On October 22, 2026, Gilead Sciences, a biopharmaceutical company pursuing breakthroughs in medicine, announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire an oral IL-23R inhibitor program, including lead asset HCXT-2001, from PepStar Therapeutics Limited, a privately held, clinical-stage biotechnology company, for $1.275 billion in upfront cash consideration, subject to customary adjustments. The transaction is expected to close later in 2026. Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati is advising PepStar on patent matters related to the transaction.

The Wilson Sonsini team advising PepStar on patent matters related to the transaction includes Michael Hostetler, Ying Chen, Johnson Truong, and Jenny Liu.

For more information, please see Gilead Sciences’ news release.