I-Mab Biopharma Co. Ltd. announced collaborations with mRNA biotech company Immorna (Hangzhou) Biotechnology Co. Ltd. and AI-enabled R&D company Neox Biotech Co. Ltd., gaining access to transformative technologies to discover and develop oncology therapeutics.
I-Mab Biopharma Co. Ltd. announced collaborations with mRNA biotech company Immorna (Hangzhou) Biotechnology Co. Ltd. and AI-enabled R&D company Neox Biotech Co. Ltd., gaining access to transformative technologies to discover and develop oncology therapeutics.
The COVID-19 vaccine from Curevac AG looks far less protective than mRNA-based rivals, according to phase IIb/III data, but the company suggested it could still be approved in younger age groups or supplied to poorer countries at lower cost.
Sanofi SA is to invest around €400 million (US$477 million) annually into a vaccines mRNA Center of Excellence, as the company plays catch-up with upstart biotechs Biontech SE and Moderna Inc. Despite its high-profile Sanofi Pasteur vaccines unit, the French pharma was left behind in the race to develop COVID-19 vaccines after the two biotechs got their mRNA shots through trials and approved by regulators in record-breaking time.
A new study from researchers at the Washington University School of Medicine In St. Louis demonstrated evidence of a long-lasting immune response, possibly one that could last for years, from receiving Pfizer Inc.’s mRNA COVID-19 vaccine.
Although the U.S. CDC considers myocarditis to be a rare event linked to mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, the FDA is adding a warning about the adverse event to its doctor and patient fact sheets for the vaccines.
Stemirna Therapeutics Co. Ltd., which specializes in mRNA technology, said it raised nearly $200 million to speed up the clinical study of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate, SW-0123. It is in phase I study in China and preclinical data have been published in Nature.
LONDON – In a sizeable seed round for a U.K. biotech, Transine Therapeutics Ltd. has raised £9.1 million (US$12.9 million) to take forward a novel method for up-regulating endogenous protein production using a naturally occurring class of long noncoding RNAs.
As COVID-19 deaths across the globe top 3 million, with more than 1 million in Europe alone, the global demand is increasing for mRNA vaccines, even as sponsors of adenovirus vaccines push back against ongoing safety concerns. Last week, the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Regional Office for Europe reported that the confirmed COVID-19 death toll for the region had surpassed 1 million, with 1.6 million new cases being reported every week. More than 171 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered in the region, translating to nearly 13% of the European population receiving one dose and close to 6% completing both doses of the vaccines.
In a move that Sanofi SA said will bring it an mRNA-based research platform with applications in oncology, immunology and other diseases, the company has acquired Tidal Therapeutics Inc. for $160 million up front and up to $310 million in milestone payments. The preclinical startup, led by Merrimack Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Torque Therapeutics Inc. co-founder Ulrik Nielsen, is based in Cambridge, Mass.
