Thermo Fisher Scientific to Buy Brammer Bio for $1.7 Billion

Thermo Fisher Scientific, based in Waltham, Mass., is buying gene and cell therapy manufacturer Brammer Bio, located in Cambridge, Mass. for $1.7 billion in cash. Brammer Bio is a contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) focusing on manufacturing viral vectors for gene and cell therapies. This is something of a hot area these days as gene and cell therapies emerge out of research and into actual clinical practice. For example, on Friday, March 22, bluebird bio, also headquartered in Cambridge, Mass., announced it was opening its new gene therapy manufacturing facility in Durham, NC. That factory will produce lentiviral vectors for its gene and cell therapies, including bb2121 and bb21217 for multiple myeloma and possibly LentiGLobin for transfusion-dependent beta-thalassemia (TDT) and sickle cell disease.
According to a recent industry report, there are almost 300 gene therapies being developed to treat more than 100 diseases. Brammer has about 600 staffers at its primary locations in Massachusetts and Florida. The company was projected to bring in $250 million in revenue this year.