Three decades of trial-and-error, and the resulting safety data, in the oligonucleotide-based therapeutic space have paved way for the present-day innovations and the promise of “programmable,” precision medicine for patients, speakers at Bio Korea 2026 said April 28.
Everest Medicines Ltd. has agreed to acquire a Singapore-based commercial unit of Hasten Biopharmaceuticals (Asia) Ltd. for $150 million up front, gaining market authorization holder rights to 14 marketed products originally developed by Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.
More than four decades on from the approval of the first biologic drug, the industry has reached a tipping point, and biotech drugs now outnumber small molecules in the global R&D pipeline.
Abbvie Inc. is buying exclusive rights to develop, manufacture and commercialize two Nav1.8 inhibitors for pain – HSK-55718 and HSK-51155 – from Haisco Pharmaceutical Group Co. Ltd. for $30 million up front and up to $715 million in milestone payments, plus royalties.
Eli Lilly and Co. is deepening its investment in artificial intelligence-driven drug discovery through a multibillion-dollar expansion of its collaboration with Hong-Kong listed Insilico Medicine Inc. in a move that could broaden its reach into next-generation metabolic therapies. Under the deal terms, Insilico is eligible to receive $115 million up front, plus development, regulatory, and commercial milestone payments worth $2.75 billion, in addition to sales-based royalties. In exchange, Lilly gains exclusive global rights to develop and commercialize multiple candidates generated using Insilico’s AI platform, including preclinical oral therapies.
A next-generation triple incretin therapy jointly developed by Novo Nordisk A/S and China’s United Biotechnology outperformed semaglutide in a phase II trial, signaling intensifying competition in the GLP-1 obesity and diabetes market.
Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. reaped positive results from an open-label phase II study of repinatrabit (JNT-517) in adolescents with phenylketonuria (PKU), a rare disease marked by the inability to break down the amino acid phenylalanine.
China’s National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) has accepted for review Hightide Therapeutics Inc.’s NDA for HTD-1801 for type 2 diabetes, marking the Shenzhen-based company’s first NDA submission and a major step toward commercialization.
G2Gbio Inc. secured a ₩20 billion (US$13.35 million) investment from Samsung Epis Holdings Co. Ltd. and a joint research and license agreement for two assets, including a long-acting obesity treatment, with subsidiary Samsung Bioepis Co. Ltd. March 16.