Applied Therapeutics has yet to confirm whether the study, posted on Clinicaltrials.gov on Thursday, means it has indeed aligned with the FDA on govorestat’s development.
Veradermics is the second hair regrowth specialist to fundraise this week, after Pelage Pharmaceuticals announced Wednesday it had brought in $120 million for its own therapy.
Due largely to CSL, Merck and Novo Nordisk’s reorganizations that could total about 19,350 people, Q3 cuts rose significantly year over year and quarter over quarter, based on BioSpace tallies.
This webinar, tailored for scientists in academia, biotech, and pharma, explores how intelligent mRNA designs can reduce experimental workloads and improve mRNA performance and efficacy.
Novo Nordisk strikes another deal, this time with Omeros, amid a broader pipeline restructuring that recently claimed its cell therapy work.
After beating Novo Nordisk’s semaglutide last month, Lilly’s much anticipated oral candidate orforglipron has taken down AstraZeneca’s Farxiga in a head-to-head trial.
The company is pursuing a Phase III trial for its topical stem cell-rejuvenating molecule that aims to reactivate hair growth.
FEATURED STORIES
FDA
After the gutting of the Department of Health and Human Services, fears mount about the future direction of the FDA—with regulatory experts predicting delays in drug approvals and greater influence of political appointees.
FDA
Lined up for the FDA in the coming weeks are a cell-based gene therapy for a rare skin disease and two product expansions for Regeneron, one with partner Sanofi.
As the biopharma industry grapples with the uncertain macro environment brought on by the new administration, CEOs, regulators and many others speak out.
Pharma stocks went on a wild ride Wednesday amid whiplashing tariff threats from the U.S. president.
FDA
Experts express concern that last week’s unprecedented FDA layoffs will trigger a little-known mechanism that could result in a “disaster” the Trump administration doesn’t see coming.
As the industry awaits official word from the administration on how the tariffs will hit, analysts go over the possibilities with one certainty: there will be increased costs for medicines.
FROM BIOSPACE INSIGHTS
The agency’s sweeping rollout and staff challenge underscore rising momentum behind agentic AI: advanced, multiagent systems now fueling early pilots in medical writing, patient engagement and regulatory workflows across the industry.
UPCOMING EVENTS
LATEST PODCASTS
Two CRLs from the FDA last week cited concerns with third-party manufacturers, while Indian CDMOs may make a bid for U.S. business if there is a decoupling from Chinese companies under the BIOSECURE Act.
DEI
This week on Denatured, Head of Insights Lori Ellis and guests discuss the implications of not addressing the DE&I data gaps for the future.
This week, we discuss the expanded approval of Sarepta’s Duchenne muscular dystrophy gene therapy Elevidys, Alnylam’s high stakes ATTR-CM win and highlights from ADA.
Job Trends
Amgen will host a webcasted call for the investment community at 1:00 p.m. PT on Monday, May 20, 2024 following the presentation of new data from TEZSPIRE® in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease at the American Thoracic Society International Conference on May 19 and 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
  1. Under a multi-year agreement announced Wednesday, Eli Lilly will leverage Haya Therapeutics’ proprietary RNA-guided genome platform to identify drug targets to address the chronic conditions.
  2. Not all licensing deals are successful. Here, BioSpace examines a few noteworthy assets that Big Pharma returned in the last 12 months.
  3. Belgium-based biopharma UCB is selling its Chinese neurology and allergy business to Singapore asset management firm CBC Group and Abu Dhabi investment company Mubadala.
  4. Venture capital in the sector hit $9.2 billion in the second quarter of 2024, up from $7.4 billion in Q1, while exits fell on a slower M&A cycle and picky IPO market.
  5. M&A activity surges and IPOs return as the biotech industry navigates a changing business landscape marked by strategic consolidation and renewed investor focus on innovation.
WEIGHT LOSS
  1. Months after posting weight loss of 7.5% at 36 days for patients taking MET-097i, Metsera releases mid-stage results of just over 11% average body weight reduction at 12 weeks, with no plateau and a promising safety profile.
  2. 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.
  3. Seeking Alpha analyst Terry Chrisomalis regards Viking Therapeutics as the most attractive M&A candidate in 2025, bolstered by its strong obesity candidate VK2735 and largely de-risked MASH therapy VK2809.
  4. Novo Nordisk’s GLP-1s outsell Eli Lilly’s thanks to its superior marketing. Here’s how.
  5. Eli Lilly’s request to intervene in a suit filed by compounding pharmacies against the FDA reflects a belief the outcome could affect its business and that the FDA does not adequately represent its interests.
