After years of controversy and allegations of doctored data, Cassava is moving on from Alzheimer’s.
Jefferies analysts predict Annexon’s tanruprubart could be approved by mid-2026.
Leerink analysts noted, however, that Uplizna’s slow onset of therapeutic efficacy compares unfavorably to would-be competitors in generalized myasthenia gravis.
The Fourth Circuit’s ruling follows a Supreme Court verdict that also allowed the Trump administration to move forward with its mass layoffs at federal agencies.
Known as the home of big-name companies including Johnson & Johnson, New Jersey has become a destination for more and more small and midsize life sciences businesses. Choose New Jersey, Grace Therapeutics and Onyx Equities executives discuss the state’s life sciences scene.
Analysts suggested that the tariffs will have little effect on reshoring manufacturing and will likely decrease patient drug access and increase costs.
The National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology recommends at least a $15 billion investment into biotech over the next five years.
FEATURED STORIES
Continuing our SCOPE 2025 coverage, Rohit Nambisan, CEO at Lokavant addresses not only current challenges, but the life sciences industry’s responsibility to maintain scientific integrity.
After the rejection of Lykos Therapeutics’ MDMA-based PTSD treatment tempered excitement for psychedelic therapeutics, a recent approval and positive data are generating new momentum, which experts expect to continue throughout 2025 and 2026.
Biopharma doubles down on immunology and inflammation as companies target new pathways and seek to improve on current options in inflammatory bowel disease, atopic dermatitis, myasthenia gravis and more.
LATEST PODCASTS
FDA
J&J and BMS’ challenges to Medicare drug price negotiations shut down in federal court less than a week after BMS announced it was laying off more than 2,000 employees.
DEI
In the second episode of our series on women’s health, we discuss what may happen to future generations if women, the custodians of generational health, are not comfortable sharing complete medical histories.
While Sanofi restructures and parts with employees from U.S. and Belgian sites, a new company in the GLP-1 space emerges from stealth.
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SPECIAL EDITIONS
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.
Year-over-year BioSpace data show biopharma professionals faced increased competition for fewer employment opportunities during the first quarter of 2025.
In this deep dive, BioSpace explores the diverse therapeutic modalities now in development, as well as the opportunities and battles for market dominance in this emerging space.
DEALS
  1. In an SEC filing on Friday, Alumis said it aims to start late-stage trials of a TYK2 inhibitor in plaque psoriasis this year and is seeking public funding for the studies.
  2. After rejecting a previous takeover offer from Future Pak, Vanda Pharmaceuticals is now fielding another acquisition proposal from Cycle Pharmaceuticals, which values the biotech at $8 per share.
  3. Telix Pharmaceuticals is looking to cash in on radiopharmaceuticals, which have emerged as one of the hottest spaces in oncology, with an initial public offering to help support its pipeline of targeted radiation products.
  4. Illumina on Monday announced that its board of directors is spinning off Grail and has applied to list the cancer diagnostics company on the Nasdaq.
  5. Analysts predict a booming year for mergers and acquisitions, powered by obesity drug sales and pressure from upcoming patent expirations.
WEIGHT LOSS
  1. With Thursday’s positive opinion from the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use, the matter now heads to the European Commission which will have the final say on whether Wegovy’s label will be updated.
  2. Ahead of a Senate health committee hearing next week with Novo Nordisk CEO Lars Jørgensen, Sen. Bernie Sanders claims he has secured assurances from generics developers that they will charge a significantly lower monthly price than the $969 Americans currently pay for the Danish drugmaker’s diabetes blockbuster.
  3. Infusions of Vertex and CRISPR Therapeutics’ Casgevy and bluebird bio’s Lyfgenia have begun; Moderna targets 10 approvals through 2027; more oral obesity drug data; the latest from ESMO and more.
  4. The release of early-stage data on three oral weight loss drug candidates hints at which companies have the strongest hand, but the comparisons are rife with confounding variables, leaving analysts unsure about where to place their bets.
  5. In metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease, a retrospective analysis shows that patients on GLP-1 receptor agonists are 14% less likely to progress to cirrhosis.
POLICY
  1. The U.S. Department of Justice alleged that Teva violated the Anti-Kickback Statute and the False Claims Act. The payment is in addition to the criminal penalty paid by Teva USA under its deferred prosecution agreement.
