Expanding its mandate to accelerate access to essential medicines to people in low- and middle-income countries, the Medicines Patent Pool signed its first voluntary licensing agreement for a cancer treatment, Novartis AG’s Tasigna (nilotinib). A twice-daily oral drug, Tasigna is a tyrosine kinase inhibitor included on the World Health Organization’s Model List of Essential Medicines as a second-line treatment for adult and pediatric chronic myeloid leukemia.
In its first oncology licensing collaboration, Hookipa Pharma Inc. is partnering with Roche Holding AG to develop an arenaviral for treating KRAS-mutated cancers. Roche will pay $25 million up front to Hookipa, which could ultimately bring in about $930 million in milestone-based payments as part of the deal.
Biocytogen Pharmaceuticals Co. Ltd. subsidiary Eucure Biopharma Co. Ltd. has formed a partnership with Syncromune Inc. to combine Eucure’s YH-002 and two other active ingredients with Syncromune’s Syncrovax platform technology in a deal the partners said could be worth “hundreds of millions of U.S. dollars,” including an up-front cash payment of undisclosed value.
Radiopharm Theranostics Ltd.’s phase II F-18 Pivalate positron emission tomography trial in brain metastases saw positive results with high uptake regardless of the origin of primary tumors, showing that Pivalate could be used to monitor brain metastases.
Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc in-licensed regional rights to Zymeworks Inc.’s HER2- targeted bispecific antibody zanidatamab in a deal potentially worth $1.76 billion, plus royalties. Jazz wants to expand its oncology portfolio with the deal, which covers the U.S., Europe, Japan and all other territories except Asia Pacific markets previously licensed by Zymeworks to Beigene Ltd.
Surge Therapeutics Inc. landed $26 million in funding through a series A fundraising round to accelerate development of its intraoperative immunotherapy hydrogel.
South Korea's LG Chem Ltd., seeking new growth opportunities in the life sciences and a concrete footprint in the U.S., has proposed an all-cash acquisition of Aveo Pharmaceuticals Inc., with a deal value of $519.2 million.
It’s been a rough year at Macrogenics Inc., but times may be changing. Having terminated a phase II study due to fatalities, dropped 15% of its workforce and closed research and manufacturing sites in the past year, the company has taken the helping hand of Gilead Sciences Inc. The pair have agreed to develop the bispecific MGD-024, which has a CD3 component for minimizing cytokine release syndrome, as an oncology candidate along with two additional bispecific research programs, a potential treatment for certain blood cancers, including acute myeloid leukemia and myelodysplastic syndromes.
PT Etana Biotechnologies Indonesia secured a series B financing of undisclosed value, led by Chinese investors that include Jack Ma’s Yunfeng Capital and Highlight Capital. The funds will be used to strengthen the company's pipeline and to expand its local manufacturing capacity.
Mablink Bioscience SAS raised €31 million (US$30.3 million) in a series A funding round and set its sights on a phase I trial of its lead next-generation antibody-drug conjugate (ADC), MBK-103, which is in development for a range of solid tumor indications. Sofinnova Partners and Mérieux Equity Partners co-led the round.
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