In previous work, researchers from the University of Georgia developed liposomes loaded with antifungal drugs and coated with the carbohydrate recognition domains of mouse dectin-1 and/or dectin-2, called Dectisomes. The murine Dectisomes efficiently bound and killed pathogenic fungi in vitro and in mouse disease models. In a new study, the team aimed to explore how to potentially move Dectisomes into the clinic with human dectin orthologues.

Canwell Pharma Inc. has obtained IND approval from the FDA for CAN-016, a novel antibody-drug conjugate (ADC). The company will initiate a phase I study in patients with HER2-expressing solid tumors who have experienced disease progression following prior ADC therapies.

Akari Therapeutics plc has established a strategic partnership with Wuxi XDC Cayman Inc. to accelerate the development of Akari’s novel PH1 payload. Akari’s lead program, AKTX-101, is initially targeting metastatic urothelial cancer.

Just over a month after emerging from stealth and disclosing a $150 million series A, Korsana Biosciences Inc. is making the leap to the public market via a merger with Cyclerion Therapeutics Inc.  The agreement, which is backed by a $370 million private placement from Korsana’s investors, solidly positions the newly merged company as it heads toward the clinic with KRSA-028, a next-generation shuttled antibody targeting amyloid beta for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease, and builds out a pipeline of neurodegenerative disease candidates.