In a recent move, Editas sold part of these rights to DRI Healthcare’s subsidiary, a healthcare royalties company. The transaction will generate $57 million for Editas upon closing. In exchange, Editas will relinquish nearly all of the licensing fees, which could yield DRI between $5 million and $40 million annually, along with a portion of the $50 million contingent payment—reported to be in the double digits in percentage terms.
Editas will retain the licensing fees for the current year, along with a mid-single-digit million-dollar payment, provided Vertex meets certain sales milestones. Meanwhile, Editas remains focused on advancing its gene therapy, known as reni-cel, towards regulatory approval.
Results from studies on sickle cell disease and beta-thalassemia are expected by the end of the year.
Editas stated that the recent cash injection would “help enable further pipeline development and support strategic priorities.” The company expressed satisfaction with its partnership with DRI, which allowed it to monetize the licensing payments from the Vertex deal. Editas plans to use the capital to develop a range of future medicines.
The agreement with Vertex was signed amidst a legal dispute involving several universities and one of the pioneers of CRISPR gene editing, Emmanuelle Charpentier. Charpentier, along with Jennifer Doudna, developed a method for splicing DNA molecules, which laid the foundation for the gene-editing companies like Editas.
A 2023 ruling by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office favored the Broad Institute of MIT over Charpentier and the University of California, Berkeley, making Editas the sole licensee of certain CRISPR patents, including a patent estate owned by Harvard, Rockefeller, and MIT.
However, this ruling is currently being contested by Charpentier and the universities in the U.S. and Europe.
