The $70 million upfront deal adds to a portfolio of drugs Biogen has been growing in various immunological conditions since 2024.
The cornerstone of the deal is Ixo-vec, an intravitreal gene therapy currently in Phase III development for wet age-related macular degeneration. Eli Lilly made another foray into genetic medicine in June, picking up Verve Therapeutics for up to $1.3 billion.
Of the 25 companies receiving tax incentives in Massachusetts, 23 will add jobs outside of Boston and Cambridge. Medtronic, which is receiving the largest award, will create 220 roles in Billerica. Other recipients include AbbVie, Dyne Therapeutics and Viridian Therapeutics.
In three draft guidance documents, the FDA has laid out pointers to help companies craft better drug development programs and drug applications.
The discontinued CAR T therapy bbT369 came to Regeneron when the pharma bought all of 2seventy bio’s pipeline assets for $5 million upfront in January 2024.
Sales of Sanofi’s COVID-19 and flu vaccines fell 17% in the third quarter amid declining vaccination rates and pricing pressures in Europe.
FEATURED STORIES
Yes, according to leading vaccine physician Paul Offit, who denounced the new placebo-controlled trial requirements for vaccines and sought greater clarity: “I don’t know what they’re talking about.”
Keytruda is set to lose exclusivity in 2028, meaning Summit may face competition from cheaper biosimilars. Meanwhile, other branded drugmakers are also seeking to improve on the blockbuster checkpoint inhibitor.
M&A and IPOs got off to a quick start in 2025 only to crash into a wall of policy challenges. Upfront payment for licensing transactions, however, grew as pharmas looked for less-risky deals.
Beam Therapeutics and Verve Therapeutics have each built their lead candidates on a technique billed as a safer alternative to conventional CRISPR. Clinical results have so far been promising.
On the FDA’s docket this month are two expansion bids, one for GSK’s asthma drug Nucala into COPD and another for Merck’s oral cancer drug for a pair of rare tumors.
As the Trump administration—including HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.—plays fast and loose with scientific studies and facts, there may be a more sinister force at play: censorship.
LATEST PODCASTS
Well-financed startup Tome is winding down operations just as two new companies, Borealis Biosciences and GondolaBio, are launching. Meanwhile, in the midst of already tense relations with China, House lawmakers raise the alarm about U.S. companies working with the country’s military on trials.
Last week, the Biden administration revealed the first drug prices negotiated under the Inflation Reduction Act; Lykos, Grail and others make substantial staffing cuts, and Pfizer/BioNTech see mixed results for their COVID/flu vaccine.
Lori and guests address clinical trial design, which if done without careful consideration of the patient population can exclude patients from clinical trials instead of being inclusive.
Job Trends
Bristol Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY) today announced the presentation of data at the 2024 American Society of Clinical Psychopharmacology (ASCP) Annual Meeting, taking place May 28-31, 2024 in Miami, FL.
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SPECIAL EDITIONS
In this deep dive, BioSpace investigates China’s rise as a biotech powerhouse.
In this deep dive, BioSpace explores the next big thing in obesity.
BioSpace did a deep dive into biopharma female executives who navigated difficult markets to lead their companies to high-value exits.
DEALS
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With $70 million upfront and more than $1.8 billion on the line, Roche will gain access to Flare’s drug discovery engine to bolster its oncology pipeline. -
With Novo Holdings’ $16.5 billion buyout of Catalent being reviewed by regulators, what work the contract drug manufacturer may or may not be performing for Eli Lilly remains a point of contention. -
In a deal worth up to $285 million initially for the lead program, Novo Nordisk will gain access to Ascendis’ TransCon technology platform in an effort to find novel GLP-1 candidates with reduced dosing frequency. -
Biogen touted strong Q3 sales of its Alzheimer’s drug Leqembi a day after announcing a deal worth up to $1.45 billion with Neomorph to discover and develop molecular glue degraders. -
Pfizer, Sanofi and others report Q3 beats; AbbVie, Roche and Novartis strike big deals; the 2024 presidential election looms; and BioSpace takes a look back at 10 years of NextGen, our annual pick of young biotechs to watch.
