U.S. NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya will be a lot busier in the days and weeks ahead. As if helming the NIH isn’t enough, Bhattacharya has been tapped to also serve as acting director of the CDC, an administration official confirmed to BioWorld.
In a deal worth up to $1.8 billion for oral macrocyclic peptide developer Unnatural Products Inc., Novartis AG has signed a research collaboration and licensing agreement for an undisclosed program.
After 118 years as a private company, dermatology specialist Leo Pharma A/S is poised to complete an IPO after reporting a full-year net profit for the first time since 2018.
Med-tech companies with an AI component in their solutions will certainly find investors willing to back them. AI after all, is being used to develop more effective, smarter technologies. However, investors will only deploy capital into innovations that address genuine clinical needs. The aging population is driving interest in devices targeting cardiovascular and musculoskeletal disorders, and other solutions geared toward neurological conditions, women’s health and diagnostics are also attracting investor attention.
Gilead Sciences is stepping deeper into synthetic lethality, licensing a clinic-ready MAT2A (methionine adenosyltransferase 2a) inhibitor from Suzhou, China-based Genhouse Bio Co. Ltd. in a deal worth up to $1.53 billion.
Less than four months after company officials said they would explore options to find ways of maximizing shareholder value, Sensei Biotherapeutics Inc. disclosed the buyout of Faeth Therapeutics Inc. by way of a stock-for-stock deal – news that sent shares (NASDAQ:SNSE) to a closing price Feb. 18 of $26.25, up $17.12, or 187.5%.
Though it’s largely viewed by analysts as a simple delay rather than a setback, Disc Medicine Inc.’s unexpected complete response letter (CRL) for bitopertin in the rare genetic disorder erythropoietic protoporphyria (EPP) raises more questions regarding consistency and stability at the U.S. FDA.
Danaher Corp. agreed to acquire Masimo Corp. for $9.9 billion in a move to strengthen its diagnostics business. Under the terms of the agreement, Danaher will acquire all the outstanding shares of Masimo for $180 per share in cash, representing a 38.3% premium to Masimo’s last closing price.
Ocular Therapeutix Inc.’s wet age-macular degeneration candidate, Axpaxli, beat anti-VEGF therapy Eylea (aflibercept) from Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. in the phase III head-to-head trial called Sol-1, but not by enough of a margin for Wall Street. Shares of the firm (NASDAQ:OCUL) closed Feb. 17 at $6.99, down $1.89, or 21%, as investors mulled the top-line findings.