The sad phase III fate of Abbvie Inc.’s rovalpituzumab tesirine, also known as rova T, in advanced small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) has not discouraged other drug developers targeting delta-like ligand 3 (DLL3) – not all of them, anyway.
Five years after its initial investment in Maverick Therapeutics Inc., Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. is exercising its option to buy the privately held company for a pre-negotiated up-front payment plus development and regulatory milestones of up to $525 million.
Amunix Pharmaceuticals Inc. CEO Angie You told BioWorld that her firm has already done most of the optimization with its unique T-cell engager platform, so that the effort now is mostly “about cranking out more INDs.”
Little more than two months after cutting a deal with Merck & Co. Inc. that could top $1 billion, Janux Therapeutics Inc. has closed on a $56 million series A. Janux is developing immunotherapies designed to trigger the immune system to kill specific tumors while leaving the healthy tissue safely alone. T-cell engagers bind to a tumor cell and use the patient’s T cells to eliminate the tumor.
