Key Moments
- Eli Lilly agreed to acquire Orna Therapeutics for up to $2.4 billion in cash to gain access to its in vivo cell therapy platform.
- Orna’s lead candidate, ORN-252, is an early-stage CAR-T therapy targeting CD19 using circular RNA and novel lipid nanoparticles.
- The transaction adds to Lilly’s recent deals as it pushes beyond obesity drugs into oncology, immunology, and other therapeutic areas.
Deal Overview
Feb 9 (Reuters) – Eli Lilly plans to acquire Orna Therapeutics in a cash transaction valued at up to $2.4 billion, securing a technology designed to enable patients’ own cells to generate therapies directly inside the body, without first removing those cells.
The agreement, announced on Monday, extends a series of deals Lilly has signed in recent months as the U.S. pharmaceutical company seeks to broaden its business beyond obesity treatments. Lilly shares were up more than 3% in morning trading following the news.
Orna’s Platform and Lead Program
Orna is developing a pipeline built on circular RNA and proprietary lipid nanoparticles. Its most advanced program, ORN-252, remains in the early stages of development.
ORN-252 is designed as a chimeric antigen receptor T-cell, or CAR-T, therapy that targets cells expressing the CD19 receptor. CAR-T therapies are intended to reengineer a patient’s immune cells so they can identify a specific target and attack cancer cells.
How Orna’s Approach Differs
Several large drugmakers, including Bristol Myers Squibb, Gilead, and Johnson & Johnson, already market CAR-T therapies for cancer. Most of these existing products rely on a multi-step process that involves extracting immune cells from a patient, modifying them externally, and then reinfusing the altered cells back into the patient.
Orna is pursuing a different model, seeking to generate therapeutic cells in vivo – inside the patient’s body – rather than performing the cell modification in a laboratory setting.
Strategic Rationale and Competitive Landscape
BMO Capital Markets analyst Evan Seigerman said Orna’s technology platform could enhance Lilly’s capabilities in oncology and immunology. At the same time, Seigerman characterized the technology as high-risk, noting that it lacks validation in large clinical trials and faces significant competition.
According to Seigerman, companies such as Bristol Myers, AbbVie, and Gilead all executed deals in this therapeutic area last year, intensifying the competitive environment.
Lilly’s Broader Expansion Strategy
Lilly, which is a dominant player in the obesity market, has been actively expanding beyond its high-profile weight-loss portfolio. The company has been building positions in areas such as inflammatory bowel disease, cancer, eye diseases, and gene-editing technologies through a mix of acquisitions and strategic collaborations.
As part of that effort, Lilly entered into an agreement with China’s Innovent Biologics this month to co-develop immunology and oncology medicines. Under that deal, Lilly would pay $350 million upfront, with additional potential payments of up to $8.5 billion tied to the achievement of specified milestones.
Transaction and Partnership Snapshot
| Company | Counterparty | Type | Headline Value | Key Focus |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eli Lilly | Orna Therapeutics | Acquisition | Up to $2.4 billion (cash) | In vivo CAR-T, circular RNA platform |
| Eli Lilly | Innovent Biologics | Collaboration | $350 million upfront, up to $8.5 billion in milestones | Immunology and oncology drugs |
TradingPedia.com is a financial media specialized in providing daily news and education covering Forex, equities and commodities. Our academies for traders cover 
