When Andrew Wilks invented the JAK inhibitor momelotinib in the late 1980s for myelofibrosis, he never would have imagined it would take more than 20 years to develop and eventually be acquired for $1.9 billion. Today he’s on a mission to ensure Australian inventors have more options than he did, telling BioWorld that he had to sell the molecule for around $10 million because he couldn’t get funding.
Backed by AI technology, Aigen Sciences Inc. raised ₩12 billion (US$8.8 million) in a series A financing round to further advance its cancer and rare disease drug pipelines.
The Japanese government, industry and academia are deliberating health care policies and initiatives to boost Japan’s role in the future of regenerative medicine, experts at Bio Japan 2024 said, as the fruits of cell and gene therapy research come to fruition with new approvals.
After raising $42 million in a series C1 round, Lanova Medicines Ltd. is advancing its lead phase III antibody-drug conjugate LM-302 that targets Claudin 18.2, as well as LM-299, an anti-PD-1/VEGF bispecific antibody, and LM-108, an anti-CCR8 monoclonal antibody. “Proceeds from this financing will allow us to expedite the development of our late-stage clinical programs, LM-302 and LM-108, moving us closer to market approval. We will also accelerate the clinical development of LM-299, which is currently in phase I clinical trials with best-in-class potential,” Lanova founder and CEO Crystal Qin said.
U.S. biotechs and regulators ushered in the era of gene therapy in 2023, experts at Bio Japan said, but medical reform is needed to pave the way for the “year of cell therapy” in 2024 and implement wider access to ultra-expensive cell and gene therapies.
Astellas Pharma Inc. gained U.S. FDA approval of first-in-class claudin 18.2-targeted treatment Vyloy (zolbetuximab-clzb), now indicated as a first-line therapy for adults with locally advanced unresectable or metastatic HER2-negative gastric or gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma.
Virus is associated with sickness, but oncolytic virus therapies, which harness viruses to attack and kill cancer cells, may soon change the standard of treatment for cancer, including those long deemed uncurable like malignant glioma.
Ligachem Biosciences Inc., of Daejeon, South Korea, and Osaka, Japan-based Ono Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. agreed to two antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) deals that could reach $700 million (₩943.5 billion) combined.
Immunotherapy company Cartherics Pty Ltd. raised AU$15 million (US$10.3 million) in an oversubscribed series B round that will support the first clinical trial for lead chimeric antigen receptor natural killer therapy CTH-401 for ovarian cancer, and to expand its pipeline to include other diseases.
Wuhan YZY Biopharma Co. Ltd. is out-licensing lead candidate M-701, a CD3/EpCAM bispecific antibody, to Chia Tai Tianqing Pharmaceutical Group Co. Ltd. (CTTQ) for China rights in a deal worth up to $143 million. Under the deal, Sino Biopharmaceutical Ltd. subsidiary CTTQ is granted an exclusive license to develop, register, manufacture and commercialize M-701 within mainland China.
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