 11:15 AM EDTUpdated 05:28 PM.[2] What Black Technology Does Amunix, Acquired by Sanofi for $1.2 Billion, Have?. Antibody Code. 2021-12-22.[3] Sanofi Closes an NK Cell Therapy Company. Frontier of Cell and Gene Therapy. 2024-04-10.[4] Amunix Pharmaceuticals Official Website, etc.
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