In a move that underscores Big Pharma’s race to harness next-generation genetic medicine, Eli Lilly to buy Orna Therapeutics in a transaction that could deliver up to $2.4 billion in cash to Orna’s shareholders.
Eli Lilly & Co. announced Monday that it has agreed to acquire the biotechnology firm, with payments structured as a combination of upfront cash and additional payouts tied to the achievement of specific clinical development milestones.
The deal places Lilly squarely in the fast-evolving field of engineered RNA therapeutics — a frontier scientists describe as both promising and technically complex.
Engineering Immunity From Within
Based in Watertown, Massachusetts, Orna Therapeutics focuses on engineering immune cells directly inside the body — known as in vivo approaches — rather than extracting and modifying them outside the patient.
The company is advancing a new class of treatments built on engineered circular RNA paired with proprietary lipid nanoparticles. The goal: enable the body itself to produce therapeutic cells capable of targeting underlying diseases.
At the center of Orna’s pipeline is ORN-252, a therapy ready to enter clinical trials. The program targets in vivo Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-cell, or CAR-T, therapy for B cell-driven autoimmune diseases. Unlike traditional CAR-T methods that require ex vivo cell manipulation, Orna’s approach seeks to simplify delivery and broaden patient access.
