European biotechnology firms engaged in the discovery and development of new therapeutics collectively raised $1.9 billion in equity funding during the second quarter (Q2) of the year. Despite the ongoing lack of an IPO market – particularly for European firms – the total is roughly comparable with historic norms, absent the pandemic-related boom years of 2020 and 2021. It represents the fourth highest total raised during the last six years. Read More
Privately held F-star Therapeutics Inc. and Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. have completed their third license agreement, one that could bring F-star about $1 billion. The new collaboration is focused on R&D against undisclosed cancer targets. Read More
Most drug developers working in the immunotherapy space focus on existing therapeutic targets when developing cancer drugs, optimizing ways of drugging them via engineering modalities such as CAR T-cell approaches, CRISPR editing or antibody-drug conjugates that deliver toxic payloads. The angle of one company – Cartography Biosciences – is the opposite to this. Its modus operandi is to pinpoint the immunological targets first, leveraging tools that already exist, before building therapies around them. Read More
South Korean pharmaceutical giant Yuhan Corp. gained Korea’s MFDS approval to expand indications for its potent oral third-generation tyrosine kinase inhibitor Leclaza (lazertinib) as a first-line treatment for EGFR T790M mutation-positive non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Read More
Worg Pharmaceuticals (Zhejiang) Co. Ltd. raised ¥1.1 billion (US$152 million) in a series C round to develop its therapies for allergy and autoimmune diseases, as well as to expand into the global market. Read More
China’s Center for Drug Evaluation has cleared Jacobio Pharmaceuticals Group Co. Ltd.’s KRAS G12C inhibitor, glecirasib (JAB-21822), to begin a phase III pivotal study for pancreatic cancer. Read More
At the 2023 Annual Congress of the European Academy of Neurology, Mary Reilly described the relationship between bench and bedside as “a continuous circle of translation,” with each cycle beginning with patients and their needs. Read More
Clinical updates, including trial initiations, enrollment status and data readouts and publications: Astrazeneca, Canbridge, Daiichi Sankyo, Genentech, Horizon, Krystal, Nicox, NLS, Sosei, Toragen, Vogenx, Zealand. Read More
Biopharma happenings, including deals and partnerships, grants, preclinical data and other news in brief: Altamira, Biocon, Biocytogen, Daré, Edirna, Evotec, Heget, Gilead, Kiora, Lucy, Organon, Pheon, RVL, Sarepta, Sirnaomics, Teva, Wesana. Read More
Regulatory snapshots, including global drug submissions and approvals, clinical trial approvals and other regulatory decisions and designations: Iaso, Mediwound, Moderna, Nevakar, Injectables, Skyline, Systimmune, Zealand. Read More
