Genentech Acquires Jecure Therapeutics

Jecure Therapeutics Inc., a biotechnology company with novel drug discovery programs targeting serious inflammatory diseases, announced a definitive agreement by which it will be acquired by Genentech, a member of the Roche Group. With this acquisition, Genentech will obtain full rights to Jecure’s entire preclinical portfolio of NLRP3 inhibitors.

“Genentech has an extensive history of translating pioneering science into transformative medicines,” said Jeffrey A. Stafford, Ph.D., president and CEO of Jecure. “The acquisition of Jecure provides a unique opportunity to bring novel NLRP3 inhibitors to patients.”

“We’ve had a long-standing interest in targeting inflammatory pathways that may play a role in a number of serious diseases,” said James Sabry, M.D., Ph.D., global head of Pharma Partnering, Roche. “We’re excited to combine Jecure’s portfolio with our discovery and development capabilities, as well as our expertise in NLRP3 biology, to potentially help people with inflammatory diseases.”

Jecure began operations in 2015 with a seed financing from founding investor Versant Ventures. The company raised $20 million in a Series A round from Versant in 2017 to continue to develop and advance its portfolio of NLRP3 inhibitors.