A massive deal around CRISPR genome editing technology…

Early stage company Mammoth Biosciences just inked a $691 billion deal with Vertex Pharmaceuticals. This is a massive deal for the biotech startup. And it demonstrates just how valuable CRISPR genetic editing technology is within the industry.  As a reminder, Mammoth Biosciences was cofounded by Jennifer Doudna. She is one of the original inventors of CRISPR technology. 

And the company is pioneering in vivo CRISPR therapies for hard-to-treat diseases.  For context, in vivo therapies are administered directly inside the patient. This is compared to an ex vivo therapy, where the patient’s cells are removed from the body, treated, and then returned to the patient’s body. 

To tackle these difficult diseases, Mammoth uses very small enzymes that are capable of delivering the therapy to a specific tissue within the human body. The nuance here is that larger enzymes, such as the original CRISPR Cas-9 enzyme, are too big to reach these particular targets. And that’s exactly what Vertex is interested in with this deal.  Vertex wants to develop therapies for two genetic diseases using Mammoth’s delivery enzymes. It is paying Mammoth $41 million upfront to get access. 

And Vertex has agreed to pay up to $650 million more if these two therapies hit certain milestones.  What’s more, Vertex will also pay Mammoth royalties on sales if these therapies are ultimately approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). So this could amount to a $1 billion-plus deal for Mammoth Biosciences – even though Vertex will develop these therapies itself.  

So this shows us how valuable CRISPR genetic editing technology is within the biotech industry.   Needless to say, the Mammoth deal is very bullish for the best players in genetic editing. I expect a handful of acquisitions to happen within the next 12–18 months in this space.