Oxurion NV, which had spent much of 2023 scraping together funding in hopes of a positive readout for its bicyclic peptide, THR-149, in diabetic macular edema (DME), now faces a bankruptcy filing after the drug failed to best established anti-VEGF therapy aflibercept (Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc.) in improving vision in part B of the phase II Kalahari study.
Bicycle Therapeutics plc said Roche Holding AG's Genentech Inc. has agreed to pay $30 million up front for rights to develop and commercialize up to four potential immuno-oncology therapies using the company's bicyclic peptide platform. Bicycle will be responsible for all discovery and lead optimization, while Genentech will take up R&D beyond that.