In October 2020, it was announced that Gilead Sciences - itself an SBIR involved firm in the firm's early days - had completed acquire Immunomedics, Inc. (Nasdaq: IMMU) for a sum of approximately $21 billion in the aggregate. A leader in next-generation antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) technology, Immunomedics is a biopharmaceutical company primarily focused on the development of monoclonal, antibody-based products for the targeted treatment of cancer, autoimmune and other serious diseases, the firm ceasedtrading that day. ImmunoMedics Inc had developed a number of advanced technologies allowing creatiion of humanized antibodies that can be used either alone in unlabeled or naked form, or conjugated with radioactive isotopes, chemotherapeutics or toxins, in each case to create targeted agents. ImmunoMedics has licensed its product candidate epratuzumab, to UCB S.A. (UCB), for the treatment of all autoimmune disease indications. Epratuzumabs advanced clinical testing is for the treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and in non-Hodgkins lymphoma (NHL). Rights have been retained for epratuzumab in oncology indications, subject to UCBs buy-in option, and is advancing trials in lymphoma and in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), in cooperation with National Cancer Institute Study Groups
