American gene therapy company Bluebird Bio (BLUE.US) launches restructuring plan, planning to lay off 25% of employees.

The American gene therapy company Bluebird Bio (BLUE.US) announced plans to lay off approximately one quarter of its workforce, as the biotechnology company faces challenges that gene therapy companies face. Gene therapy is an expensive one-time treatment used to treat difficult-to-treat diseases. The company, headquartered in Somerville, Massachusetts, stated in a statement that this move is part of a company restructuring that is expected to allow the company to focus on launching new products and reduce cash operating expenses by 20% in the third quarter of next year. According to a document earlier this month, Bluebird has around 375 employees. For over a decade, Bluebird has been a pioneer in gene therapy, focusing on severe genetic diseases. The company has been recognized for bringing gene therapy from clinical research to the commercial market, with three therapies receiving FDA approval in less than two years. However, despite nearly 20 gene therapies approved in the United States for treating various diseases such as sickle cell disease and hemophilia, the high cost of treatment reaching millions of dollars, along with other factors, has slowed the widespread adoption of this therapy. Bluebird has struggled to turn gene therapy into a successful business and has expressed "substantial doubt" about its ability to continue operating. Before the opening of the US stock market on Tuesday, Bluebird's stock price rose by 1.80%. In the past 12 months, the company's market value has evaporated by 84%. CEO Andrew Obenshain stated in a statement, "We are taking decisive action to optimize our cost structure to enable the company to attract the additional capital needed to unlock the significant business opportunities in front of us."