As of March 31, Recursion Pharmaceuticals had a cash position of $509 million. Following Tuesday’s layoffs, the biotech expects its runway to last into the fourth quarter of 2027.
Odyssey filed for an IPO in January but never revealed a fundraising target.
Merck’s Enflonsia will go up against Sanofi and AstraZeneca’s Beyfortus, which the partners plan to ship out early in the third quarter.
The reinstatement of the generic drug policy office is the latest reversal of course for Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s HHS, which also recently rehired FDA staff responsible for making travel arrangements and those involved in user fee program negotiations.
Two weeks of upheaval at the CDC culminated Monday in the complete reconstitution of the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices as HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. pens op-ed criticizing “conflicts of interest” he says exist on the current committee.
Avidity has been given the go-ahead by the FDA to request accelerated approval of delpacibart braxlosiran—potentially the first disease-modifying treatment for facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy—with an application in the second half of 2026.
FEATURED STORIES
In this deep dive BioSpace analyzes the neuropsychedelic therapeutics pipeline, which grabbed headlines in February when the FDA accepted the New Drug Application for Lykos Therapeutics’ MDMA capsules for PTSD.
While San Diego remains a top biotech hub behind Boston and San Francisco, the city—which hosts this week’s BIO International Convention—has seen employment drop amid economic headwinds.
Experts say approval of Lykos Therapeutics’ MDMA capsules for post-traumatic stress disorder would open the door to further research into psychedelic-assisted therapies.
AstraZeneca last week set another ambitious goal, this time with plans to nearly double its total revenue by the end of the decade. However, it’s easier said than done, according to analysts.
While NK cell therapies can potentially avoid the serious side effects sometimes seen with CAR T cell therapies, experts say durability may stall their path to the market.
As AstraZeneca looks to climb toward the top of biopharma companies by revenue by the end of the decade, smaller companies are looking to join the ranks of the unofficial Big Pharma club.
FROM BIOSPACE INSIGHTS
Establishing trust through thought leadership is no longer optional in today’s cautious biopharma market. This webinar will show leaders how strategic insights and targeted outreach can turn awareness into high-converting leads. Watch now.
LATEST PODCASTS
This week’s release of the Make America Health Again report revealed continued emphasis on vaccine safety; Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s faceoff with senators last week amounted to political theater; the FDA promises complete response letters in real time and shares details on a new rare disease framework; and Summit disappoints at the World Conference on Lung Cancer in Barcelona.
In this episode presented by Taconic Biosciences, BioSpace’s head of insights Lori Ellis discusses how preclinical research companies are helping drug developers navigate the current challenging funding environment with Mike Garrett, CEO.
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will appear before the Senate Finance Committee Thursday, ahead of a vaccine advisory committee meeting later in September. Meanwhile, deal-making appetite appears healthy, and the weight loss space continues generating clinical data and other news.
Job Trends
Merck (NYSE: MRK), known as MSD outside of the United States and Canada, announced today that Joseph Romanelli, president, Human Health International, is scheduled to participate in a fireside chat at the TD Cowen 44th Annual Health Care Conference on Tuesday, March 5, 2024, at 1:30 p.m. ET.
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SPECIAL EDITIONS
BioSpace did a deep dive into biopharma female executives who navigated difficult markets to lead their companies to high-value exits.
BioSpace data show biopharma professionals faced increased competition for fewer employment opportunities during the second quarter of 2025, with increased pressure from further layoffs.
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.
DEALS
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The proposed regulatory framework provides a tougher stance on mergers, impacting industries such as biopharma where the FTC’s recent lawsuit seeks to block Amgen’s Horizon Therapeutics buy. -
The Swiss pharma is expanding its neuroscience pipeline with an upfront $500 million payment to DTx Pharma and additional payments of up to $500 million upon completion of certain milestones. -
The Federal Trade Commission is asking for more information regarding Pfizer’s planned $43 billion acquisition of Seagen, according to the latter’s Securities and Exchange Commission filing on Friday.
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This week: Cancer license deals from J&J and BeiGene, a potential $7B acquisition by Roche and confirmed $1.9B Lilly buy, EU fine for Illumina, and more legal challenges to the Inflation Reduction Act -
Eli Lilly said Friday it plans to pay up to $1.925 billion to acquire Versanis and its lead asset, bimagrumab, a monoclonal antibody that aims to reduce fat mass without affecting muscle mass.
WEIGHT LOSS
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Analysts say Novo Holdings made the right decision last week in scooping up the CDMO to increase manufacturing capacity for Novo Nordisk’s diabetes and weight-loss drugs. -
Two Florida courts have sided with Novo Nordisk against Ekzotika and Effinger Health, agreeing that their compounded versions of semaglutide are against the law. The Danish pharma has reached confidential settlements with both companies. -
Biopharma’s latest earnings season was, in a word, predictable. Companies are consistently beating Wall Street earnings and revenue estimates as they set low expectations for investors. -
While analysts are bullish on Novo Holdings’ $16.5 billion acquisition of Catalent, they say it raises questions for companies that have contracted the CDMO for manufacturing.
