Novartis buys UK ADC biotech Myricx Bio in up to $1.5bn deal

Why it matters: ADCs have become one of oncology’s hottest dealmaking areas, but much of the field still relies on a limited set of payload classes, including topoisomerase-1 and tubulin inhibitors.

• Myricx is trying to change that with N-myristoyltransferase inhibitor payloads, or NMTis, designed to kill cancer cells through a different mechanism and potentially address resistance to existing ADC payloads.

By the numbers: Novartis will pay $1.1bn upfront, with up to $400m in potential milestone payments. The transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2026.

Zoom in: Myricx’s two lead ADC assets target B7-H3 and HER2, both established oncology targets with potential across multiple solid tumour settings.

• More generally, Novartis is buying a payload platform that, if clinically validated, could be applied more broadly across additional ADC targets and formats.

How it works: N-myristoyltransferase is an enzyme involved in protein modification, a process cancer cells rely on for growth and survival. Myricx’s NMTi payloads are designed to disrupt those cellular processes after being delivered directly into tumour cells by an antibody.

• Novartis said preclinical data suggest the payloads may have activity in solid tumour models, including models resistant to TOPO-1 payloads.

Backstory: Myricx was spun out of Imperial College London and the Francis Crick Institute with support from Cancer Research UK. It was founded in 2019 by Ed Tate, Roberto Solari and Andrew Bell, with Sofinnova Partners and Brandon Capital as seed investors.

• The company raised a £90m Series A in 2024, co-led by Novo Holdings and Abingworth, with British Business Bank, Cancer Research Horizons, Eli Lilly, Brandon Capital and Sofinnova also involved.

What we’re watching: Myricx is not the only company exploring NMT inhibition in cancer, or even the only one looking at NMT inhibitors as ADC payloads.

• Canada’s Pacylex is developing zelenirstat, also known as PCLX-001, as an oral NMT1/2 inhibitor for cancer. The drug has been tested in a Phase I study in patients with relapsed or refractory lymphoma and refractory solid tumours, and Pacylex is also studying it in relapsed or refractory AML.
• The company is now trying to extend that work into ADCs. In November 2025, Pacylex and Germany’s Heidelberg Pharma presented preclinical data on ADCs using zelenirstat and another Pacylex molecule, PCLX-002, as payloads. According to the companies, zelenirstat ADCs showed potent cytotoxicity in breast and prostate cancer cell lines.

Big picture: Today’s deal continues Novartis’s run of acquisitions and partnerships aimed at adding differentiated therapeutic platforms.

• In oncology, Novartis bought Germany’s MorphoSys for €2.7bn in 2024, mainly to add the myelofibrosis drug candidate pelabresib. It also acquired Mariana Oncology the same year for up to $1.75bn to expand its radioligand therapy pipeline, a field where Novartis already markets Pluvicto and Lutathera.

• Beyond oncology, Novartis agreed to acquire Avidity Biosciences for around $12bn in 2025, adding an antibody-oligonucleotide conjugate platform and late-stage RNA therapies for neuromuscular diseases. It also bought Regulus Therapeutics in kidney disease and both Anthos Therapeutics and Tourmaline Bio in cardiovascular disease.

• The shopping spree also continued into immunology. In March 2026, Novartis agreed to acquire US-based Excellergy for up to $2bn, adding the Phase I antibody candidate Exl-111, which targets the IgE pathway in allergic disease.

Yes, but: Myricx remains preclinical, so the central question is still open: whether NMTi payloads can deliver a wider therapeutic window in patients, not just stronger preclinical rationale. The upfont price of the deal shows how much pharma is willing to pay for a credible new ADC mechanism, even before clinical proof.