Two days after pharma companies sounded an alarm that their investments were headed out of Europe, Novartis AG has announced plans to increase investment in the U.S. by $23 billion, bringing the total it invests over the next five years to nearly $50 billion. There is no mention of this being a response to the threat of tariffs, but the Swiss pharma said the move will ensure “all key” Novartis drugs for the U.S. market will be made in the U.S. Novartis joins its U.S. counterparts Eli Lilly and Co. Ltd. and Johnson & Johnson in announcing large U.S. investments on the back of the pressure that companies across all sectors are facing to bring manufacturing back onshore.

FDA wants a shift away from animal testing

In a roadmap to change animal testing requirements for INDs, the U.S. FDA said its new approach will improve drug safety, hasten the evaluation process, and lower costs for companies and patients. The agency said it plans to implement a pilot program in the coming year for some developers that use monoclonal antibodies and shift them to a primarily non-animal-based testing strategy. The requirement, the FDA added, could reduce, refine or replace existing processes with artificial intelligence computational models of toxicity and cell lines and organoid toxicity testing in a lab.

Mouse brain structure and function shown on high-resolution map

Scientists from the Machine Intelligence from Cortical Networks (MICRONS) consortium have published the microconnectome of a cubic millimeter of the mouse brain. This is the most complete map of this organ to date at nanometer resolution for a mammal. It not only contains the structure and connections of each and every cell in that volume of tissue, but is also linked to the neuronal activity of that portion of the CNS, linking anatomy and function in the same cells.

IL-36 among new targets in AD as Turn turns to crowdfunding

As the quest for better atopic dermatitis (AD, or eczema) therapies marches on, developers are taking aim at lesser-tried targets and probing unexplored mechanisms of action. They’re also in some cases pursuing less-common routes to raise money. In the second part of a two-part series, BioWorld profiles Turn Therapeutics Inc., focused on IL-36, which sits at the top of the disease cascade in AD. The firm has deployed a crowdfunding strategy to keep efforts afloat.

Biopharma sees Q1 financings pullback, but private funding climbs

Biopharma companies brought in $13.08 billion in financing during the first quarter (Q1) of 2025, marking a significant drop from every quarter of 2024. Last year began with an unusually high Q1 total of $47.25 billion, followed by $23.07 billion in Q2, $16.38 billion in Q3 and $15.45 billion in Q4.

Ten March deals passed $1B, totaling $25.31B in value

Biopharma dealmaking surged in the first quarter of 2025, totaling $66.86 billion, well ahead of the $44.16 billion recorded in the same period last year. March contributed $29.48 billion to the total, a 237% increase from February’s $8.76 billion and closely matching January’s $28.63 billion. It was the strongest single month for biopharma deals since October 2023, when activity reached $44.91 billion.

Also in the news

Alpha Cognition, Alterity, Alterome, Alzheon, Arcturus, Atossa, Bayer, Belief, Biocon, Brainstorm, Find, J&J, Keros, Noetik, Nona, Oragenics, Recce, Revive, Rivus, South Rampart, Takeda, Tempest, Tevogen, Torpedo