Boehringer inks over US$572M cancer therapy deal with Tessellate Bio

GERMANY/UK—Boehringer Ingelheim has entered a significant partnership with UK-based biotech Tessellate Bio, signing an agreement valued at over US$572 million to co-develop new cancer therapies.

The collaboration focuses on targeting tumours that use the alternative lengthening of telomeres (ALT) mechanism—a lesser-known process that certain hard-to-treat cancers rely on to survive and continue growing.

The ALT mechanism is a telomerase-independent pathway that allows cancer cells to maintain their telomeres, the protective caps at the ends of chromosomes.

While most cancers use the enzyme telomerase to keep their telomeres intact, about 5–15% of cancers—including some sarcomas, glioblastomas, and neuroendocrine tumours—activate the ALT pathway instead.

This mechanism is associated with increased genomic instability and resistance to conventional therapies, making ALT-positive tumors particularly challenging to treat.

Under the deal’s terms, Tessellate Bio will receive an upfront licensing fee, research funding, and technical milestone payments.

 In addition, the agreement includes further success-based payments tied to development and commercial milestones, bringing the total potential value to more than US$572 million.

Tessellate Bio has developed small-molecule inhibitors that target a key, yet undisclosed, protein essential for the replication and survival of ALT-positive cancer cells.

According to Tessellate, preclinical studies demonstrate that blocking this target induces DNA damage and replication stress specifically in ALT-dependent tumour cells, leading to their selective destruction.

 Importantly, healthy cells that do not rely on the ALT pathway are spared, suggesting a promising therapeutic window.

This partnership builds on Tessellate’s ongoing research to better understand ALT activity across various tumor types.

 In September 2024, Tessellate launched a research initiative with Australian institutes CMRI and Omico to further characterize ALT mechanisms.

 The company previously secured US$8.6 million in seed funding (converted from €8 million) from BioGeneration Ventures and Forbion when it emerged from stealth in October 2023

 The agreement with Boehringer Ingelheim marks Tessellate’s first collaboration with a major pharmaceutical company.

This deal is part of Boehringer Ingelheim’s broader strategy to expand its oncology portfolio.

The German pharmaceutical giant has been actively pursuing research and licensing agreements to strengthen its position in cancer therapeutics.

in October 2024, Boehringer partnered with Circle Pharma to co-develop a first-in-class cyclin inhibitor in a deal worth up to US$607 million.

 That same month, the company opened a US$66.8 million (€60 million) research facility in Vienna, Austria, dedicated to advancing novel cancer treatments.

Boehringer’s current marketed cancer drugs include Giotrif (afatinib) for EGFR-mutated non-small cell lung cancer and Vargatef (nintedanib) for certain lung cancers.

The company is also advancing late-stage candidates such as brigimadlin, an MDM2-p53 antagonist in pivotal trials for dedifferentiated liposarcoma, and zongertinib, a tyrosine kinase inhibitor for HER2-mutated non-small cell lung cancer.

In January 2025, Boehringer signed two additional licensing agreements.

 The first agreement was with Synaffix, which granted Boehringer access to its antibody-drug conjugate platform in a deal valued at up to US$1.3 billion.

The second agreement extended Boehringer’s partnership with Oxford BioTherapeutics, giving Boehringer rights to a fourth novel target while also assuming full development responsibilities.

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