BioCentury
ARTICLE | Strategy

A new Celling proposition

October 17, 2005 7:00 AM UTC

After pulling its planned IPO in August, Celldex Therapeutics Inc. decided to focus on company building by acquiring a pair of smaller companies that also are working on monoclonal antibodies and therapeutic vaccines. Each deal brings something new to the table: Alteris Therapeutics Inc. provides Celldex with a cancer vaccine program in Phase II testing, while Lorantis Ltd. will serve as a research engine in the U.K. and could open the door to a possible float on a European exchange.

Medarex Inc. (MEDX, Princeton, N.J.) spun out Celldex in 2003 with rights to technology that uses MAbs attached to antigens that target receptors on antigen presenting cells (APCs) to stimulate T cell and B cell proliferation. The technology has potential utility in cancer, infectious and autoimmune diseases...