According to analysts at BMO Capital Markets, non-obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy would have meant a $1.3 billion label expansion opportunity for Camzyos.
At the heart of the licensing deal is CUE-501, a bispecific molecule that can selectively deplete B cells to address autoimmune and inflammatory conditions.
Trump could use the findings of the probe to impose certain trade restrictions on pharma products, including tariffs.
In a Phase Ib trial, VERVE-102 showed it could lower bad cholesterol across doses, setting up an opt-in decision for Eli Lilly and a showdown with Novartis.
Viking Therapeutics enjoyed a nice share rally on the news that rival Pfizer is discontinuing obesity candidate danuglipron. But the biotech has a long way to go to recover after six straight months of decline.
Pfizer’s discontinuation of danuglipron brings the company down to a single molecule in its obesity pipeline.
FEATURED STORIES
Four executives with collective decades spent at BMS, Roche, Astellas, Eli Lilly and more gave their insights on navigating a biopharma career during a Monday DIA panel in San Diego.
The next six months for the FDA are primed to be as groundbreaking as the first six, with Eli Lilly’s donanemab and Lykos Therapeutics’ MDMA-assisted PTSD therapy on the docket, among others.
The FDA is facing four big target action dates in the final week of June, including one label expansion for a bispecific antibody and another for an investigational gene therapy.
While GLP-1 drugs remain wildly popular and are a highly lucrative sector, data analytics firm GlobalData contends manufacturing and cost will remain overhangs on the obesity market.
Accurately diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease pathologies is becoming increasingly important, but the U.S. is facing imaging resource constraints.
The plethora of genes involved in obesity presents an intriguing opportunity for both gene silencing and ex vivo gene therapy approaches.
FROM BIOSPACE INSIGHTS
In a year when eradicated diseases are on the uptick in America, how will American children survive RFK Jr.’s vaccine scrutiny and inconsistency? Two experts call on pharma and regulatory bodies to rebuild trust.
LATEST PODCASTS
In this episode of Denatured, BioSpace’s Head of Insights Lori Ellis discusses key themes from BIO and DIA, including the funding environment, with Rich Daly, CEO of Catalyst Pharmaceuticals, Peter Ronco, CEO of Emmes Corporation, and Phil Vanek, founder of Redline Bio Advisors.
Another patient has died from acute liver failure after receiving Sarepta’s gene therapy for DMD ; After a quiet start to the year, M&A is back with one deal for a gene editing biotech reinvigorating that sector; and RFK Jr. installs a suite of new vaccine board members who share his skeptical views on vaccines.
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. made waves this week, firing the remaining members of the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices; Metsera’s amylin drug produced weight loss of 8.4% at 36 days; and FDA leaders gathered last week to discuss the future of cell and gene therapy, a sector that has been in turmoil since the ousting of CBER Chief Peter Marks.
Job Trends
Daiichi Sankyo and AstraZeneca’s Biologics License Application for datopotamab deruxtecan has been accepted in the U.S. for the treatment of adult patients with unresectable or metastatic hormone receptor positive, HER2 negative breast cancer who have received prior systemic therapy for unresectable or metastatic disease.
Subscribe to Genepool
Subscribe to BioSpace’s flagship publication including top headlines, special editions and life sciences’ most important breaking news
SPECIAL EDITIONS
BioSpace did a deep dive into executive pay, examining the highest compensation packages, pay ratios and golden parachutes—what a CEO would get paid to leave.
A new generation of checkpoint inhibitors is emerging, with some showing more promise than others. From recent TIGIT failures to high-potential targets like VEGF, BioSpace explores what’s on the horizon in immuno-oncology.
Peter Marks, the venerable head of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, has been forced out. In this special edition of BioPharm Executive, BioSpace takes a deep dive into the instability of the HHS.
DEALS
-
The companies have received all required regulatory approvals to complete the deal, the largest for the sector in the past three years and the biggest for the hot antibody-drug conjugate market.
-
With the acquisition, AstraZeneca will gain access to Icosavax’s investigational combination vaccine IVX-A12, which is being developed for respiratory syncytial virus and human metapneumovirus in older adults.
-
Friday’s FDA approval of Vertex-CRISPR’s Casgevy and bluebird bio’s Lyfgenia has immediately revealed startling differences between these two gene therapies: price and a black-box warning.
-
The deal, announced late Wednesday, will provide AbbVie with access to Cerevel Therapeutics’ pipeline of clinical-stage and preclinical candidates for psychiatric and neurological diseases.
-
This week we discuss ups and downs in the weight loss and ADC markets - including Altimmune, Pfizer setbacks, AbbVie’s ImmunoGen buy and more.
WEIGHT LOSS
-
Florida District Judge Roy Altman earlier this week ruled against Eli Lilly, finding that the drugmaker cannot use state law to block reformulated versions of its blockbuster weight-loss and diabetes medication tirzepatide.
-
The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists has released statistics showing the number of active and ongoing U.S. drug shortages has reached 323, the highest number since it began tracking the data.
-
GLP-1 treatments are all the rage in this space, but they aren’t the only approach in development. The pipeline assets highlighted here offer a differentiated approach, potentially increasing efficacy or reducing side effects.