POLICY
  1. Such a change would put the U.S. more in line with guidance in other countries and with the World Health Organization, which recommends one dose for children and adolescents only if they have comorbidities.
  2. In December 2024, the FDA affirmed that the shortage of tirzepatide, marketed as Zepbound for weight loss, had ended, formally barring compounders from producing their knockoff versions of the drug.
  3. FDA
    FDA Commissioner Marty Makary last week announced a directive that would limit industry participation in the agency’s advisory committees. But not only do company reps serve only as non-voting members, a 1997 law actually requires industry involvement.
  4. Disruptive conditions are typical in non-Western markets. The U.S. industry, thrown into a period of significant change as the Trump administration overhauls HHS and considers implementing tariffs, could learn a thing or two by looking overseas.
  5. FDA
    In an interview with former Fox News journalist Megyn Kelly, FDA Commissioner Marty Makary introduced a new mechanism-driven pathway that could be leveraged by rare disease therapies while saying that autism could potentially be driven by certain environmental factors.
CAREER HUB
What factors do you think affect burnout? Do you think some industries are more prone to burnout than others?
Workplace issues can arise anytime so it is always better to be prepared to seek out the problems directly in a mannered way to avoid any kind of personal rivalry.
Let’s talk about some common mistakes job candidates make during interviews, so you can steer clear of them for your next interview! Here’s how to nail a job interview.
Here are some effective career development tips that can help you stay ahead and accomplish milestones. Don;t miss any of it if you want a successful career.
Project leadership is not an easy task to handle. You become responsible for every action. Therefore, learn some tips to perform your duty effectively.
Here are tips for introverts who are trying to land their dream job.
According to Bloomberg, the Work Trend Index showed that 41% of the survey’s 30,000 respondents planned on leaving their current job.
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
With positive data from the Phase III HERIZON-GEA-01 study, Zymeworks and Jazz Pharmaceuticals will file an approval application for Ziihera in the first half of 2026 for the treatment of gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma.
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. Following an initial report from Reuters, Merck KGaA confirmed that it is in talks with SpringWorks for a potential acquisition, though details of its offer have yet to be revealed.
  2. Eli Lilly inked two collaborations on Monday, one focused on cardiometabolic diseases with South Korea’s OliX Pharmaceuticals and another for cancer therapies with Australia’s AdvanCell.
  3. Adding a new indication for the CAR T cell therapy could help BMS offset the loss-of-exclusivity headwinds it faces in the coming years.
  4. Kuro Oncology and partner Kyowa Kirin are on track for an NDA submission for ziftomenib in the second quarter of this year.
  5. Despite significant dips in its vaccines sales, the British pharma narrowly beat consensus estimates for Q4 2024 and raised 2031 sales projections to just over $50 billion.
NEUROSCIENCE
  1. Biogen’s proposed acquisition comes after two difficult years of regulatory and clinical challenges, during which shares of Sage Therapeutics have fallen by more than 90%.
  2. Among Intra-Cellular’s neuropsychiatric assets is Caplyta, a pill approved for schizophrenia and bipolar depression and proposed for major depressive disorder.
  3. Emraclidine was the centerpiece of AbbVie’s $8.7 billion acquisition of Cerevel in December 2023 but failed two mid-stage trials. Tavapadon, meanwhile, has been a more rewarding asset for the pharma, clearing three Phase III Parkinson’s studies in 2024.
  4. FDA
    Among the 55 novel drugs that crossed the regulatory finish line last year were notable new mechanisms of action, coming particularly in the oncology and neurosciences spaces.
  5. ALS
    Misses from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis hopefuls Denali Therapeutics and partners AbbVie and Calico Life Sciences mark the latest setbacks for the controversial platform trial, the results from which have largely mirrored the dismal success rate in ALS overall.
CELL AND GENE THERAPY
  1. 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.
  2. The FDA has followed in the footsteps of its European counterparts and granted accelerated approval to PTC Therapeutics’ gene therapy Kebilidi for AADC deficiency. It is the first approved gene therapy to be delivered directly to the brain.
  3. BioSpace takes a look at the headlines across a heavy earnings week for biotechs, checking in on Allogene, Rapport and more.
  4. Analysts did not seem very concerned by the treatment-related serious adverse event, noting that NGN-401 was well-tolerated at a lower dose and showed promising efficacy outcomes.
  5. The investigational therapy, vesleteplirsen, had been positioned as an updated version of Sarepta’s original exon 51-skipping Duchenne muscular dystrophy drug Exondys 51.