(Reuters) -Drugmaker Bristol Myers Squibb said on Friday it will acquire privately held cell therapy developer Orbital Therapeutics for $1.5 billion in cash, aiming to diversify from legacy products facing competition from generic drugs. The deal expands Bristol Myers Squibb's CAR T-cell immunotherapy portfolio with Orbital's lead experimental candidate, OTX-201, which is designed to target autoimmune diseases. This marks the company's first major acquisition of the year, as it shifts focus beyond established blockbusters, such as the blood thinner Eliquis and cancer drug Revlimid, to reassure investors that its newer therapies can drive future growth. In March, the company had made a smaller acquisition of its partner 2seventy bio for about $286 million in cash, saving future profit-sharing costs on Abecma, a CAR T-cell therapy for a type of blood cancer called multiple myeloma. Abecma and blood cancer cell therapy Breyanzi accounted for about 1.7% of Bristol Myers' total revenue last year. CAR T-cell therapies work by collecting white blood cells from a patient, genetically modifying them to fight a cancer and then infusing them back into the patient. Massachusetts-based Orbital's OTX-201 works by removing harmful cells to help the body reset its immune system. Bristol will also gain access to Orbital's RNA technology, which combines various RNA engineering, advanced delivery methods and artificial intelligence to create customizable treatments for a wide range of diseases. "With the acquisition of Orbital Therapeutics…we have an incredible opportunity to make CAR T-cell therapy more efficient and accessible to more patients," said Lynelle B. Hoch, president, cell therapy organization, at Bristol Myers. (Reporting by Christy Santhosh in Bengaluru; Editing by Vijay Kishore)
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