LONDON – Twenty-three pharmaceutical companies are joining forces in the AMR Action fund and have raised $1 billion for the clinical development of antibiotic drugs addressing the most resistant bacteria. Working with philanthropic backers, the fund aims to bring two to four new antibiotics through to approval by 2030. The AMR Action fund, an initiative of the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations (IFPMA), based in Geneva, launched on July 9 at simultaneous events in the U.S. and Europe. Emphasizing the geographical scope, a further event will held in Japan on July 10. The $1 billion fund will rescue an antibiotic pipeline that is on the “verge of collapse,” said David Ricks, CEO of Eli Lilly and Co., and president of IFPMA.

Sanofi expands protein degrader ambitions with $2.15B Kymera deal

The industry's expanding quest for protein degraders grew a little larger Thursday with Sanofi SA tapping Kymera Therapeutics Inc. to develop two new medicines targeting IRAK4 in patients with immune-inflammatory diseases. Kymera will receive $150 million up front and is eligible for more than $2 billion in potential milestones plus royalties. It also has an option to participate equally in U.S. cost and profit sharing. The deal is Sanofi's second high-profile collaboration in the space this year, following a $2.56 billion bet on Nurix Therapeutics Inc., announced in January.

Merck relationship with Zymeworks deepens; potential $891M deal for multispecifics

Zymeworks Inc. bagged a deal with longtime partner Merck & Co. Inc. to develop additional multispecific antibody therapeutic candidates using Zymeworks’ Azymetric and Efect platforms. The pact brings an undisclosed up-front payment for Vancouver, British Columbia-based Zymeworks. If each of the three programs involved yields an approved product, the company could collect as much as $411 million in option exercise fees plus clinical development and regulatory milestone payments from Merck, of Kenilworth, N.J. Another $480 million is in the cards if commercial goals are met, and Merck has pledged tiered royalties on worldwide sales.

Forbion eyeing late-stage opportunities with $208M fund

LONDON – Forbion has faced down COVID-19 to reach the first close of €185 million (US$208 million) for a new growth opportunities fund, which will be dedicated to late-stage investments in companies with mature assets. The fund will put up to €30 million per deal into companies in phase II/III development, or shaping up for an IPO, or which have made it to a public exchange and are undervalued and undercapitalized.

Liver protein improves brain function after exercise, but remember Ember

Exercise is a powerful way to keep the elderly brain working well, not just in individuals that are healthy, but also in those with neurodegenerative disease. Even individuals with familial Alzheimer’s, though they will develop dementia regardless of whether they exercise or not, will have relatively better cognitive function if they exercise than if they don’t. But exercise is often hardest to get for the people who would benefit from it the most, because “those are the very same people that are often frail,” Saul Villeda told BioWorld. That conundrum has spurred researchers to look for ways to deliver the benefits of exercise to those who can’t (or won’t) exercise by identifying and directly delivering the molecular factors that mediate exercise’s benefits. In the July 10, 2020, issue of Science, Villeda, who is an assistant professor of anatomy and of physical therapy and rehabilitation science at the University of California at San Francisco, and his team reported that they have identified one factor that could fit the bill.

Mylan gets remdesivir approval for COVID-19 in India

HONG KONG – The Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) has approved Mylan NV’s remdesivir 100-mg vial for restricted emergency use in COVID-19 cases. The drug received an accelerated approval for the treatment of COVID-19 in adults and children hospitalized with severe presentations of the disease. It will be released in India under the brand name Desrem, and be available to patients at a price of INR4,800 (US$64.34) this month.

Zai Lab to develop Turning Point for NSCLC in China

HONG KONG – China and U.S.-based Zai Lab Ltd. has inked a deal to develop and commercialize Turning Point Therapeutics Inc.’s lead drug candidate, repotrectinib, in the greater China markets. As part of the deal, Zai Lab will have exclusive rights to develop and commercialize repotrectinib in mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan. In exchange, Turning Point will receive a $25 million up-front payment, with the potential to receive up to an additional $151 million in development, regulatory and sales-based milestone payments. The San Diego-based precision oncology company will also be eligible to receive mid-to-high teen royalties based on annual net sales of repotrectinib in greater China.

Fosun Kite secures $20M to accelerate first CAR T therapy launch in China

Shanghai-based Fosun Kite Biotechnology Co. Ltd. secured another $20 million investment from Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical (Group) Co. Ltd. and Kite Pharma Inc., which each contributed $10 million. The fund will support further clinical trials and manufacturing of its CAR T candidates, including FKC-876, which looks likely to become the first CAR T therapy approved in China.

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