Sotyktu (deucravacitinib), the tyrosine kinase 2 (TYK2) inhibitor for psoriasis from Bristol Myers Squibb Co., is “a good first-in-class” drug, said Nimbus Therapeutics LLC CEO Jeb Keiper, but his firm may have the best in class, ready for phase III trials. Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. apparently believes so. The company has agreed to pay $4 billion up front and pledge as much as $2 billion more in potential milestone payments to acquire Nimbus’s wholly owned subsidiary, Nimbus Lakshmi Inc., thereby bringing aboard the TYK2 prospect called NDI-034858. Read More
Wave Life Sciences Ltd. is partnering again. The company is getting $170 million up front – $120 million in cash and a $50 million equity investment – in a new partnership with GSK plc to advance oligonucleotides in unnamed targets. The agreement, which has a four-year research term, allows for GSK to advance up to eight programs using Wave Life’s platform and for Wave Life to advance three, or more if GSK approves, of its own collaboration programs. Read More
Even though Cytokinetics Inc. received applause for testing its heart failure drug, omecamtiv mecarbil, in the second largest global heart disease clinical trial ever, the drug didn’t get a standing ovation from the U.S. FDA’s Cardiovascular and Renal Drugs Advisory Committee (CRDAC) Dec. 13. Read More
Shionogi & Co. Ltd.’s orally administered COVID-19 antiviral, 3CL protease inhibitor Xocova (ensitrelvir/S-217622), scored emergency regulatory approval from Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare for SARS-CoV-2 infection, and the Japanese government has agreed to purchase 1 million courses of Xocova for domestic supply of the antiviral. Read More
While biopharma deal values were down year-over-year in November by 7.6%, that gap has now doubled, showing a 15.5% decline in values in 2022. There has been a significant slowdown in activity in the second half of the year. Values were up by 7% in early August 2022. All told, 1,422 deals, including licensings, joint ventures and collaborations, have brought the industry a potential $169.2 billion through the first week of December. Read More
New and updated clinical data presented by biopharma firms at the American Society of Hematology annual meeting and exposition, including: Abbvie, Actinium, Adicet, Affimed, Agios, Alphamab, Aptose, Argenx, Ascentage, Bellicum, Blueprint, BMS, Cellcentric, Cogent, CSL, CTI, Ellipses, Excellthera, Fate, Genentech. Read More
Clinical updates, including trial initiations, enrollment status and data readouts and publications: Acousia, Alphamab, Amphera, Arcutis, Asieris, Cardiol, Enterome, Idorsia, Imbrium, Immix, Poolbeg and Purdue. Read More
Biopharma happenings, including deals and partnerships, grants, preclinical data and other news in brief: Abbvie, Asieris, Astrazeneca, Biosion, Calidi, Calliditas, Glycotope, Immunogen, Lantern, Sosei, Therabest, Viatris, Zyversa. Read More
Regulatory snapshots, including global drug submissions and approvals, clinical trial approvals and other regulatory decisions and designations: Brainstorm, Evergreen, Galera, Ideaya, Janssen, Medivir, Pfizer, Recce, Sobi, Vertex. Read More
