In September 2019, it was announced that Neuro-focused Danish pharmaco H. Lundbeck AS had agreed to acquire biotech Alder BioPharmaceuticals Inc.(NASDAQ:ALDR) for up to $20 in cash per share - an estimated $2B. The firm's continues to trade on NASDAQ but its foreign ownership now likely precludes SBIR eligibility. Alder Biopharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ: ALDR) has been developing better and safer antibody therapeutics through novel technologies to help individuals suffering from cancer, autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. Started by senior managers at Celltech, the company is developing a disruptive technology for making antibody drugs, the genetically engineered Y-shaped proteins that can be made to target diseased cells and spare healthy ones. The technology has been proven over the past decade and have an estimated $30 billion annual market but are expensive and hard to make because they need to be nurtured in living cells. Most antibodies are made in stainless steel vats that provide a controlled environment for nurturing mammalian cells however Alder is using yeast cells, which divide much faster as a replacement, offering the potential to significantly lower manufacturing costs and widen profit margins.
