Shares in Transgene SA dropped 15 percent Tuesday as Novartis AG decided not to trigger an option on its therapeutic vaccine TG4010, which is currently undergoing a phase IIb/III trial in non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC).
Crispr Therapeutics AG, a start-up formed by the co-inventor of the CRISPR/Cas9 genome-editing technology, closed a $25 million series A round that will fund the translation of this hugely popular approach from the academic lab to the clinic.
Sentinel Oncology Ltd. could earn up to $174 million from an alliance with Oncothyreon Inc., on its preclinical drug development program targeting checkpoint kinase 1 (Chk1).
Wilson Therapeutics AB raised $40 million in a series B round to fund clinical development of WTX101 in Wilson's disease, a genetic disorder characterized by pathological accumulations of copper.
Cell therapy developer Txcell SA grossed just €16.2 million (US$22.4 million) in a scaled-back initial public offering (IPO) on the Euronext exchange in Paris, evidence that Europe's big funding freeze may be thawing but only gradually. The IPO was priced at the bottom of the indicative price range of €5.58 to €6.82 per share its underwriters set at the outset of the book-building process.
Cytos Biotechnology AG passed the point of no return Monday, following the failure in a phase IIb trial of its CYT003 therapeutic vaccine for allergic asthma. The Swiss immunotherapy pioneer is considering either a liquidation of the company or bankruptcy.
Buoyed by unexpectedly early signs of robust clinical efficacy for its lead protide cancer drug Acelarin (NUC-1031), Nucana Biomed Ltd. raised $57 million in a series B round to accelerate its development and to advance several others into the clinic.
Oryzon Genomics SA is getting $21 million in up-front and near-term milestones and could earn more than $500 million in total from a partnering deal with Roche AG on its lysine-specific demethylase-1 (LSD1) inhibitor program. The agreement is a major validation for Barcelona, Spain-based Oryzon – and for an epigenetic target with a growing body of evidence linking it to cancer and several other broad indication areas.
Shares in Genticel SA lost more than 10 percent during their first day’s trading on the Euronext exchanges in Paris and Brussels Friday. The stock (PARIS, BRUSSELS:GTCL), which it priced at €7.90 (US$10.83) per share, closed at €7.09, which suggests that some investors took a quick exit instead of hanging on for the ride.
Tigenix NV has thrown in the towel on its efforts to obtain broad reimbursement in Europe for its Chondrocelect autologous cell therapy for regenerating cartilage in the knee and has signed over marketing and distribution rights to Swedish Orphan Biovitrum AB (Sobi) in return for double-digit sales royalties.
