Sanofi SA ( SNY ) on Thursday agreed to acquire Dren Bio Inc.’s DR-0201, a targeted bispecific myeloid cell engager (MCE).

DR-0201 is a CD20-directed bispecific antibody that targets and engages specific tissue-resident and trafficking myeloid cells to induce B-cell depletion via targeted phagocytosis.

Recent early clinical study data in autoimmune diseases suggest that deep B-cell depletion might potentially reset the adaptive immune system, leading to sustained treatment-free remission in patients with refractory B-cell-mediated autoimmune diseases such as lupus.

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DR-0201 is being evaluated in two ongoing phase 1 studies.

Sanofi ( SNY ) will acquire DR-0201 for an upfront payment of $600 million and potential future payments totaling $1.3 billion upon achievement of certain development and launch milestones.

After the acquisition of Dren-0201, Dren Bio will continue to operate independently to advance its pipeline of antibody therapeutics that selectively deplete pathogenic cells and other disease-causing agents.

The companies expect the transaction to close during Q2 2025.

Sanofi ( SNY ) expects to finance the transaction using available cash resources. The French pharma giant ended the fiscal year 2024 with cash and cash equivalent of 7.4 billion euros.

In October, Italian pharma company Recordati S.p.A agreed to acquire the global rights to Enjaymo, or sutimlimab, from Sanofi ( SNY ) for $825 million as an upfront payment and additional commercial milestone payments of up to $250 million.

Enjaymo, a humanized monoclonal antibody, is the only approved targeted product for cold agglutinin disease, a rare autoimmune disorder characterized by the premature destruction of red blood cells.

Price Action: SNY stock is down 1.1% at $57.95 at the last check Thursday.

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