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This Week

Jun 14, 2024

Pfizer, Flagship name first target for multibillion-dollar collaboration: obesity


After M&A stretch, Pfizer CEO says company needs 'breathing period' from large deals 


Ex-staffer pleads guilty to scamming Takeda out of $2.3M through fake consulting firm 


Diabetes biotech stock tanks as FDA imposes full clinical hold 


After 33 years, Geron finally crosses FDA finish line with blood cancer med Rytelo


Bayer’s biotech head Jens Vogel says good-bye after 4 years 

 

Featured

Pfizer, Flagship name first target for multibillion-dollar collaboration: obesity

Pfizer and Flagship Pioneering have settled on the first target for their billion-dollar, multiprogram collaboration and it’s not exactly a surprise: The New York pharma giant will work with the venture creation firm’s ProFound Therapeutics to develop new obesity drugs.
 

Top Stories

After M&A stretch, Pfizer CEO says company needs 'breathing period' from large deals

Though not for lack of business development capacity, Pfizer is currently taking a large dealmaking “breathing period,” CEO Albert Bourla told investors this week at Goldman Sachs’ 2024 annual Global Healthcare Conference in Miami.

Ex-staffer pleads guilty to scamming Takeda out of $2.3M through fake consulting firm

Priya Bhambi, 40, pled guilty to wire fraud charges after running a detailed scheme to scam Takeda into paying for non-existent services from a fake consulting firm.

Diabetes biotech stock tanks as FDA imposes full clinical hold

Biomea Fusion has suffered another dramatic stock drop, with investors sending the share price down 60% after the FDA imposed a full clinical hold on its diabetes program over liver toxicity concerns. 

After 33 years, Geron finally crosses FDA finish line with blood cancer med Rytelo

The FDA has approved Geron Corporation's Rytelo (imetelstat) to treat a group of bone marrow disorders called myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS). The approval is the first for the 33-year-old California biotech.

Bayer’s biotech head Jens Vogel says good-bye after 4 years

Amid an organizational reset, Bayer’s SVP and Global Head of Biotech Jens Vogel, Ph.D., has hit the exits after four years with the German pharma.  

Eli Lilly tipped to leapfrog Eisai, Biogen and take control of $13B Alzheimer's market

Eisai and Biogen’s reign at the top of the Alzheimer’s disease market may be short-lived. While Leqembi is the only game in town today, Bloomberg Intelligence analysts expect Eli Lilly to come from behind and capture half of a $13 billion market by 2030.

WuXi shares jump after BIOSECURE Act's exclusion from defense spending bill

The BIOSECURE Act was officially left off of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which was the expected first step to the bill's passage.

Asensus Surgical seals the acquisition deal with Karl Storz

After previewing its agreement earlier this year, laparoscopic robotics developer Asensus Surgical has made its buyout official.

NIAID is 'on the ball' with H5N1 research, but gaps in bird flu prevention remain: experts

Against a backdrop of low-volume but growing concerns about bird flu, the National Institutes of Health’s infectious disease arm has laid out its plans to study the virus that causes the illness.
 
Fierce podcasts

Don’t miss an episode

Cybersecurity lessons from the Change Healthcare hack

In this week’s episode of “Podnosis”, Senior Writer Paige Minemyer sits down with Clearwater CEO Steve Cagle to explore the lessons healthcare organizations can learn from the Change Healthcare cyberattack and what it reveals about the industry’s current state of security readiness.  
 

Resources

Whitepaper

The Economics of Synthetic mRNA Capping Strategies

This study delved into the manufacturing costs of the three mRNA capping methods. It involved discussions with 30 subject matter experts engaged in mRNA therapeutic development across various companies in the US and the EU.
eBook

Building A Patient Support Program that Can Scale Globally

An insider’s workbook filled with practical tips and tools for designing and scaling a global patient support program.
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Enhance your long-term cell & gene therapy success with pDNA manufacturing solutions

Watch our on-demand webinar video to learn more about the challenges in pDNA manufacturing for gene and cell therapy and how to resolve many of these barriers by partnering with our experts through the adoption of vital manufacturing technologies and strategies.
Research

Creating Accurate Clinical Trial Benchmarks With AI

Learn how a Top-10 Pharma company automated the extraction of oncology efficacy endpoints from scientific literature with high precision and recall using a combination of AI technologies.
eBook

Get to eSignature Faster: Maximize the Value of Your eSignature Investment with True Forms Automation

This eBook offers insights for business leaders looking to do more with reduced budgets by using the power of SmartIQ’s true forms automation to eliminate the need to print, sign, and scan/mail physical documents, increase operational efficiency, and reduce disparate systems.
Research

Tapping the power of consumer attitudes

Download this research report to discover how a new predictive model built on consumer attitudinal data can generate improved results for health marketers.
Whitepaper

Driving DTC Adoption With Telehealth Programs

Virtual care programs represent a compelling opportunity for decision makers in life sciences companies to drive growth, innovation, and value creation. Download now to learn more.

Whitepaper

Using Synthesis and Route Design Technology to Approach API Complexity

Small molecule active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) continue to grow more complex. Download the white paper to learn more about using synthesis and route design technology to approach API complexity. 
Whitepaper

Adding Rare Disease Products to Your Company’s Portfolio

This paper outlines the challenges, pitfalls, & solutions associated with adding rare disease therapies to a biopharma company’s portfolio.
 

Industry Events

On Helix

Date: ‌4 ‌July ‌2024 ‌- ‌Location: ‌Babraham ‌Research ‌Campus, ‌Cambridge ‌UK

 

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