WEIGHT LOSS
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It’s been a rocky few months for BioAge Labs, which shuttered a Phase II trial of its lead candidate azelaprag Tuesday after the molecule caused liver-based side effects. -
Versant Ventures continues to invest in the increasingly competitive obesity space, this time launching Helicore with $65 million and a GIP-targeting asset intended to induce higher-quality weight loss. -
The GLP-1 IPO arena has been heating up for the past two years and Metsera’s ask is one the largest in recent history. -
Patients taking Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy plus Veru’s enobosarm saw 71% lower lean mass loss than those who were taking Wegovy alone but investors await more data. -
The readout comes on the heels of CagriSema’s disappointing Phase III performance, where it missed Novo’s projection of 25% weight reduction.
POLICY
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As the Trump administration slashes funding for HIV-related research and infrastructure, Gilead, Immunocore and more are targeting the next goalpost: a cure. -
With President Donald Trump expected to deliver a drug pricing order on Monday that Big Pharma and patient groups alike have railed against, the industry’s tumultuous ride is far from over. -
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. -
A new executive order from President Donald Trump aims to cut down the 5-to-10-year timeline to build new facilities while stepping up the rigor of inspections on foreign plants. -
Twenty attorneys general allege that the recent workforce reduction at the Department of Health and Human Services is unlawful and could have potentially irreversible consequences.
Following up after an interview can be essential to help you gain peace of mind and reinforce your interest. Here’s how to improve follow up after interview.
Instead of letting LinkedIn slide to the bottom of your to-do list day after day, dedicate some time to it. Here’s what you need to add to your LinkedIn post.
Deciding on when to switch your job can be a difficult decision to make.
The pharmaceutical industry is full of job opportunities for people in various fields. Read on to find out more information about high-paying pharma industry jobs.
Are you looking for doctor careers in the pharma sector? Here is everything you need to know about how you can choose a reputable and growing pharma career.
Before going for pharmaceutical jobs interviews, you should be prepared to give the best answers possible. Here are six questions you should be ready for.
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
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The partners are pushing to expand Enhertu’s list of indications beyond its standing uses in breast, lung and gastric cancers. -
Protagonist Therapeutics notches a milestone in its pact with Takeda for rusfertide. New data show that many patients with a chronic blood cancer taking the drug didn’t need to have their blood removed to bring down dangerously high hemocrit levels. -
More than a decade after Merck’s Keytruda and BMS’ Yervoy ushered in the immuno-oncology revolution, the space is at a crossroads, with experts highlighting novel targets, combinations and pre-emptive immunization as the next wave for IO. -
The company will push through with an accelerated approval application for odronextamab in follicular lymphoma, leaving diffuse large B cell lymphoma behind. -
In the Phase III SERENA-6 trial, camizestrant—in combination with CDK-inhibitors—beat out current standard-of-care treatments in terms of progression-free survival, according to AstraZeneca.
NEUROSCIENCE
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In a good-news-bad-news week for Biogen, the company will cut an undisclosed number of employees, just as a higher dose of its Ionis-partnered therapy Spinraza for spinal muscular atrophy will be considered by the FDA and EMA.
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The drugs’ active ingredient, glatiramer acetate, has been linked to more than 80 cases of anaphylaxis worldwide since December 1996 and six patient deaths. -
The U.S. Court of Federal Claims ruled that Vanda cannot claim a breach of confidentiality for specifications that it did not develop itself. -
Cebranopadol, a dual-NMR agonist, reached the primary endpoint in a Phase III trial and matched placebo for safety, a significant concern in the analgesic field. -
Spravato’s monotherapy nod on Tuesday comes after a series of setbacks in the depression space.
CELL AND GENE THERAPY
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Anito-cel has shown no signs of delayed neurotoxicity at around 9 months of follow-up, hinting at a safety profile that could set it apart from J&J and Legend’s Carvykti. -
Vertex unveiled long-term durability data for Casgevy, while Beam presented Phase I/II findings for its investigational base editor BEAM-101, building up to a BLA by late 2026. -
Not developing potency assays and gaining knowledge about MOAs early in the drug development process not only can break ATMP success but can cause costs and delays that lead to company closures.
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The payment scheme will tie gene therapy payments to improvements in health outcomes—and could potentially boost the uptake of these sickle cell disease treatments. -
In this episode of Denatured, BioSpace’s Head of Insights Lori Ellis, Miguel Forte and Ali Pashazadeh discuss how a slow and steady pace is a continuation of the pattern we have seen throughout the last three years.
