Recently, Dynavax Technologies Corp. (DVAX) completed the acquisition of Symphony Dynamo, Inc. in a stock deal. Under this agreement, Dynavax issued 13 million shares of its common stock to Symphony. The company in return received $20 million in cash as well as rights to its own hepatitis C and cancer treatments held by Symphony. In the event of Dynavax partnering the programs for hepatitis C and cancer therapy, Symphony stands to receive half of the first $50 million received from any potential upfront and development milestones.
 
Under the deal, Dynavax also issued 5-year warrants to Symphony for 2 million shares of the acquirer’s common stock at an exercise price of $1.94 per share. Dynavax cancelled the existing warrants for 2 million shares held by Symphony. The transaction further allowed Dynavax to delay a $15 million payment due to Symphony by 20 months. The amount, which is due on Dec 31, 2012, can be paid through a combination of stock and cash instead of solely stock. The closure of the transaction allows Symphony and its co-investors to own approximately 24% of the total outstanding common stock of Dynavax.
 
Dynavax intends to use the $20 million from this acquisition to complete the registration trials of Heplisav, its vaccine for treating hepatitis B. Heplisav, Dynavax’s lead pipeline candidate, combines hepatitis B surface antigen with a toll-like receptor 9 (TLR9) agonist for enhanced immune response. Heplisav has been developed with the objective of providing increased, rapid protection, utilizing fewer doses than currently licensed vaccines.
 
The company intends to market the vaccine primarily for people less responsive to other vaccines, including adults over 40 years and those suffering from chronic kidney disease. Heplisav has already completed one late-stage trial, and in September 2009 the company began vaccinating chronic kidney disease patients in another late- stage study.
  
The Hepatitis B virus (HBV) affects more than 350 million individuals globally. It is a chronic disease which can lead to cirrhosis of the liver and hepatocellular carcinoma. Currently, the global market for HBV therapeutics is estimated at over $1 billion annually and available therapies have limited efficacy.
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