CRISPR's BD chief says I-O, in vivo work ripe for deals

Today’s Big News

Oct 19, 2023

Roche drops oral eye disease drug after completing phase 2, pulls back from solid tumor bispecific


Beam lays off about 100 employees, deprioritizes CAR-T programs to push runway into 2026


CRISPR Therapeutics, at dealmaking 'middle ground,' seeks pipeline partners and new delivery tech


Lilly links up European ADC network, snagging Elahere rival in latest biotech buy


Array BioPharma employee's husband accused of making $90K from insider trading before Pfizer buy


Hummingbird’s HER3-targeted ADC entices Endeavor to sign $430M licensing deal 


Freeline Therapeutics, facing fading cash runway, mulls buyout by investor Syncona


Basilea's anti-infective strategy takes shape with $2M purchase of clinical-stage antifungal

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Featured

Roche drops oral eye disease drug after completing phase 2, pulls back from solid tumor bispecific

Roche’s vision of developing an oral diabetic retinopathy treatment has taken a hit, with the drugmaker stopping development of vicasinabin after completing phase 2. The CB2 agonist was discarded as part of a cull that also saw Roche pull back from its CEAxCD3 bispecific candidate cibisatamab.
 

Top Stories

Beam lays off about 100 employees, deprioritizes CAR-T programs to push runway into 2026

Beam Therapeutics is laying off about 100 employees and sunsetting CAR-T development as a lead sickle trial continues to sluggishly progress. The company says the cost cuts should extend the cash runway into 2026.

CRISPR Therapeutics, at dealmaking 'middle ground,' seeks pipeline partners and new delivery tech

While most of the attention on CRISPR Therapeutics centers on the company’s Vertex-partnered cell therapy and looming FDA advisory committee meeting, Alex Harding, M.D., is cooking up the biotech's next wave of deals. 

Tanvex CDMO - Accelerating Biologics to Patients

Reacting to the growth of biotherapeutics, Tanvex BioPharma USA, Inc., is set to launch Tanvex CDMO, a full-service CDMO specializing in mammalian- and microbial-derived biologics and biosimilars.

Lilly links up European ADC network, snagging Elahere rival in latest biotech buy

Eli Lilly is hoovering up European antibody-drug conjugate startups. Months after making a move for Emergence Therapeutics, Lilly has struck a deal to buy one of its partners, Mablink Bioscience, to add more ADC technology and drug candidates to its portfolio.

Array BioPharma employee's husband accused of making $90K from insider trading before Pfizer buy

An Array BioPharma investor is facing insider trading allegations, with criminal and civil cases accusing him of unlawfully trading stock options after learning from his wife—an Array employee—that Pfizer might acquire the biotech.

Hummingbird’s HER3-targeted ADC entices Endeavor to sign $430M licensing deal

The buzz around HER3-targeting antibody drug conjugates continues to grow. Only a week after BioNTech got in on the action, Endeavor has secured the rights to Hummingbird Bio's preclinical contender.

Freeline Therapeutics, facing fading cash runway, mulls buyout by investor Syncona

With a cash runway that could run out of tarmac in the next six months, British biotech Freeline Therapeutics is considering the offer of a buyout from its majority shareholder Syncona.

Basilea's anti-infective strategy takes shape with $2M purchase of clinical-stage antifungal

Basilea Pharmaceutica is hoping to have better luck with its second attempt to build out its anti-infective pipeline, handing over $2 million for Gravitas Therapeutics’ clinical-stage antifungal.

Avania expands its medtech CRO offerings with day of double dealmaking

Avania has continued to expand its expertise as a medtech-focused CRO with the acquisitions of Hull Associates and Ironstone Product Development.

EU, UK authorities crack down on fake versions of Novo Nordisk's Ozempic

Novo Nordisk's hugely popular diabetes and weight-loss meds have attracted their share of counterfeits. Now, British and European drug authorities are warning that they've discovered falsified Ozempic pens on their home turf.

GLP-1 giant Novo Nordisk pairs up with GE HealthCare on device treatment for obesity, Type 2 diabetes

Though Novo Nordisk continues to rake in the massive profits from its blockbuster drugs Ozempic, Wegovy, Victoza and Saxenda—which are prescribed to treat obesity and Type 2 diabetes—the Danish drugmaker is still looking for other approaches.

Takeda’s stem cell treatment Alofisel flunks phase 3 trial in Crohn's complication

After trimming an early-stage Crohn’s disease candidate from its pipeline this year, Takeda is dealing with the failure of another of its therapies in a related indication. Alofisel (daradstrocel), a stem cell therapy designed to treat one of the most debilitating complications of Crohn’s—complex perianal fistulas (CPF)—has come up short in a phase 3 trial.

Waymark scores $42M in fresh funding, including investment from CVS

Waymark, a Medicare-focused provider enablement company, has secured $42 million in fresh funding that it plans to use to continue scaling its offering.
 
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Resources

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An Introduction to Organ-on-a-Chip Technology

Emulate in vivo biology with next-generation in vitro technology.
 

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