The acquisition aims to make cell therapy available to patients with solid tumors by leveraging Neogene's research in TCR-T development and manufacturing.

TCR-Ts are a novel therapeutic agent for the treatment of cancer. Most current cancer cell therapy treatments in oncology focus on modifying immune system T-lymphocytes to recognize proteins on the surface of cancer cells. However, TCR-Ts recognize intracellular targets, including cancer-specific mutations. This could potentially uncover targets that were previously inaccessible by cell-based therapies.

Neogene was founded in 2018 and is based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and Santa Monica, California. In just four years, the company has grown from a scientific concept to a fast-growing clinical-stage company offering a full suite of technologies enabling TCR-T therapy for cancer patients.

AstraZeneca will acquire Neogene for a total of $320 million in cash. This will be split into an initial payment of US$200 million on closing of the transaction and a further payment of US$120 million conditional on the achievement of relevant milestones. The transaction is expected to be completed in the first quarter of this year.