The already intriguing IL-2 pathway as a therapeutic target gained still more traction after San Francisco-based Nektar Therapeutics Inc. unveiled melanoma data with bempegaldesleukin (bempeg), its CD122-preferential agent in the class.
The whopper deal between Biogen Inc. and Sage Therapeutics Inc. – a global collaboration and licensing deal involving the latter’s zuranolone (also known as SAGE-217) for major depressive disorder (MDD), postpartum depression (PPD) and other psychiatric disorders, as well as SAGE-324 for essential tremor (ET) and neurological disorders – drew mixed reviews from Wall Street. And, for Biogen investors, the would-be Alzheimer’s disease (AD) therapy aducanumab remains front of mind.
New York-based Hookipa Pharma Inc.’s positive interim data from a phase II study with what could become the first approved cytomegalovirus (CMV) vaccine, HB-101, lifted shares (NASDAQ:HOOK) to a high of $13.25 early in the day but the price leveled off later to close Nov. 30 at $11.60.
A new report on the biopharma industry by cybersecurity firm Bluevoyant LLC found that the eight most prominent players in the race for a COVID-19 vaccine faced the highest volume of targeted, malicious cyberattacks, and 77% of the total 20 companies examined had unsecured remote desktop protocol (RDP) ports and email domains lacking basic measures to block hackers. “COVID-19 vaccines are the crown jewels of 2020 – and cyber attackers know it,” the report says.
Although Eiger Biopharmaceuticals Inc. sees more would-be opportunities with ultra-rare disease-targeting Zokinvy (lonafarnib), the company’s vice president of clinical and development operations, Colin Hislop, said that “at the moment, we’re very clearly focused on the population identified in the label, because it fits most closely with the mechanism of action.”
Precision Biosciences Inc. CEO Matthew Kane said the company is in “active discussions around additional partnerships in vivo and in other areas across our organization,” after scoring a deal with Eli Lilly and Co. centered on the firm’s Arcus genome-editing platform. “There’s no conceivable way in the near term that we’re going to advance all of the possibilities of Arcus on our own,” he said.
A new report on the biopharma industry by cybersecurity firm Bluevoyant LLC found that the eight most prominent players in the race for a COVID-19 vaccine faced the highest volume of targeted, malicious cyberattacks, and 77% of the total 20 companies examined had unsecured remote desktop protocol (RDP) ports and email domains lacking basic measures to block hackers. “COVID-19 vaccines are the crown jewels of 2020 – and cyber attackers know it,” the report says.
Even as Alkermes plc works to resolve the complete response letter (CRL) sent by the FDA regarding ALKS-3831, labeling talks are underway for the compound, an oral therapy for schizophrenia and bipolar I disorder in adults. Regulators reviewed manufacturing records and said the Dublin-based firm needs to supply documents related to making the tablet’s coating at the Wilmington, Ohio, facility. No clinical or non-clinical concerns were raised, the firm said, and shares (NASDAQ:ALKS) hardly moved, closing Nov. 17 at $18.30, up 45 cents.
