By Chelsey Dulaney
Gilead Sciences Inc. has agreed to buy privately-held
EpiTherapeutics ApS for $65 million, giving the drug maker a
foothold into the field of epigenetics.
Epigenetics is the study of how environmental influences alter
whether particular genes are activated.
Denmark-based EpiTherapeutics develops cancer treatments,
focusing on the enzymes involved in the regulation of transcription
in cancer.
Gilead, meanwhile, has two key hepatitis C drugs, Sovaldi and
Harvoni, which generated about $4.45 billion in sales in the first
quarter of the year.
The drugs represent two of the most successful drug launches
ever, marked by their high cure rates, fewer side effects and
imposing price tags. But they also face increasing competition from
new hepatitis C treatments like AbbVie Inc.'s Viekira Pak, which
started sales in December. Merck & Co. has a hepatitis C
treatment in the works.
Write to Chelsey Dulaney at Chelsey.Dulaney@wsj.com
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