Fresh off raising $640 million in private financing earlier this summer, Germany's Curevac BV burst onto the public market Friday with a $213.3 million Nasdaq IPO. Priced at a top-of-range $16 per share (NADAQ:CVAC), the company's stock rose more than 249% to close at $55.90 Aug. 14, buoyed by enthusiasm for its mRNA vaccine program against SARS-CoV-2. Majority shareholder and longtime Curevac backer Dievini Hopp Biotech Holding GmbH & Co. KG invested €100 million (US$118.3 million) in the company through a concurrent private placement. Read More
Earlier this month, an update on phase I/IIa data rolled out from Rockville, Md.-based Regenxbio Inc. with RGX-314 for age-related wet macular degeneration (AMD). The company has a pivotal program in subretinal delivery of the compound set to start by the end of this year, and questions about routes of administration – always an issue in AMD – continue to simmer. Read More
A Sino-U.S. collaborative study has demonstrated that acupuncture regulates inflammation by activating pro- or anti-inflammatory signaling pathways, while mitigating cytokine storms in mice with systemic inflammation, the study authors reported in the Aug. 12, 2020, edition of Neuron. Read More
Qui tam litigation holds a dear place in the hearts of U.S. federal prosecutors and whistleblowers alike, but the volume of these cases ebbed as the COVID-19 pandemic swept across the nation. A report by Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP makes clear, however, that despite the pandemic-induced drag, these cases are resuming their historical pace, and makers of drugs and devices are once again the most frequently targeted type of business. Read More
BioWorld looks at translational medicine, including: Oxygen therapy harms lungs via lung, gut microbiome; Turning flexibility into toxicity; Gaining insights into loss of function; Stromal cell subtypes identified in TNBC. Read More
While the volume of clinical data in July dipped below previous pandemic months, the amount of news focused on therapeutics or vaccines for COVID-19 is climbing, representing about 16% of BioWorld’s database entries during the month. Read More
Biopharma happenings, including deals and partnerships, grants, preclinical data and other news in brief: Dr. Falk, JN Nova, Lumos, Merck, Prometheus, Revive. Read More
Regulatory snapshots, including global drug submissions and approvals, clinical trial approvals and other regulatory decisions and designations: Adamis, Kempharm, Mesoblast, TLC, Verona. Read More
