J&J pays $1.1 billion upfront, makes additional $4 billion bet targeting in vivo CAR-T

Johnson & Johnson (J&J) has signed a large-scale agreement to secure next-generation immune cell therapy technology, in vivo CAR-T, including an option to acquire SAIL Biomedicine.

According to biotech publication Fierce Biotech on the 30th (local time), J&J signed an agreement to pay SAIL Biomedicine $785 million upfront (approximately 1.1775 trillion won). The deal includes a $465 million equity investment (approximately 697.5 billion won). J&J will pay up to $140 million in future milestones (approximately 210 billion won) and has secured an exclusive option to acquire SAIL for an additional $2.58 billion (approximately 3.87 trillion won).

Through the partnership, the companies plan to advance SAIL’s lead in vivo CAR-T program targeting autoimmune diseases. The program’s key pipeline is SAIL-0839, which targets CD4 and CD8 T cells.

SAIL has technology that uses circular ribonucleic acid (RNA) to increase the stability and durability of CAR expression in T cells. The approach uses nanoparticles to maximize the efficiency and selectivity of RNA delivery to T cells.

In mouse model experiments, SAIL confirmed B-cell depletion after a single or short-term administration of its candidate. The researchers said that B-cell depletion, particularly in lymphoid tissues, is key to continuously resetting the immune system in patients with autoimmune diseases. Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are among the primary target diseases.

In vivo CAR-T is attracting attention as a technology that could address the limitations of existing ex vivo CAR-T therapies. The ex vivo approach requires cells extracted from patients to be processed outside the body and reinfused, making it complex and costly. Patients must also accept the risks associated with lymphodepletion pretreatment. By contrast, the in vivo approach directly converts T cells into CAR-T cells inside the body, raising the possibility of an “off-the-shelf” therapy.

Competition among big pharmaceutical companies to secure in vivo CAR-T technology has increased explosively over the past 18 months. AbbVie, AstraZeneca, BMS and Gilead have invested billions of dollars. Eli Lilly acquired Kyverna Therapeutics for $3.25 billion in April, and J&J had also partnered with Kyverna before Lilly’s acquisition.

Tom Cavanaugh, chairman of J&J’s North America Innovative Medicine division, said last month, “We are participating in the in vivo CAR-T field through our own programs and our partnership with Kyverna,” adding, “We are very excited to follow that science.”