  2. WuXi AppTec looks to unload its Philadelphia manufacturing sites and WuXi Biologics slows its rapid expansion in the U.S. as the companies await the Senate’s review of the BIOSECURE Act that threatens to cut them off from U.S. biopharma.
  3. Alongside the settlement, Novo and Viatris have asked the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to terminate its review of the validity of the Danish drugmaker’s semaglutide patents.
  4. IRA
    The adjusted guidelines will provide drugmakers with more opportunities to engage with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services regarding the initial maximum fair price offers, according to the agency.
  5. Faced with potential monetary fines, Johnson & Johnson said Monday it is abandoning a proposed 340B rebate plan for hospitals involving two of its blockbuster drugs, Stelara and Xarelto.
CAREER HUB
Are you feeling that your productivity is decreasing at work? Here are some beneficial time management strategies to be mindful of to get work done efficiently.
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.
There are many reasons why you might want to negotiate your stock options. Read on to discover what stock options are and how to negotiate your stock options with your employer.
BioSpace sat down with Maritza Gamboa, the associate director of talent acquisition at Intellia Therapeutics, to find out how to identify and avoid scam job offers.
BioSpace sat down with Axogen’s Chief Human Resources Officer Maria Martinez to understand why now is the best time to make the switch to pharma and biotech.
If you’re ready to start earning the salary you deserve, here are some tips to help you recognize your worth and negotiate pay as a remote employee.
BioSpace spoke with industry experts to find out the differences between working in pharma and biotech and how to know if a pharma company is right for you.
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
Many companies have foreshadowed deals to come during earnings calls in recent days. The return of M&A would be a welcome sign for the biopharma ecosystem, which has been battered by macro headwinds such as tariffs and the possibility of new drug pricing pressures.
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. Despite recent enthusiasm around the PD-1/VEGF space, BMO Capital Markets analyst Evan Seigerman noted that Merck’s pact with LaNova Medicines is more “conservativism” on the pharma’s part than confirmatory of recent data in the drug class.
  2. GSK is carving out a niche for Blenrep in the second-line multiple myeloma setting, for which it projects multi-blockbuster potential for the antibody-drug conjugate.
  3. Following strong treatment response data for Adaptimmune’s lete-cel, the biotech is planning to initiate a rolling BLA submission to the FDA, set to start by the end of 2025.
  4. The acquisition will give BioNTech full ownership of an investigational bispecific antibody targeting the PD-L1/VEGF-A pathways, a hot area in oncology that could potentially replace standard checkpoint inhibitors for cancer treatment.
  5. With the Phase III failure, Syros will discontinue the study of tamibarotene for myelodysplastic syndrome and will default on its loan from Oxford Finance LLC.
NEUROSCIENCE
  1. Despite the settlement, the Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday sued Cassava Sciences in the Western District Court of Texas, claiming that the company misled investors regarding the Phase IIb performance of its Alzheimer’s disease drug candidate.
  2. New research has found that MS patients treated with anti-CD20 antibodies, such as Roche’s Ocrevus, do not experience significantly slower progression of disability.
  3. New revelations from the showdown between Novo Nordisk’s CEO and Bernie Sanders’ Senate health committee Tuesday; PhRMA’s legal victory in IRA case; the federal interest rate cut and anticipated approval for schizophrenia.
  4. The FDA previously refused to review Biohaven’s candidate in the indication due to a failed late-stage trial. However, the company is now planning to file an NDA in the fourth quarter of 2024.
  5. As the FDA prepares to render a verdict on BMS’ closely watched schizophrenia drug, BioSpace takes a closer look at the late-stage pipeline for this neuropsychiatric disorder.
CELL AND GENE THERAPY
  1. ALS
    After a long and challenging journey for its stem cell therapy NurOwn, BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics has aligned with the FDA on the parameters of a Phase IIIb ALS trial that is expected to begin by the end of 2024.
  2. Cell therapy biotech Artiva Biotherapeutics plans to use the funds raised to support the development of its AlloNK therapy for systemic lupus erythematosus.
  3. Mid-stage data for 4D Molecular Therapeutics’ wet AMD drug 4D-150 show improvements in visual acuity, reduced injection rate and encouraging safety data.

  4. As the yearslong litigation over ownership of CRISPR gene editing continues, investors have forged ahead with funding the technology’s development by biopharma.
  5. To improve its reviewers’ understanding of cell and gene therapy manufacturing, the agency has launched a program that will involve a tour of manufacturing facilities and daily workshops for its staffers.