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Eli Lilly on Tuesday said it is already making manufacturing investments for orforglipron, its next-generation oral weight-loss candidate that recently moved into Phase III development.
POLICY
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Why I advocated on Capitol Hill this month for the renewal of the FDA’s Priority Review Voucher program -
The Federal Trade Commission criticized the business practices of pharmacy benefit managers this week, but drugmakers are also at fault for the high costs of medicines.
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The Senate on Thursday unanimously passed a bill aimed at limiting the number of patents drugmakers can introduce and making it easier for generic and biosimilar competitors to enter the market. -
The Federal Trade Commission plans to file lawsuits against the three largest pharmacy benefit managers over allegedly steering patients away from less expensive drugs, according to The Wall Street Journal. -
The Federal Trade Commission on Tuesday issued an interim report on the top pharmacy benefit managers, showing that they are generating massive profit at the expense of patients by inflating prescription drug costs.
Our recent article describing six prominent careers in the biopharma industry was well-received by both college students and current biopharma professionals. As the first installment in a six-part series, we present an in depth review of a rewarding career as a genetic counselor.
A well-written thank you letter after interview can help you make an impact on the interviewers. It can increase your chance of getting hired so learn how to write one.
The more you funnel the universe of employers into a laser-focused, precise, narrow segment of those who would love to hire you, the more successful you’ll be.
Background checks, especially at the executive level, have become routine in the recruitment process.
Here we outline how to figure out what your dream job is and how to find dream job among the hundreds of job listings out there. This guide will help organize your job search.
If it’s time to move on, here’s how to maintain your productivity on the job while your job search. Use these tips to be productive in a new job search.
HOTBEDS
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
The number of biopharma professionals let go has increased year over year for three straight months. In July, as many as 8,000 people lost or were projected to lose their jobs, due largely to news that Merck projects to cut roughly 6,000 employees as part of a multiyear process.
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 hold on BioNTech and MediLink’s antibody-drug conjugate candidate BNT326/YL202 has halted enrollment in a Phase I U.S. trial in patients with non-small cell lung cancer or breast cancer, following multiple deaths. -
Coherus BioSciences and Junshi Biosciences’ PD-1 inhibitor Loqtorzi significantly boosted progression-free and overall survival in a late-stage study of patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma. -
The use of artificial intelligence in the development of cancer vaccines allows for individualized therapy, but the prospect of an ever-changing product poses new challenges for drug developers and regulators. -
AbbVie’s antibody-drug conjugate Elahere, developed by ImmunoGen, elicited a nearly 52% objective response rate in heavily pretreated patients with folate receptor-alpha-positive, platinum-sensitive ovarian cancer. -
BMS presented late-stage results on Tuesday at the ASCO annual meeting which showed the combination of Opdivo and Yervoy lowered the risk of death by 21% in patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma, compared to two kinase inhibitors.
NEUROSCIENCE
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While the biotech’s third-quarter revenue beat Wall Street expectations, its $7.3 billion acquisition of Reata Pharmaceuticals—which closed in September—negatively impacted 2023 per-share earnings. -
After winning traditional approval from the U.S. regulator, Eisai’s Alzheimer’s disease therapy Leqembi has seen a sharp increase in patient uptake, with a target of 10,000 patients by March 2024. -
A third-party audit found no integrity and reliability problems with data from BioXcel Therapeutics’ Phase III trial. The company intends to file a supplemental New Drug Application for its candidate BXCL501. -
Subcutaneous injections of Eisai and Biogen’s Leqembi led to numerically greater amyloid removal than the intravenous version of the Alzheimer’s disease therapy, though risks of brain swelling and bleeding remained.
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While the trial was designed to test safety and not efficacy, patients treated with Araclon Biotech’s experimental ABvac40 vaccine saw a 38% drop in disease progression compared to placebo.
CELL AND GENE THERAPY
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Capsida has yet to disclose the exact cause of death. The patient had received the gene therapy CAP-002 for a type of epilepsy. -
Ori Biotech’s CEO said the prioritization of review by FDA, coupled to the impact of the technology, could shave up to three years off development timelines. -
As AAV9 and CRISPR programs navigate safety, delivery and scalability hurdles, small molecules offer a deployable, scalable bridge, complementing genetic approaches and accelerating meaningful impact for patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy. -
It can cure deadly diseases, save long-term healthcare costs and transform lives. But the U.S. insurance system still isn’t ready to pay for it. -
Vertex Pharmaceuticals commits $45 million upfront to leverage Enlaza Therapeutics’ War-Lock platform to create drug conjugates and T cell engagers for autoimmune diseases and gentler conditioning for sickle cell/beta thalassemia gene-editing therapy Casgevy.
