Takeda Pharmaceutical Company has announced the exercise of its option to acquire Adaptate Biotherapeutics, a UK-based company focused on developing antibody-based therapeutics for the modulation of variable delta 1 (Vδ1) gamma delta (γδ) T cells.

Through the acquisition, Japanese firm Takeda will obtain Adaptate’s antibody-based γδ T cell engager platform, including pre-clinical candidate and discovery pipeline programs. Adaptate’s γδ T cell engagers are designed to specifically modulate γδ T cell-mediated immune responses at tumour sites while sparing damage to healthy cells.

The planned acquisition of Adaptate follows Takeda’s recently exercised option to acquire GammaDelta Therapeutics and is intended to further accelerate the development of innovative γδ T cell-based therapies.

Combining GammaDelta’s cell therapy-based platform and Adaptate’s antibody-based γδ T cell engager platform with Takeda’s strong research and development organization positions Takeda to be at the leading edge in deploying the full potential of γδ T cells in the fight against cancer.