Biogen Inc. unveiled plans Tuesday to sharpen its focus on neurology by breaking its hemophilia business out into a new publicly traded company. The tax-free transaction is expected to be a boon for Biogen shareholders, but analysts were split on its broader implications.

All four doses of fasinumab, a nerve growth factor (NGF) therapy under development at Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc., helped 338 patients with moderate-to-severe osteoarthritis pain in their hip or knee achieve statistically significant relief at week 16 of a phase II/III study.

Theravance Biopharma Inc. priced an upsized $94.1 million public offering on Friday, saying it would sell about 4.77 million shares at $21 each as it moves to build a strong balance sheet capable of supporting two key development programs alongside further commercial efforts on Vibativ (telavancin) and advancement of the rest of its pipeline.

Shares of Catalyst Pharmaceuticals Inc. dove 49.2 percent on Tuesday after the company reported that the FDA will require it to submit positive results from an additional study of Firdapse (amifampridine phosphate) in patients with the rare autoimmune disorder Lambert-Eaton myasthenic syndrome (LEMS) prior to accepting its new drug application (NDA).

Allergan plc is adding experimental ointment for under eye bags to its vanity empire with the acquisition of Topokine Therapeutics Inc. for $85 million up front and undisclosed success-based development and sales milestones.

SAN FRANCISCO – Large cap medtech companies, fueled by a growing wave of M&A and recognizing the importance of clinical data in building value, are following the biotech's sector's lead as they look to fill product pipelines, speakers at the Cooley Medical Technology Growth Conference said.

Pharma's growing recognition of the strategic importance of the microbiome in drug discovery as well as its alignment with the company's approach to development paved a path for Second Genome Inc. to close a $42.6 million series B round co-led by Pfizer Venture Investments and Roche Venture Fund, Peter DiLaura, Second Genome's president and CEO, told BioWorld Today.

Gemphire Therapeutics Inc. and Phaserx Inc. have become the latest brave entrants to the biopharma IPO queue, joining 17 other contenders filed and pending, in a public financing climate significantly cooler than in 2015. Gemphire, a cardiovascular-focused clinical company with a midstage dyslipidemia drug, is seeking a proposed $60 million, while Phaserx, a preclinical company working on treatments for inherited enzyme deficiencies, has proposed raising up to $25.3 million.

Eli Lilly and Co. is returning rights for a phase II diabetes drug for which it paid $7 million to Toronto-based Transition Therapeutics Inc., after deciding against carrying the candidate into phase III development. The setback, which follows a disappointing phase II/III outcome for Transition's lead neuropsychiatric drug last year, sent the company's U.S. and Canadian-listed shares to 52-week lows as the company pondered its next step.