Deep Apple Therapeutics Inc. could bring in as much as $812 million in a new collaboration and license deal with Novo Nordisk A/S. The total includes an unspecified up-front payment, research costs and milestones. The two plan to develop and commercialize oral small molecules for non-incretin G-protein coupled receptor targets for treating cardiometabolic diseases, including obesity, a core specialty for Novo Nordisk.

3Sbio Inc. reported interim phase II study results of its PD-1/VEGF bispecific antibody, SSGJ-707 – a “fabulous” asset, according to Pfizer Inc. CEO Albert Bourla, that landed in Pfizer’s cancer arsenal via a potential $6 billion deal in May, of which $1.2 billion was paid up front.

Ligachem Biosciences Inc. signed two license agreements with Novarock Biotherapeutics Inc., a subsidiary of CSPC Pharmaceutical Group Ltd., to bring in two of Novarock’s antibodies and create antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) candidates with novel cancer targets.

Aribio Co. Ltd. signed a $600 million license deal with Acino International AG, an Arcera Life Sciences subsidiary, granting the latter commercial rights to its oral Alzheimer’s disease therapy, AR-1001, in select countries including the Middle East.

Ligachem Biosciences Inc. signed two license agreements with Novarock Biotherapeutics Inc., a subsidiary of CSPC Pharmaceutical Group Ltd., to bring in two of Novarock’s antibodies and create antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) candidates with novel cancer targets.

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. is adding to its obesity pipeline by in-licensing Hansoh Biomedical Co. Ltd.’s phase III dual glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1)/gastric inhibitory polypeptide (GIP) receptor agonist, HS-20094, for up to $2 billion.

Privately held Beckley Psytech Ltd. is to be taken over by Atai Life Sciences in an all-share deal that values the U.K. psychedelic drug specialist at $370 million. After making a $50 million investment in January 2024, Berlin-based Atai already owns 36% of Beckley. It will now issue 105 million new shares to its fellow Beckley investors, giving them 34% ownership of the merged company.

Sanofi SA is to acquire Blueprint Medicines Inc. in a $9.5 billion deal that will give the French pharma ownership of a marketed rare disease immunotherapy heading toward blockbuster status, a follow-on product in phase II/III, and a phase II clinical program relevant to a number of autoimmune diseases.

Biontech SE and Bristol Myers Squibb Co. are teaming up to develop Biontech’s BNT-327 in a deal possibly worth over $11 billion. BNT-327 is in the hot new class of bispecific antibodies targeting programmed death-1 (PD-1) or its ligand (PD-L1) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). The bispecifics take advantage of two well established mechanisms of action that help tumors grow; PD-1/PD-L1, which tells immunogenic T cells not to attack the tumor, and VEGF, which tumors excrete to produce new blood vessels to supply oxygen and other nutrients to the tumor.

In yet another China antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) deal, Astellas Pharma Inc. is inlicensing a phase I/II ADC targeting Claudin 18.2 from Evopoint Biosciences Co. Ltd. for up to $1.34 billion.