Last October, having chalked another trial failure with E-selectin antagonist uproleselan, Glycomimetics Inc. made known its acquisition plan for privately held, solid tumor-focused Crescent Biopharma Inc. – backed by $200 million from a syndicate of investors who liked the odds of success with CR-001, a preclinical VEGFxPD-1 bispecific antibody.

Biomedical research seems like it should be the ultimate bipartisan issue. But under the Trump administration, unless and until Congress regains its will to make use of its constitutional powers, bipartisan support for research seems to be a thing of the past. On March 3, members of the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine warned that the second Trump administration has been waging a “wholesale assault” on American research.

Biomedical research seems like it should be the ultimate bipartisan issue. But under the Trump administration, unless and until Congress regains its will to make use of its constitutional powers, bipartisan support for research seems to be a thing of the past. On March 3, members of the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine warned that the second Trump administration has been waging a “wholesale assault” on American research.

In February 2025, BioWorld recorded 148 updates from phase I to phase III trials, marking a decline from the 171 updates tracked in January.

Bispecific antibodies have gotten plenty of press in recent years, but less prominent in headlines are bifunctional ones – i.e., those that boast one binding site for an antigen and another site for a non-antibody molecule such as a toxin or drug, taking aim at a single target and bringing a secondary function for extra oomph.