ALS
Participants in trials of BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics’ NurOwn filed a Citizens’ Petition with the FDA earlier this month seeking a new review of the stem cell therapy that was rejected in 2022 based on real-world data and 90% survival in an expanded access program.
The swift FDA action removes an overhang from Sarepta and allows Elevidys to return to the market without another safety study, as had been feared, Jefferies analysts said Monday.
In a Phase Ib/IIa trial, 91% of patients receiving the highest dose of trontinemab were amyloid negative after seven months of treatment, representing what B. Riley Securities called a “paradigm shift” to first-generation FDA-approved antibodies.
The German giant is looking to develop new drugs for undisclosed eye diseases using Re-Vana’s extended-release injectable platform to supply drugs to the eye for months at a time.
The star of GSK’s Hengrui partnership is the COPD candidate HRS-9821, which will complement the pharma’s respiratory pipeline that’s anchored by the anti-asthma drug Nucala.
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. wants to remove all members of the USPSTF for being too “woke,” according to reporting by the Wall Street Journal. An HHS spokesperson, however, says no final decision has been made about the panel.
Brazilian authorities said the death was unlikely to have been caused by Elevidys and was instead more in line with severe infection exacerbated by immunosuppression.
FEATURED STORIES
With crucial lessons learned from the manufacturing shortages of injectable GLP-1s, experts say securing adequate supply of the upcoming oral options will be the sector’s next great challenge.
AbbVie’s Humira was the top-selling drug in the world for many years. Now, its sales are eroding as doctors switch to biosimilars and new options enter the market.
Biosimilars are essential healthcare equalizers, but their regulation is overly complicated due to lobbying by makers of branded biologics looking to maintain blockbuster revenue.
It’s early days for xenotransplantation, but eGenesis, Eledon, United Therapeutics and more are working to develop solutions to make this approach a viable option and help ease the organ shortage crisis.
Since 2016, the FDA has approved three disease-modifying treatments for spinal muscular atrophy, with several companies—including Novartis, Scholar Rock and Biogen—progressing novel candidates through clinical trials.
The FDA approval of Alnylam’s Amvuttra sets up a three-way race with Pfizer and BridgeBio, which both market transthyretin stabilizers for transthyretin amyloid cardiomyopathy.
FROM BIOSPACE INSIGHTS
Establishing trust through thought leadership is no longer optional in today’s cautious biopharma market. Learn how strategic insights and targeted outreach can turn awareness into high-converting leads.
LATEST PODCASTS
A tale of two multi-billion schizophrenia deals, AstraZeneca touts strong sales while deflecting questions about an investigation into China exec, the Huntington’s pipeline builds momentum and layoffs continue with Sana Biotechnology and 23andMe.
In this episode of Denatured, BioSpace’s Head of Insights Lori and guests from Teva Pharmaceuticals and TOWER Capital discuss the opportunities, regulatory challenges and uncertainty surrounding AI.
In our anniversary episode, we discuss a rare earnings miss for Eli Lilly, a pivotal metabolic dysfunction–associated steatohepatitis victory for Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy, growing excitement about CAR Ts for autoimmune disease and the ongoing controversy over HeLa cells.
Job Trends
FDA
Bristol Myers Squibb announced that the U.S. FDA has granted accelerated approval of Augtyro™ for the treatment of adult and pediatric patients 12 years of age and older with solid tumors that have a NTRK gene fusion, are locally advanced or metastatic or where surgical resection is likely to result in severe morbidity, and have progressed following treatment or have no satisfactory alternative therapy.
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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
  1. The Muna partnership will give GSK access to Muna’s MiND-MAP platform, which it will apply to postmortem brain samples to identify potential therapeutic targets for Alzheimer’s disease.
  2. One year after a potential $1.7 billion deal with Hansoh Pharma, GSK goes back to China to forge another alliance with DualityBio for another deal that could be worth up to $1 billion as it continues to build up its ADC portfolio.
  3. The Danish startup, whose lead candidate has parallels to Amgen’s MariTide, launches on the heels of Amgen’s Phase II data release for the drug last week.
