Of the three highest bidders, Pfizer’s purchase proposal for Metsera was the lowest, regulatory documents reveal. The New York pharma, however, offered the smoothest transaction with the greatest likelihood of success.
Skye Bioscience’s nimacimab fell short of investor and company expectations, but showed encouraging weight-loss results when combined with Wegovy, according to analysts at William Blair.
Amgen will offer its lipid-lowering drug Repatha directly to patients for $239 per month, representing a nearly 60% reduction from the current wholesale acquisition cost of $527.70.
A new survey from CRB showed that most manufacturing initiatives in the U.S. made in response to tariffs are coming from Big Pharma companies, while smaller biotechs are left to hope “the situation doesn’t get worse.”
The inaugural 40 Under 40 cohort includes CEOs, leaders who have founded or co-founded their company and executives from a range of disciplines. Winners’ accomplishments include shaping drug development, achieving key FDA milestones and launching a new field of study.
A new group of CDC advisors voted last month to separate the chickenpox vaccine from the measles, mumps, rubella components of the MMRV shot due to concerns over febrile seizures, while recommending a more risk-based approach to COVID-19 immunizations that mirrors recent FDA approvals.
FEATURED STORIES
EY’s 2025 Biotech Beyond Borders report provides a sobering snapshot of the industry’s financial health, with more and more companies facing cash runways of less than one year. The analyst firm’s leaders urge a return to basics for biotech.
Industry watchers responded mostly positively to the commissioner’s new voucher program, but worries remain over staffing cuts at the agency.
Findings that U.S. companies can sue foreign rivals despite limited business operations in the country could dissuade drug developers from targeting the U.S. market, potentially benefiting domestic producers of biosimilars.
BioNTech said in 2022 that it faced “threats of a groundless patent infringement suit” from a company that was “unable to bring to market any product to help in the fight against COVID-19.” Now, the mRNA biotech is buying that very company.
Sanofi paid a more than 300% premium on its acquisition of Vigil Neuroscience, suggesting a fierce battle to seal the deal. Across biopharma, companies are sometimes willing to put it all on the line for the right buyout. Novartis’ recent acquisition of Regulus for $800 million upfront provides a case study.
AstraZeneca, Pfizer and more are leveraging the computational power of AI to better design trials, predict the potential efficacy and safety profiles of their molecules and synthesize massive multi-omic information to gain a more complete understanding of challenging cancers.
LATEST PODCASTS
Donald Trump continues to make waves in biopharma; Sage rejects Biogen’s unsolicited takeover offer; the obesity space sees more action with new company launches, IPOs and fresh data; and experts get ready for an important era in the Duchenne muscular dystrophy space.
Biopharma executives shared their thoughts on the potential impacts of the new administration; Annalee Armstrong recaps JPM and her talks with Biogen, Gilead, Novavax and more; Wegovy’s higher dose induces more weight loss; AstraZeneca and Daiichi Sankyo’s Dato-DXd scores its first FDA approval.
In this bonus episode, BioSpace’s vice president of marketing Chantal Dresner and careers editor Angela Gabriel take a look at Q4 job market performance and what we expect to see ahead.
Job Trends
4D Molecular Therapeutics today announced that the Company will present the initial interim 24-week landmark analysis from the Population Extension cohort of the PRISM Phase 2 Clinical Trial evaluating 4D-150 in a broad wet AMD patient population at the ASRS Annual Scientific Meeting being held in Stockholm, Sweden from July 17-20, 2024.
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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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Sanofi’s jump in earnings comes with an increased emphasis on R&D and vaccines, plus an eye cast toward M&A to shore up its pipeline. -
The J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference started off with a flurry of deals that reinvigorated excitement across the biopharma industry. Johnson & Johnson moved to acquire Intra-Cellular Therapies for $14.6 billion, breaking a dealmaking barrier that kept Big Pharma’s 2024 biotech buyouts to under $5 billion. -
Donald Trump continues to make waves in biopharma; Sage rejects Biogen’s unsolicited takeover offer; the obesity space sees more action with new company launches, IPOs and fresh data; and experts get ready for an important era in the Duchenne muscular dystrophy space. -
Following a lawsuit filed last week, Sage has officially rejected Biogen’s unsolicited buyout offer, which valued the embattled biotech at just $469 million. -
Protein degradation–focused Neomorph nabs its third Big Pharma deal of around $1.5 billion in less than a year.
WEIGHT LOSS
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Eli Lilly says Indianapolis-based Premier Weight Loss is cracking open auto-injector pens containing its blockbuster drug and repackaging them into separate doses. -
According to BMO Capital Markets, Rybelsus’ outcomes in SOUL were “inconsistent,” failing to significantly lower cardiovascular death and nonfatal stroke. -
Compounded versions could make up as much as 40% of the semaglutide market, said Novo Nordisk CEO Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen on Thursday, but the company hopes to win patients over. -
Lexicon’s LX9851 targets ACSL5, a liver enzyme involved in fat metabolism that helps moderate fat accumulation and slow down gastric emptying. -
Deloitte urged pharma executives to “be bold” in a new report tracking the top 20 pharmaceutical companies’ R&D performance.
