Jasper Therapeutics Inc.’s otherwise upbeat data with subcutaneous briquilimab was hamstrung by apparent trouble with one lot of drug used in the phase Ib/II Beacon study in chronic spontaneous urticaria. Shares of the Redwood Calif.-based firm (NASDAQ:JSPR) closed July 7 at $3.04, down $3.73, or 55%.
In subpoenaing a former Pfizer Inc. official to appear before the U.S. House Judiciary Committee July 22, Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, signaled legislative steps Congress may take in response to allegations that Pfizer slow-walked its COVID-19 vaccine development in 2020 so the trial results wouldn’t have to be disclosed until after the presidential election.
Abbvie Inc. is shelling out up to $2.1 billion to acquire CAR T player Capstan Therapeutics Inc., gaining rights to a phase I-stage program targeting CD19 as well as an in vivo cell engineering platform. The announcement comes on the heels of recently published data detailing Capstan’s delivery approach using targeted lipid nanoparticles (tLNPs) and marks Abbvie’s latest foray into the CAR T space.
Just a month after laying off 147 employees and announcing plans to mull “strategic alternatives,” Vor Biopharma Inc. reported raising $175 million in private placement in public equity financing and inking a new $4.23 billion license deal for Yantai Rongchang Biotechnologies (Remegen) Co. Ltd.’s telitacicept, a dual-target fusion protein drug approved in China for three autoimmune indications. The news was disclosed after U.S. market hours June 25. Vor’s shares (NASDAQ:VOR) gained 34 cents, or 60.5%, to close June 26 at 89 cents. The company’s shares had risen for eight consecutive trading days since June 17.
Kymera Therapeutics Inc. found itself juggling partnerships by bringing one on board while going to the development bench in another. Kymera and Gilead Sciences Inc. will collaborate on a molecular glue degrader program that targets cyclin-dependent kinase 2 in solid tumors, including breast cancer.
At the 11th Congress European Academy of Neurology, which was held in Helsinki June 21 to June 24, researchers presented new data on using CAR T cells in autoimmune neurological conditions.
Transthera Sciences Inc. debuted on the Hong Kong stock exchange June 23 with a HK$200.95 million (US$25.6 million) IPO, becoming the latest in a string of mainland Chinese biopharmaceutical firms to turn to the Hong Kong market for capital.
Harbour Biomed is out-licensing its B-cell maturation antigen and CD3 bispecific T-cell engager HBM-7020 for autoimmune diseases to Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. in a deal worth up to $670 million.
Shanghai Yao Yuan Biotechnology Ltd., also known as Drug Farm, is advancing a portfolio of immune-modulating therapies for various indications including hepatitis B virus, hepatocellular cancer and a relatively new rare genetic disease called ROSAH, an acronym for retinal dystrophy, optic nerve edema, splenomegaly, anhidrosis, and headache.
CSPC Pharmaceutical Group Ltd. announced June 13 that it struck a potential $5.33 billion deal with Astrazeneca plc to develop novel preclinical small-molecule candidates using CSPC’s AI-driven drug development platform.