The first day of Bio-Europe Spring, being held for the first time in Lisbon this year, featured panels on the partnering landscape in specific indications, as well as a more general panel on “Piecing Together the Therapeutic Landscape with Analyst Insights.” One theme of the panel was that by and large, large companies are looking for deals with companies that fit with their existing programs – but that such a fit can come in many forms.

With incidence of kidney cancer rising in the U.K., the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) published its first comprehensive guidelines for diagnosing and treating the disease.

Laigo Bio BV has extended its seed round to €17 million (US$19.8 million), after making progress with translating its novel E3 ubiquitin ligase targeted protein degradation technology toward the clinic.

T-cell engager company Kali Therapeutics Inc. licensed its lead product, CD19/BCMA/CD3 trispecific antibody KT-501, to Sanofi SA in a global deal that could be worth more than $1.2 billion. The San Mateo, Calif.-based biotech first emerged in 2024 and moved KT-501 into a phase Ia trial last week to treat adults with rheumatoid arthritis.

Overall, results from the phase III Valor trial testing Lyme disease vaccine PF-07307405 “strengthen confidence” in the candidate, according to partners Pfizer Inc. and Valneva SE, with the big pharma now looking toward regulatory submissions. Investors, however, focused on the fact that the study, which demonstrated more than 70% efficacy in preventing Lyme disease in individuals, ages 5 and older, failed to hit the statistical criterion for the first prespecified analysis.

Scientists at Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital in London have reported a new advance for tissue engineered grafts in a lab-grown esophagus that has sufficient muscle regeneration to coordinate peristalsis, enabling the recipient to swallow. The aim is to generate grafts that can be used to treat babies born with the rare congenital condition esophageal atresia, in which the esophagus fails to connect to the stomach, usually forming a close pouch instead.

Facing increasing competition to PI3Kα inhibitor Piqray (alpelisib) in breast cancer, Novartis AG looks to bolster its pipeline with next-generation programs, including phase I/II-stage candidate SNV-4818, by way of a potential $3 billion deal with Synnovation Therapeutics LLC.

Embecta Corp. agreed to acquire Owen Mumford Holdings Ltd. for up to £150 million (US$200 million) in a bid to boost its drug-delivery platforms and medical device technologies. Specifically, the deal will bring to Embecta’s portfolio Owen Mumford’s Aidaptus autoinjector, a two-step, single use platform designed to accommodate both 1-mL and 2.25-mL prefilled glass syringes in the same base device.

In a sea of uncertainty, a large-scale, long-term Swedish study is the first to show that people using GLP-1 receptor agonists are less likely to have worsening mental illness. The study involved a national cohort of 95,490 people diagnosed with depression or anxiety disorder, who also were treated with any diabetes drug (apart from insulin).

Atrogi AB is making a bid for a slice of the obesity market and has dosed the first overweight subjects with ATR-258, an oral therapy it says mimics the effects of exercise, driving loss of fat whilst sparing muscle.