Amgen's $28B Horizon deal cleared for takeoff

This Week

Sep 8, 2023

SPECIAL REPORT—The 10 highest value R&D projects in biopharma


Novartis cuts top commercial title, replaces departing exec Marie-France Tschudin with AbbVie vet Patrick Horber


Amgen's $28B Horizon buyout cleared for takeoff after FTC, states settle


Otsuka adopts new Mindset, dropping $59M to buy Canadian psychedelic biotech


CAR-T-focused Sana tight-lipped on how many staff are affected by latest round of layoffs


AstraZeneca hit with FDA rejection for Ultomiris in rare autoimmune disorder

 

Featured

The 10 highest value R&D projects in biopharma

The world’s pharmaceutical companies are set to invest $302 billion in R&D by 2028—but what will they get in return? Fierce Biotech explores the 10 therapies with the highest potential value.
11-14
Sep
Philadelphia, PA
 

Top Stories

Novartis cuts top commercial title, replaces departing exec Marie-France Tschudin with AbbVie vet Patrick Horber

Just as Novartis’ C-suite appeared to have stabilized amid a major overhaul of the company, the Swiss pharma is losing its international markets leader and getting rid of its chief commercial officer title.

Amgen's $28B Horizon buyout cleared for takeoff after FTC, states settle

Friday, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) said it reached a proposed consent order with Amgen to address “the potential competitive harm” that could result from the merger deal. Now, Amgen is free to go forward with its $28 billion buyout.

Otsuka adopts new Mindset, dropping $59M to buy Canadian psychedelic biotech

Japanese pharma Otsuka is acquiring Mindset Pharma for $59 million, adding a suite of preclinical psychedelics. The larger company is looking to build on its portfolio of Lundbeck-partnered antipsychotics that each raked in hundreds of millions of dollars last quarter.

CAR-T-focused Sana tight-lipped on how many staff are affected by latest round of layoffs

Sana Biotechnology isn't revealing how many employees have been affected by its latest round of layoffs, only confirming that the CAR-T-focused company has sought further “operational efficiencies.”

AstraZeneca hit with FDA rejection for Ultomiris in rare autoimmune disorder

The FDA handed the company a complete response letter for its Ultomiris application in neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder, a rare autoimmune disease affecting the central nervous system.

Investors shower Star Therapeutics with $90M for constellation of biotechs, antibody therapies

The latest financing will in part go toward VGA039, an early-stage mAB being developed by Star's offshoot Vega to treat von Willebrand disease.

Illumina nets new CEO with Agilent life sciences leader

Jacob Thaysen will make the jump after serving as Agilent Technologies' president of life sciences and applied markets. He will take the top job at Illumina Sept. 25.

Amgen tipped to keep Otezla market share in fight with BMS' Sotyktu, leaving opportunity for J&J

Amgen’s $13.4 billion Otezla bet can withstand competition from Bristol Myers Squibb’s Sotyktu. That is the conclusion of analysts at Spherix Global Insights, who found Amgen is holding on to its market share and largely limiting BMS’ growth to the conversion of users of injectable biologics.

GSK invests €250M-plus in vaccine manufacturing as Shingrix surges, RSV launch kicks off

GSK is laying out more than 250 million euros ($273 million) to bolster vaccine manufacturing with a new facility in Wavre, Belgium. The unit will handle freeze-dried vaccines, including Shingrix and Arexvy.

Umoja's in vivo CAR-T therapy shows positive first signs in primates

The company's VivoVec platform has generated in vivo chimeric antigen receptor T cells, or CAR-T cells, in nonhuman primates, according to new data presented by the company Sept. 1 during the annual CAR-TCR Summit in Boston. The CAR-Ts also appeared to have activity against target cells and continued proliferating for more than a month in one of the animals.
 
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'The Top Line': Trends at Cannes Lions, the top compensated CEOs in the industry, and the cancer drug shortage

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Resources

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A New Era of Collaboration for Life Sciences

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Learn how a GPCR-focused library with a cell-based biopanning strategy led to the discovery of 13 high-affinity and selective anti-GLP-1R antibodies with highly developable therapeutic properties.
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Closing the Knowledge Gap for Cancer Patients: 3 Ways to Boost Condition, Treatment and Support Awareness

Learn how to close the knowledge gap for cancer patients by increasing awareness of important aspects of their condition, treatment options and support resources.
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Five ways to get the most from your lab and manufacturing facilities

Learn more about how you can improve the productivity of your research and manufacturing operations and accelerate the journey from laboratory to saving lives.
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Transitioning from using RUO to cGMP chemicals for clinical trials

By 2030, the global demand for biologics is projected to grow at a CAGR of 8.7% and the challenges, risks, and costs of bringing large molecule products to market are growing exponentially.
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Biotech in the UK: Mapping the Runway to Success

15 biotech executives from the Cambridge area discuss the current biotech landscape, as well as challenges, opportunities, and best practices for emerging biotech companies seeking success in the UK and beyond.
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Challenges of Cell Line Development: Stable Transfection

Unravel the intricacies of Cell Line Development in biotherapeutics production with our latest eBook chapter.
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Plan for success with your process liquid and buffer preparation

Learn how process liquids and buffers impact your total cost of ownership (TCO) and how outsourcing can revolutionize your approach, ensuring quality standards and improving productivity.
 

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