Amgen to acquire biopharmaceutical startup Rodeo for $55 million

American pharmaceutical multinational Amgen Inc. and Rodeo Therapeutics Corporation have announced an agreement under which Amgen will acquire Rodeo, a privately held biopharmaceutical startup based in Seattle that develops small-molecule therapies designed to promote regeneration and repair of multiple tissues.

Rodeo's 15-PGDH program is a strong strategic fit with Amgen's inflammation portfolio and efforts to develop first-in-class therapeutics for patients.

Under terms of the agreement, Amgen will acquire all outstanding shares of Rodeo in exchange for a $55 million upfront payment as well as future contingent milestone payments potentially worth up to an additional $666 million in cash. The transaction has been approved by the shareholders and the Board of Directors of Rodeo.

Rodeo is focused on developing first-in-class, orally available modulators of prostaglandin biology that play an important role in tissue regeneration and repair. Rodeo's lead 15-prostaglandin dehydrogenase (15-PGDH) modulators have generated compelling data in extensive preclinical studies and have clinical potential in multiple indications.

Raymond Deshaies, senior vice president of Global Research, Amgen: "The enzyme 15-PGDH plays a key role in many disease-relevant processes such as stem cell self-renewal and epithelial barrier repair. Given the encouraging preclinical data to date, we are excited about the opportunity to develop a novel therapy with potential in a range of important inflammatory disease indications.”

 Thong Q. Le, president and chief executive officer, Rodeo: "We are thrilled that Amgen recognizes the potential value and differentiated profile of our 15-PGDH inhibitor program.  With decades of experience in developing, manufacturing and commercializing innovative therapies for patients suffering from a broad range of immunologic diseases and conditions, Amgen is ideally positioned to rapidly advance our program into the clinic."

Cooley LLP acted as legal advisor to Rodeo and Gunderson Dettmer LLP acted as legal advisor to Amgen on this transaction.

www.amgen.com