Eli Lilly agreed to acquire three vaccine developers in deals worth up to nearly $4 billion, positioning the company to expand beyond its core cardiometabolic franchise into infectious-disease prevention. The acquisitions include Curevo, LimmaTech Biologics, and Vaccine Company Inc., adding late-stage and platform technologies across viral and bacterial targets, according to the company. The move follows Lilly’s prior purchase of Verve Therapeutics and aligns with its stated strategy to “prevent disease at its source.” Curevo’s lead program is an experimental shingles vaccine built around a synthetic adjuvant designed to improve tolerability versus existing options, Lilly said. LimmaTech and Vaccine Company add additional vaccine candidates targeting bacterial infections and other pathogens. Industry impact is likely to center on pipeline breadth and late-stage readiness for multiple infectious diseases, including areas where vaccine manufacturing scale and immune response profiles will be critical for differentiation. Lilly’s strategy also underscores the growing premium investors are placing on platform-backed immunology and vaccinology programs.