The acquisition aligns with Eli Lilly’s broader diversification strategy beyond its core diabetes and obesity treatment portfolio.

Drugmaker Eli Lilly plans to buy Verve Therapeutics, a gene-editing startup, for about $1 billion upfront. The deal gives Lilly a potential new treatment for heart disease, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Eli Lilly has struck a deal to buy Crispr gene-editing start-up Verve Therapeutics for up to $1.3bn, the latest acquisition by the world’s most valuable drugmaker as it seeks to boost its pipeline of experimental medicines.