Singapore’s Communicable Diseases Agency on May 7 said that it isolated two residents for hantavirus testing after the individuals disembarked from an Atlantic cruise ship on May 2 and May 6, respectively. The measure comes in response to the cluster of cases from the cruise ship, MV Hondius, that has resulted in three deaths so far.
Infectious disease-focused biopharma stocks, tracked on the BioWorld Infectious Disease Index (BIDI), saw their collective shares roughly follow the path of broader markets like the Nasdaq Biotechnology Index (NBI) and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) in early 2026. The BIDI ended April up 3.8%, followed by the DJIA with a 3.31% gain and 2.73% for the NBI, following a similar pattern to 2025.
Researchers in the U.K. have developed an AI-driven method of identifying viruses in wild animals with the potential to spillover into humans. The technique makes it possible to use the genome sequences of the spike proteins by which viruses enter host cells to assess the potential to infect humans without having to isolate an individual virus and tests its infectivity in the lab.
Biopharma deal value totaled $18.05 billion in March 2026, a pullback from $30.01 billion recorded in February and $31.16 billion in January, but broadly in line with prior years. The March total exceeds March 2024 ($8.5 billion) and is comparable to March 2023 ($19.68 billion) and 2022 ($15.35 billion). For the first quarter (Q1) 2026, deal value increased 17% year over year to $79.22 billion, up from $67.6 billion in Q1 2025.
Biopharma deal value totaled $18.05 billion in March 2026, a pullback from $30.01 billion recorded in February and $31.16 billion in January, but broadly in line with prior years. The March total exceeds March 2024 ($8.5 billion) and is comparable to March 2023 ($19.68 billion) and 2022 ($15.35 billion). For the first quarter (Q1) 2026, deal value increased 17% year over year to $79.22 billion, up from $67.6 billion in Q1 2025.
The BioWorld Drug Developers Index (BDDI) rose 6.42% in the first two months of 2026, outpacing both the Nasdaq Biotechnology Index (NBI) and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA).
In what it says could be the largest disclosed patent settlement in the pharmaceutical industry, Roivant Sciences Ltd. has reached a potential $2.25 billion settlement with Moderna Inc. over the use of its lipid nanoparticle delivery technology in the Spikevax COVID-19 vaccine.
The EMA’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use recommended approval of Moderna Inc.’s Mcombriax (mRNA-1083), positioning it to potentially become the world’s first combination vaccine for both seasonal influenza and COVID-19.
A week after catching Moderna Inc. and its investors off guard with a refuse-to-file letter, the U.S. FDA has reversed course on the company’s BLA submission seeking approval of seasonal influenza vaccine mRNA-1010, now agreeing to review the application and setting an assigned PDUFA date of Aug. 5, 2026.
Moderna Inc. blamed a switcheroo by the U.S. FDA for the refusal-to-file (RTF) letter on the seasonal influenza vaccine mRNA-1010. Shares of the firm (NASDAQ:MRNA) closed Feb. 11 at $40.51, down $1.49, having traded as low as $36.66 as investors learned of the RTF letter, which Moderna said is “inconsistent with feedback” the company was given by regulators during pre-phase III as well as pre-BLA-submission talks.
