Aslan Pharmaceuticals Pte Ltd. said it inked a licensing deal with Zenyaku Kogyo Co. Ltd. for its atopic dermatitis-targeting monoclonal antibody, eblasakimab, that could reach $138.5 million in up-front and milestone payments.

Astellas Pharma Inc. has agreed to pay Cullgen Inc. up to $1.9 billion-plus to jointly develop multiple protein degraders. Under the agreement, Tokyo-based Astellas will pay Cullgen, of San Diego, $35 million up front, and an additional $85 million if it decides, during the initial stages of development, to jointly commercialize and promote Cullgen’s lead program, a cell cycle protein degrader for the treatment of breast cancer and other solid tumors, in the U.S.

Astellas Pharma Inc. has agreed to pay Cullgen Inc. up to $1.9 billion-plus to jointly develop multiple protein degraders.

Cellusion Inc. raised ¥2.83 billion (US$21 million) in a series C round to progress its lead therapy, CLS-001, an iPS cell-derived therapy to treat bullous keratopathy.

Cellusion Inc. raised ¥2.83 billion (US$21 million) in a series C round to progress its lead therapy, CLS-001, an iPS cell-derived therapy to treat bullous keratopathy.

Regenerative medicine product Stemchymal, an allogeneic adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cell treatment, missed the primary efficacy endpoints in two phase II spinocerebellar ataxia trials conducted in Japan and Korea, but a subpopulation analysis showed efficacy signals in patients with more severe conditions, Reprocell Inc. reported.

The U.S. FDA has approved a non-hormonal treatment from Astellas Pharma Inc. to reduce the number and severity of hot flashes. Veozah (fezolinetant), an oral, once-daily compound that targets the neurokinin-3 (NK3) receptor, is approved for treating moderate to severe vasomotor symptoms due to menopause. It’s the first NK3 receptor antagonist the FDA has greenlighted for the indication. The approval came on May 12, well before its May 22 PDUFA date. The PDUFA date was originally set for Feb. 22 but the FDA extended it, saying it needed more time to complete the NDA’s priority review. Veozah’s wholesale acquisition cost is $550 for a month’s supply and should be available by early June.

Angelini Pharma SpA and JCR Pharmaceuticals Co. Ltd. signed an exclusive worldwide agreement for the development and commercialization of biologic therapies for epilepsy based on the J-Brain Cargo technology.