M&A activity – CRISPR fuelling investor interest in gene editing

A Feature analyzing M&A, licensing and partnerships in gene editing as CRISPR therapeutics enter the market and present new opportunities for pharma growth.

Late last year, Vertex Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: VRTX) and CRISPR Therapeutics (Nasdaq: CRSP) gained approval for the first clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-based drug, Casgevy (exagamglogene autotemcel), for the treatment of sickle cell disease and beta-thalassemia. In 2023, 14 review designations were awarded to CRISPR-based therapies by the Food and Drug Administration and many gene-editing drugs are forecast to enter the market over the next few years.