Newsletter Tool

Today's Rundown

Anavex touts 'very large' phase 3 win for Rett syndrome drug—2 weeks after moving study's goalposts
As CEO goes, cash woes drive Sio to give Parkinson's program the heave-ho
Takeda shunts jewel of Shire takeover to new spinoff Oak Hill
Sponsored: Taking a Different Approach to Drug Development
Biogen checks 'yes' with $30M opt-in on Roche's lymphoma bispecific as regulatory filings get underway for FDA, EU
Sponsored: Choose wisely. Biospecimens can make or break your biomarker-driven cancer research
Sarepta rushes for GenEdit's polymer nanoparticles in $57M gene editing delivery partnership
Twist Bioscience is doing better than most biotechs on ESG, but overall employment of women lags industry
Novartis' Sandoz reportedly the target of $25B buyout bid from Carlyle and Blackstone
BD picks up Spanish developer of minimum residual disease cancer blood tests
CMS' Biogen decision could spell problems for Lilly, Roche Alzheimer's drugs, half of surveyed neurologists say
Beaumont Health, Spectrum Health complete 22-hospital merger to form Michigan's largest health system

Featured Story

Anavex touts 'very large' phase 3 win for Rett syndrome drug—2 weeks after moving study's goalposts

By Annalee Armstrong

Anavex Life Science’s press release touting a phase 3 win for a Rett syndrome drug read very much like a doge meme. They claimed “very large” and “large” wins on the main and secondary endpoints.

As CEO goes, cash woes drive Sio to give Parkinson's program the heave-ho

By Nick Paul Taylor

Sio Gene Therapies is dumping its midphase Parkinson’s disease program to eke out its cash into 2023. Years after the biotech, then known as Axovant, had a high-profile failure in Alzheimer’s, it has decided to cull its current riskiest bet and focus on two other programs under the leadership of a new CEO.

Takeda shunts jewel of Shire takeover to new spinoff Oak Hill

By Nick Paul Taylor

Takeda keeps pumping out biotech spinoffs. Months after spawning HilleVax, the Japanese drugmaker has packed off another pair of midphase programs to seed a new rare disease player: Oak Hill Bio.

Biogen and Roche's Genentech are looking to follow up on their multidecade history of getting medicines approved together, with the Aduhelm maker dishing out $30 million in the latest attempt.

Sarepta Therapeutics will pay GenEdit up to $57 million in the near-term for access to the Eli Lilly-backed biotech's non-viral delivery platform for gene editing therapies.

Twist Bioscience is doing better than most biotechs on ESG, but overall employment of women lags industry

By Sophia Sorensen

Twist Bioscience has more women in management positions, but fewer women overall compared to most biotechs, according to its new ESG report.

Novartis' Sandoz reportedly the target of $25B buyout bid from Carlyle and Blackstone

By Fraiser Kansteiner

Investors groups Blackstone and Carlyle could join forces on a massive $25-billion bid for Sandoz, Bloomberg reports, citing people close to the matter. Separately, Advent International, Hellman & Friedman and KKR & Co. are sizing up their own approaches, Bloomberg’s anonymous sources said.

BD picks up Spanish developer of minimum residual disease cancer blood tests

By Conor Hale

The medtech has bought Cytognos, developer of blood tests for tracking minimal residual disease, or the minuscule amounts of cancer cells left behind while a patient is in remission.

CMS' Biogen decision could spell problems for Lilly, Roche Alzheimer's drugs, half of surveyed neurologists say

By Ben Adams

Neurologists in the U.S. are agreeing with a new draft decision from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) that restricts reimbursement of Biogen’s controversial Alzheimer’s drug, Aduhelm, to clinical trials only. In fact, half of those surveyed said CMS' decision would hit how they prescribe the rival drugs waiting in the wings that are also included in CMS' decision.