Two phase III stumbles of Iterum Therapeutics plc’s sulopenem have cast the company’s future in doubt. The latest problem is the failure of the penem anti-infective compound, with oral and I.V. formulations, failing to achieve statistical noninferiority relative to ertapenem in treating complicated urinary tract infection (cUTI).
The juggernaut that is Daiichi Sankyo Co. Ltd.’s Enhertu continued to roll into this weekend’s American Society of Clinical Oncology virtual meeting, bringing momentum from its December FDA approval for HER2-positive breast cancer, along with fresh data from three new studies in other indications.
In a deal potentially worth $3 billion, privately held Repare Therapeutics Inc., of Cambridge, Mass., and Montreal, entered a research collaboration with Bristol Myers Squibb Co. (BMS) to identify synthetic lethal precision oncology targets for drug candidates.
Positive preclinical data from Phio Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Marlborough, Mass., propelled the company stock (NASDAQ:PHIO) dramatically upward, about 86%, at midday Friday only to see it finally settle at a more modest 36.16% increase to close May 29 at $3.05.
Arca Biopharma Inc., of Westminster, Colo., is developing AB-201, a selective inhibitor of tissue factor (TF), as a treatment for COVID-19-associated coagulopathy, abnormal blood clotting and related inflammatory response. The move gave the company new life Thursday.
Privately held Viacyte Inc., of San Diego, has closed on about $27 million in private funding, the remainder of its $80 million series D stock financing from late 2018.
The $65 million that Hotspot Therapeutics Inc., of Boston, raised will help advance its lead programs to the clinic, including protein kinase C antagonists for Th2 and T-reg-driven autoimmune disease and S6 kinase antagonists for rare metabolic disease.
Atea Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Boston, brought in a $215 million series D financing to support development of its COVID-19 antiviral, which is designed to inhibit the viral RNA polymerase enzyme, a key element in RNA virus replication.
With Moderna Inc. leading the charge with its work on a COVID-19 vaccine, the market is feeling its oats as companies go after money sitting on the sidelines. One of the biggest financings to price this week is San Diego-based Turning Point Therapeutics Inc.’s underwritten public offering of common stock at $60 per share for gross proceeds expected at about $325 million.
