AstraZeneca buys Spirogen for up to $440 million

LONDON — AstraZeneca has acquired a British developer of biotech drugs for treating cancer, AstraZeneca said Tuesday.

The company said its MedImmune subsidiary had acquired privately held Spirogen and also entered into a collaboration with ADC Therapeutics to develop two of ADC's antibody-drug conjugate programs, currently in pre-clinical development. MedImmune will make an equity investment in ADC, which has an existing licensing agreement with Spirogen.

Under the Spirogen deal, MedImmune will acquire all shares of Spirogen for $200 million upfront and up to $240 million in milestone payments. MedImmune will also pay $20 million for the equity investment in ADC, matched by Auven Therapeutics, which is the majority shareholder in ADC and Spirogen.