  4. Novartis, Gilead, Roche and Takeda commit to new partners in a spate of mid-sized collaborations this week. Meanwhile, Applied Therapeutics’ stock tanks 80% after govorestat is denied approval, Intra-Cellular Therapies seeks to expand Caplyta into major depressive disorder and the FDA investigates the safety of bluebird bio’s Skysona.
  5. The collaboration will see COUR and Roche’s Genentech leverage the biotech’s antigen-specific immune tolerance platform to develop and commercialize therapies for an undisclosed autoimmune disease.
WEIGHT LOSS
  1. 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.
  2. IPO
    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.
  3. 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.
  4. The readout comes on the heels of CagriSema’s disappointing Phase III performance, where it missed Novo’s projection of 25% weight reduction.
  5. The San Diego–based company’s molecules avoid the well-trod GLP-1 pathway in favor of an alternate route in the gut.
POLICY
  1. 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.
  2. 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.
  3. 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.”
  4. 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.
  5. 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.
CAREER HUB
BioSpace sat down with Gregg Burkhalter, a LinkedIn Expert, for a quick Q&A about the three most common LinkedIn mistakes and how they can affect your personal brand.
Here are some tips to help you nail virtual interviews and networking events so you can be prepared for BioSpace’s Virtual Talent Connect on March 9.
Find out what it takes to become a successful pharma sales rep and discover helpful career advancement tips for pharmaceutical sales representatives.
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.
HOTBEDS
Where are the Best Places to Work in life sciences? BioSpace’s annual Best Places to Work list demonstrates a company’s desirability in the recruitment marketplace - find out who made the list this year.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Gray Delany’s ouster comes days after Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. controversially axed 22 mRNA vaccine contracts under the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority.
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
  1. Pfizer was studying PF-07820435, an orally available agonist of the STING protein, for solid tumors.
  2. While Houston isn’t yet on the same level as major life sciences hubs, it has plenty to offer and room to grow, according to CNS Pharmaceuticals, RadioMedix and Greater Houston Partnership executives.
  3. Johnson & Johnson and Legend Biotech hope to hit blockbuster status for Carvykti this year.
  4. Vepdegestrant did not improve progression-free survival broadly but saw improvements in one specific patient cohort. Arvinas’ stock took a 43% tumble on the news, and analysts are downcast on the drug’s prospects.
  5. Abecma made $406 million in 2024, of which BMS paid $43 million to 2seventy bio as part of their profit-sharing agreement.
NEUROSCIENCE
  1. Little information has emerged about osavampator, a potentially first-in-class drug, since its promising Phase II performance last spring.
  2. The monthly maintenance regimen, which offers a more convenient frequency than the initially approved treatment schedule for patients with Alzheimer’s, could help with Leqembi’s thus far disappointing uptake and sales.
  3. Vigil Neuroscience reported a strong safety profile and 50% sTREM2 reduction in an early-stage trial for VG-3927, potentially representing a new avenue for treating Alzheimer’s disease.
  4. 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.
  5. The drugs’ active ingredient, glatiramer acetate, has been linked to more than 80 cases of anaphylaxis worldwide since December 1996 and six patient deaths.
CELL AND GENE THERAPY
  1. In this short teaser, BioSpace’s Head of Insights Lori Ellis talks to CBER Director Peter Marks and Tom Whitehead, Co-Founder of the Emily Whitehead Foundation about anticipated discussions at the upcoming GenScript Biotech Forum.
  2. In a deal expected to close in Q1 2025, Roche will gain access to Poseida’s off-the-shelf CAR T candidates.
  3. By mid-2025, the biotech will split into two entities: a new, as-yet-unnamed innovative medicines specialist and a cell therapy company, the latter of which will inherit the Galapagos name.
  4. BioSpace presents 25 noteworthy biopharma startups in ’25; analysts forecast stronger M&A as the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference kicks off next week; GLP-1s continue to expand their reach as Novo, Lilly fight against compounders; and a look ahead to five key FDA decisions in Q1.
  5. From ADCs and radiopharmaceuticals to cell and gene therapies, eager young startups are betting on advances in biopharma’s most competitive therapeutic spaces—and attracting dollars from Big Pharma.