Having reached peace with Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc over litigation related to its U.S. FDA-approved drug, Lumryz (sodium oxybate), Avadel Pharmaceuticals plc agreed to a cash takeover by Alkermes plc valued at about $2.1 billion, a deal Alkermes CEO Richard Pops said “puts us in the sleep market immediately on closing,” which is expected in the first quarter of 2026. All three players are based in Dublin.
Antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) are a mature technology. The first ADC, Mylotarg, was initially approved in 2000, and there are now 14 approved agents in both leukemias and solid tumors. According to Clarivate’s Cortellis Drug Discovery & Intelligence, those drugs collectively accounted for $13.55 billion in sales in 2024 – a figure that Cortellis projects will rise to $16 billion in 2025.
Step Pharma is financed to move its pipeline-in-a-product strategy forward on a broad front, after raising a €38 million (US$44.2 million) series C. That will see three ongoing trials testing the company’s potentially first-in-class, orally available cytidine triphosphate synthase 1 inhibitor, dencatistat, through to phase II in T-cell and B-cell lymphoma, in an ovarian, endometrial and lung cancer study, and in essential thrombocythemia.
There was a curate’s egg for Sanofi SA from this month’s meeting of the EMA’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use, with a recommendation to approve one of the French pharma’s drugs – and the rejection of another.
Antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) specialist Aimedbio Inc. announced Oct. 16 the signing of a potential $991 million deal with Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH to license out its novel preclinical ADC asset targeting solid tumors, including KRAS mutations, which is set to enter phase I study next year.
A year and half from its inception, Adcytherix SAS has raised a €105 million (US$122 million) series A, enabling it to take the lead antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) program into clinical development next year.
Aicuris Anti-Infective Cures AG is preparing to file for U.S. FDA approval after reporting positive phase III results for lead antiviral pritelivir in the healing of refractory herpes simplex virus lesions in immunocompromised patients.
Antibody-drug conjugate specialist Tubulis GmbH has raised a hefty €308 million (US$356 million) series C to expand clinical development of TUB-040, positioning its lead program for use in additional indications and as an earlier line of therapy.
Paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH) – the rare blood disorder characterized by premature destruction of red blood cells – found itself in the spotlight, as did shares of Omeros Corp. (NASDAQ:OMER), which closed Oct. 15 at $10.42, up $6.32, or 154%, on word of an asset purchase and license agreement with Novo Nordisk A/S for zaltenibart (formerly OMS-906).
One in six common bacterial infections diagnosed worldwide in 2023 were resistant to treatment with antibiotics, according to the latest surveillance data gathered by the World Health Organization (WHO). Drug-resistant gram-negative bacteria that cause bloodstream infections that can lead to sepsis, organ failure and death are an increasing threat globally.
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