On January 2, 2024, Tome Biosciences, Inc., a programmable genomic integration (PGI) company, announced that it has acquired Replace Therapeutics Inc., a private biotechnology company developing a novel PGI method capable of inserting and deleting small DNA sequences. Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati advised Replace Therapeutics on the transaction.

Replace Therapeutics’ technology combines the site-specificity of CRISPR/Cas9 with the writing enzyme DNA ligase to precisely manipulate small DNA sequences. This ligase-mediated PGI (L-PGI) technology is well-suited for tens to hundreds of base pair DNA edits, complementing Tome’s flagship large DNA PGI technology, integrase-mediated PGI (I-PGI). In in vitro studies, L-PGI has demonstrated high efficiency and specificity in both dividing and non-dividing cells without the need for double-strand DNA breaks.

Under the terms of the acquisition, Tome will acquire Replace Therapeutics through a merger transaction of $65 million in up-front and near-term milestones, and a total deal value of up to $185 million through a mix of stock and cash. As a result of the merger, Replace Therapeutics will be a wholly owned subsidiary of Tome Biosciences.

The Wilson Sonsini team that advised Replace Therapeutics on the transaction included James Huie, Jason Breen, and Vishakha Negi.

For more information, please see Tome’s news release. Additional coverage is available in Endpoints News.