Merck Strengthening Vaccine Capabilities By Acquiring Troubled Immune Design

Recently battered by clinical setbacks, Immune Design has a co-development partnership with Merck around Keytruda and Merck’s Perlmutter is a former board member. Merck would pay roughly $300m to acquire the company and its immune system-boosting technologies.

Medical Shield

Investors recently have had major doubts about Immune Design Corp.’s business prospects, but Merck & Co. Inc. apparently doesn’t, as it announced a planned tender Feb. 21 to acquire the vaccine biotech for roughly $300m.

Immune Design has seen its share price plunge since it suspended the Phase III SYNOVATE study pairing its experimental vaccine...

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