Telix Pharmaceuticals Limited has entered into an agreement to acquire radioisotope production technology firm ARTMS Inc, its advanced cyclotron-based isotope production platform, manufacturing plant, and stockpile of ultra-pure rare metals required for consumable target production.
ARTMS, based in Burnaby, British Columbia (BC), Canada, is a privately held, venture-backed company, which specialises in the physics, chemistry, and materials science of cyclotron-produced radionuclides.
A spin-out company from the internationally renowned TRIUMF, Canada’s particle accelerator centre, ARTMS is a commercial-stage company: its technology is used by the major manufacturing networks to optimise the production of a range of medical radioisotopes.
The acquisition of ARTMS is expected to further enhance the vertical integration of Telix’s supply chain and manufacturing by providing a greater level of control and security over each of the Company’s diagnostic isotopes.
ARTMS’ core technology platform is based on the QUANTM Irradiation System™ (QIS™), a complete cyclotron-based isotope production system that is designed to support high efficiency and cost-effective production of commercially important medical isotopes including zirconium-89 (89Zr), gallium-68 (68Ga), technetium99m (99mTc), and copper-64 (64Cu).
The ASX-listed company said QIS has demonstrated industry-leading production yields and significantly outperforms conventional cyclotron target systems due to the unique intellectual property and target manufacturing processes that underpin it.
Additionally, ARTMS’ portfolio of advanced cyclotron technologies will have immediate application and differentiation in the production of future commercially important alpha-emitting, therapeutic isotopes, including actinium-225 (225Ac) and astatine-211 (211At).
The strategic rationale for the acquisition stems from four key areas of commercial synergy between ARTMS and Telix:
Dr Christian Behrenbruch, managing director and Group CEO of Telix, stated that ARTMS has been a pioneer in the development of ‘next generation’ cyclotron-based isotope production systems, showcasing production efficiency and yields surpassing comparable systems.
He stated, “It is our hope that by closely aligning this powerful technology with pharmaceutical development, we will transform the cost, market access and utility of diagnostic and therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals.”
Meanwhile, Doug Gentilcore, CEO of ARTMS, commented on the shared goal of ensuring key isotopes are readily available to populations in need, expressing the belief that partnering with Telix is the optimal approach to achieve this objective.
Gentilcore pointed out Telix’s leadership in the US market with Illuccix®, the most utilised 68Ga-based imaging agent, and their upcoming 89Zr-based product candidate, Zircaix®.
“Our long-term goal is therapeutic radionuclides and together with Telix we believe we have the opportunity to deliver these potentially at commercial scale, including through their extensive late-stage product pipeline,” he stressed.
Telix is currently validating multiple production locations of large-scale 89Zr production in the US using the QIS system and select manufacturing and pharmacy partners.
ARTMS’ QIS is a significant enabler of production capacity and supply chain reliability that works by irradiating a yttrium-89 (89Y) target to produce sterile, filtered, purified, and dissolved 89Zr that is ready for radiopharmaceutical use.
ARTMS possesses a significant stockpile of ultra-pure 89Y to fabricate sufficient cyclotron targets to support this commercial application.
Moreover, ARTMS and Telix have been collaborating since 2020 to evaluate the potential of higher curie-scale (Ci) production of Illuccix®.
One of the goals of this acquisition is to enable Telix to deliver further improvement of Illuccix® margins and wider distribution through Telix’s unique pharmacy partnership model.
ARTMS holds a commercially significant stockpile of zinc-68 (68Zn), which is irradiated to produce 68Ga.
Telix will be working with select pharmacy networks and strategic partners to enhance the reliability and routine production of isotopes following the closing of the acquisition.
In particular for 64Cu, for which no commercially viable production network currently exists in the US, ARTMS has a substantial commercial stockpile of Nickel-64 (64Ni), the essential raw material for 64Cu production, which is in severely limited global supply.
As part of the acquisition, Telix will also acquire the benefit of ARTMS’s production facility and clean rooms, located in Burnaby, BC (Canada).
Telix said it expects to continue to operate and expand ARTMS’ R&D and production capabilities at the Burnaby location to support in-house and customer needs, subject to applicable laws and transaction terms.