POLICY
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The newly appointed members of the CDC’s influential vaccine committee meet Wednesday and Thursday under an unusually rapid timeline, with unexpected topics on the agenda. -
With much to cover, Democrats tackled Kennedy’s MAHA report; the firing of all members of the CDC’s ACIP committee; and much more. Little was accomplished, as Kennedy demurred and members of Congress accused him of risking American lives. -
Drug pricing, budget cuts, tariffs and other shifts under the Trump administration undermine the biopharma and healthcare ecosystem. -
Speaking at BIO2025, rare disease leaders from Ultragenyx, Amylyx and Yale questioned the need for the new regulatory pathway proposed by FDA Commissioner Marty Makary. They acknowledged, however, that creative thinking is required to enable more treatments for patients with ultrarare diseases. -
The Inflation Reduction Act includes an exemption for orphan drugs for a single indication, but experts say this is far from sufficient to maintain momentum in the rare disease space.
A variation of rage quitting, rage applying is a method of job searching that occurs when someone applies for many new roles while still employed in their current position.
Some consider a candidate’s alma mater to be the most important factor in the hiring process. But how much does a life science candidate’s alma mater really matter? In short–it depends.
New York City employers who use Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools in hiring will soon be subject to new regulations requiring them to notify candidates when using the technology.
Now more than ever, there is ample opportunity for life science candidates with only a bachelor’s degree. Still, there are certain things these candidates should know to ensure their success.
Computer programming jobs in biopharma are on the rise, but candidates must have a specific skill set. To help, here are the best programming languages for those working in the life sciences.
Discover the benefits and challenges of relocating to a biopharma hot spot and find out the most important factors to consider when making your decision.
HOTBEDS
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Seven in 10 U.S. hiring managers say their company usually considers employing overqualified applicants, according to a survey from Express Employment Professionals and The Harris Poll. However, 75% of employers believe such hires struggle to stay motivated in lower-level roles.
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 drug, a small molecule protein inhibitor, brought in $132 million in the first quarter, missing consensus estimates by 17%. -
As Q1 2025 earnings season continues, tariffs remain top of mind for pharma CEOs and investors. Meanwhile, the American Association for Cancer Research’s annual event kicks off this year’s oncology conference season. Plus, will the FDA become politicized under HHS Secretary RFK Jr.?
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Pfizer’s sasanlimab, when used with standard of care, reduced the likelihood of disease recurrence or progression, death due to any cause or persistence of cancer cells by 32% in patients with high-risk non-muscle invasive bladder cancer. -
The targeted drug release device TAR-200 shows promising response and disease-free survival rates in specific populations of patients with non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer. -
The FDA is currently reviewing Merck’s sBLA for Keytruda in head and neck cancer, with a target action date of June 23.
NEUROSCIENCE
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The European Union’s CHMP said that the benefits of the drug, already approved in the U.S., do not outweigh the risk of potentially fatal brain swelling and bleeding. -
WVE-N531, an oligonucleotide, elicited significant functional benefit and reversal of muscle damage in the Phase II FORWARD-53 trial. Wave plans to file for accelerated approval of the candidate in 2026. -
Eisai’s new fiscal 2027 forecast for Leqembi is roughly 50% lower than its projections a year ago. -
President Donald Trump continues to warn of tariffs on the pharmaceutical industry; Susan Monarez replaces Dave Weldon as CDC director nominee; Novo Nordisk joins the triple-G race; Alnylam wins approval for Amvuttra in ATTR-CM; and Cassava Sciences ends development of simufilam in Alzheimer’s.
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After years of controversy and allegations of doctored data, Cassava is moving on from Alzheimer’s.
CELL AND GENE THERAPY
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The biotech is exploring opportunities for a reverse merger or other business combinations. CFO and now interim CEO Anup Radhakrishnan will take charge of these negotiations. -
After a patient taking the Duchenne muscular dystrophy gene therapy Elevydis died of liver injury, Sarepta will update the label to reflect the safety signal. -
The gene therapy world is in turmoil, but Arbor, armed with more than $1 billion in partnerships and raises, is going forward. -
AstraZeneca has recently been investing heavily in the cell therapy space, including two acquisitions for TeneoTwo and Gracell Biotechnologies. -
Dyne is eyeing an accelerated approval filing for DYNE-251 in early 2026 that would pit the asset against Sarepta’s Exondys 51 in a patient population amenable to exon 51 skipping.
