Roche will acquire Tensha Therapeutics for an upfront cash payment of $115 million, plus additional contingent payments of up to $420 million.
Tensha, which was founded by James E. Bradner, M.D., of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, has developed an epigenetic technology that disrupts bromodomain and extra terminal domain (BET) proteins in order to develop potential treatments for cancer. The lead product, TEN-010, is a small molecule BET inhibitor that is currently in two Phase Ib trials for the treatment of patients with cancer.
“BET proteins are a highly promising class of therapeutic targets in cancer,” explained Dr. Bradner. “BET inhibitors function as targeted therapy in rare cancers with BET gene rearrangements (NUT midline carcinoma), and in common cancers as a means of inhibiting the function of the master growth control genes, such as MYC.”
Earlier this month, Roche initiated a collaboration with C4 Therapeutics, another company that Dr. Bradner co-founded.