-
A new Scandinavian study published Wednesday found no conclusive evidence to support the link between GLP-1 receptor agonists and an increased risk of thyroid cancer.
-
As part of its ongoing review, the European Medicines Agency this week is slated to examine the potential risks of suicidal ideation and self-harm associated with diabetes and weight-loss treatments.
POLICY
-
As congressional pressure increases on WuXi AppTec and other China-based companies over alleged ties to the Chinese government, India’s contract development and manufacturing organization sector could benefit.
-
This week on Denatured, Head of Insights Lori Ellis and guests discuss the implications of not addressing the DE&I data gaps for the future.
-
The Department of Justice and Securities and Exchange Commission are investigating two senior employees of Cassava Sciences in connection with allegations of data manipulation for its Alzheimer’s disease candidate simufilam.
-
The Federal Trade Commission has opened an investigation into Teva Pharmaceuticals after the company allegedly ignored directives to withdraw or amend contentious patent listings on the FDA’s Orange Book.
-
The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday overturned the long-standing Chevron doctrine, which required courts to defer to federal agencies and their interpretation of statutes, putting potential limits on the FDA’s regulatory decisions.
Writing a interview follow up email that expresses your enthusiasm and competence for the available role can help you stand out. Let’s check how to write one.
Whether you’re an experienced professional in the field or just embarking on your new career, it’s time to look at your qualifications and career plans from an entirely different perspective.
Maryland has become a key part of the strategy for Kite, a Gilead company, and its mission to find a cure for cancer.
As your organization continues with hiring efforts, interviewers will face new questions from candidates that they’ve never been asked before.
If you are looking for a new job, it is crucial to have an ATS friendly resume. Let’s discuss how to do this and why they’re so popular with hiring managers.
Do you have soft skills but don’t know how to show them on your resume? Here are 6 of the most popular soft skills for resume and tips on how to make sure they get noticed.
HOTBEDS
REPORTS
In this Employment Outlook report, BioSpace explores current workforce sentiment, job activity trends and the prospective job and hiring outlook for 2025, particularly as it compares to the previous year.
BioSpace’s third report on diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging in life sciences examines dramatic shifts in attitude around diversity initiatives.
CANCER
-
The FDA’s Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee on Thursday strongly supported changing clinical trials for non-small cell lung cancer drugs given in the perioperative setting, pointing out the need for a more nuanced approached to treatments before and after surgery.
-
Novartis continues its dealmaking spree with a bet on Dren Bio’s Targeted Myeloid Engager and Phagocytosis platform to develop bispecific antibodies in oncology.
-
A longtime biopharma exec and Moderna shareholder argues in an anonymous email to the companies’ CFOs that they have a fiduciary responsibility to close the deal. Analysts say the proposal is interesting but “too simplistic.”
-
AstraZeneca is proposing to use Imfinzi for resectable non-small cell lung cancer in the perioperative setting—both before and after surgical resection of the tumor. However, ahead of Thursday’s advisory committee meeting, FDA staffers have expressed concerns.
-
Third Arc Bio, led by three former Johnson & Johnson executives, is advancing a portfolio of multifunctional antibodies for cancer and inflammatory and immune-mediated diseases.
NEUROSCIENCE
-
With Monday’s FDA rejection of their long-acting glatiramer acetate formulation, Viatris and Mapi Pharma continue the biopharma industry’s recent losing streak in multiple sclerosis.
-
In this deep dive, BioSpace examines what’s next for Leqembi, the true cost of anti-amyloid antibodies, and what other Alzheimer’s treatments are coming down the pipeline.
-
The FDA will convene its Peripheral and Central Nervous System Drugs Advisory Committee to discuss Eli Lilly’s application for its Alzheimer’s disease antibody donanemab, the company announced Friday.
-
Friday’s topline data from the Phase III PHOENIX trial of Relyvrio, which won approval in 2022, showed no significant difference on either the primary or secondary endpoints, according to Amylyx.
-
After oncology and neuroscience headlined biopharma investment in 2023, experts anticipate increased interest in the autoimmune and obesity spaces this year.
CELL AND GENE THERAPY
-
The well-respected director of the FDA’s cell and gene therapy office was seen as a stabilizing and trustworthy voice inside the quickly reshaping FDA, especially since the late-March exit of CBER Director Peter Marks.
-
Another patient has died from acute liver failure after receiving Sarepta’s gene therapy for DMD ; After a quiet start to the year, M&A is back with one deal for a gene editing biotech reinvigorating that sector; and RFK Jr. installs a suite of new vaccine board members who share his skeptical views on vaccines.
-
The pending deal was rumored overnight after a report from the Financial Times, spurring analysts to speculate that if true, the entire gene editing space would see a boost at the markets.
-
Analysts at Truist Securities called J&J’s CAR T readout “compelling,” noting that the efficacy figures could position the cell therapy as a formidable competitor to the current standard of care, Gilead’s Yescarta.
-
Sarepta’s shares crashed 41% in premarket trading Monday morning to $21.01 after the biotech reported a second death from acute liver failure, a known side effect of adeno-associated virus-based gene therapies.