UCB SA has unveiled plans to acquire Zogenix Inc. in a deal worth up to $1.9 billion (€1.7 billion), adding to its portfolio an approved drug aimed at rare forms of epilepsy. Brussels-based UCB will pay $26 per share in cash for the Emeryville, Calif.-based biotech, plus a contingent value right of $2 per share, which would pay out upon approval of the oral drug Fintepla (fenfluramine) for Lennox-Gastaut syndrome. Read More
Treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs) may have soured investors on otherwise-positive new data from Cardiff Oncology Inc.’s phase Ib/II study with PLK1 inhibitor onvansertib in second-line, KRAS-mutated metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC). Cardiff, however, is forging ahead with a pivotal experiment. Read More
With an ambitious promise to unravel the biology of cellular rejuvenation programming, Altos Labs Inc. launched Jan. 19 with $3 billion in committed funding and an impressive roster of academic and industry leaders. Read More
Ceptur Therapeutics Inc. has completed a $75 million series A financing to develop targeted oligonucleotide therapies based on its U1 adaptor technology. The adaptors are bivalent oligonucleotides designed to engage sequence-specific mRNA and the U1 small nuclear ribonuclear protein that regulates transcription and splicing. The therapeutics are for controlling gene expression at the pre-mRNA level within the nucleus. Read More
LONDON – Engitix Therapeutics Ltd. has raised $54 million in a series A round to advance early programs arising from its human extracellular matrix (ECM) target discovery platform towards the clinic with the support of new partner and equity investor Dompé Farmaceutici SpA. Read More
With U.S. merger filings more than doubling between 2020 and 2021, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the U.S. Department of Justice’s (DoJ) Antitrust Division are seeking public input as they begin to modernize federal merger guidelines to better detect and prevent what they consider illegal, anticompetitive deals. Read More
At least one biopharma company is under the magnifying glass in a U.S. Senate Finance Committee investigation into large multinational corporations that shift profits overseas to avoid U.S. taxes. Read More
PERTH, Australia – After raising AU$7.5 million (US$5.4 million) in a private placement, biopharma company Servatus Ltd. is advancing its microbial biotherapeutics clinical programs targeting serious autoimmune conditions. The Coolum, Queensland-based private company is focused on identifying and developing live microbial biotherapeutics and engineered proteins to treat chronic and autoimmune diseases, as well as non-antibiotic treatments for bacterial infections. Read More
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) needs to stop ignoring the 2018 Right to Try Act and stop blocking terminally ill patients’ access to psilocybin, an investigational drug that may provide relief from debilitating anxiety and depression, a bipartisan group of House members said. Read More
With an eye on promoting innovation in complex innovative trial designs, the U.S. FDA published a series of case study examples Jan. 18 from its CID Pilot Meeting Program. Read More
New hires and promotions in the biopharma industry, including: Adagene, Aqilion, Bavarian Nordic, Bioxcel, Cardiol, Elevatebio, Expansion, Exscientia, Ionis, Obsidian, Pepgen, Plx, Second Genome, Viacyte. Read More
Biopharma happenings, including deals and partnerships, grants, preclinical data and other news in brief: Abbisko, ADC, Affamed, Alligator, Awakn, Eikonoklastes, Gilead, Glaxosmithkline, Lilly, Mitsubishi, Ocular, Osmotica, Persongen, RVL, Scisparc, Siteone, Spero, Transgene, Vertex. Read More
Regulatory snapshots, including global drug submissions and approvals, clinical trial approvals and other regulatory decisions and designations: Abbvie, Akeso, Antares, Ascletis, Astrazeneca, Biolinerx, Bionanosim, Canbridge, CASI, Celcuity, Daiichi Sankyo, Dyne, Egetis, Evaxion, Hookipa, Jacobio, Levo, Medivir, Pfizer, Polarity, Recbio, Shanghai Green Valley, Sparx, Sorrento, Vera. Read More
