23andMe will be axing its therapeutics development division. The firm is considering selling its internal pipeline of DNA-immunology oncology antibodies to a buyer.
The consumer genetics company said it would cut more than 200 workers, or about 40% of its workforce, to focus more on the top-selling DNA and ancestry tests that initially established 23andMe and then expand its telehealth platforms and the research services it offers to other drug makers.
The company explained its intention to stop those ongoing studies as soon as possible. The company’s valuation includes two assets that are in the very early stages of testing.
First, there is 23ME-00610, which inhibits the immune checkpoint CD200R1 and tries to reactivate the body’s capacity to combat tumor cells. It is being investigated in a phase 1/2a trial aiming to recruit up to 15 patients for each of six cohorts, including neuroendocrine cancer, kidney cancer, small cell lung cancer, ovarian/fallopian tube/peritoneal carcinomas, and MSI-high or tumor mutational burden solid tumors.
Second, 23ME-01473 is also under a phase 1 trial of advanced solid tumor patients. The dual-mechanism drug focuses on ULBP6, which is secreted by tumor cells and inhibits immune reactions. The company is also considering assets in immunology and immunology-related inflammation that have only been tested in the preclinical stage.
The firm said earlier in September this year during the congress of the European Society of Medical Oncology that it received results from both antibody programs.
The layoffs and restructuring, which are expected to result in up to $12 million in one-time charges before achieving yearly savings of over $35 million, follow after 23andMe came close to Nasdaq delisting. This situation occurred in mid-October when the firm effected a 1-for-20 reverse stock split. By the end of that month, it declared it had raised its price per share enough to satisfy the exchange.
