Bristol Myers Squibb and Johnson & Johnson will continue to test the asset in stroke and atrial fibrillation.
Bayer has let go of about 13,500 employees, including around 5,000 managers, since implementing a new operating model in early 2024. CEO Bill Anderson said in a recent earnings call that he expects a slower rate of headcount reduction moving forward.
A day after Pfizer closed its hotly contested Metsera deal, Lundbeck has made an unsolicited offer to steal Avadel Pharmaceuticals away from Alkermes.
At $9.2 billion, the Cidara acquisition lands among the top 5 largest deals of the year.
Gilead’s investigational drug combo bic/len could help lower the pill burden in patients with virologically suppressed HIV who are on complex treatment regimens, according to BMO Capital Markets.
A BioNTech spokesperson downplayed the news, insisting that the two companies remain “close” and have a “strong collaboration.”
FEATURED STORIES
On the FDA’s docket for the back half of September is Merck’s proposed subcutaneous formulation of its blockbuster cancer drug Keytruda.
As Novo Nordisk cuts 9,000 people from its organization in a restructuring effort, BioSpace looks back on the Danish pharma company’s rise.
Suddenly one obesity asset has come to define Amgen but executives see a fuller portfolio that will bring the big biotech into the future.
Contingent value rights are rising in a down market, helping to close the gap between buyer and seller expectations in biotech transactions.
Executives at Novartis have not been shy about a desire to buy more companies, with cardiovascular a big focus. In total, the Swiss pharma has put $17.23 billion on the line in M&A and licensing deals this year.
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.
LATEST PODCASTS
HHS Secretary RFK Jr. removes the COVID-19 vaccine recommendation for healthy kids and pregnant women—the latest in a string of changes to vaccine policies; judge issues an order to halt HHS’ reorganization and mass layoff plans; Rocket Pharmaceuticals’ pivotal Danon disease trial is on hold after a patient death; and President Trump has named Mehmet Oz to spearhead his Most Favored Nation drug pricing policy.
In this episode presented by IQVIA, BioSpace’s head of insights Lori Ellis discusses the importance of target product profiles, particularly when navigating funding challenges, with Ian Fisher, head of development analytics.
China continues to be a source of innovation as Pfizer strikes biggest pact yet; HHS provides more info on Trump’s Most Favored Nation executive order; FDA Commissioner Marty Makary and CBER director Vinay Prasad reveal new COVID-19 vaccine strategy following Novavax approval; ODAC underway after chaotic planning; more.
Job Trends
Facing financial challenges, IN8bio is looking to preserve cash resources through a pipeline prioritization and layoffs at its New York City and Birmingham, Alabama, sites.
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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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The deal is Lilly’s second obesity tie-up in a week, after sinking up to $870 million into an agreement with Camurus to develop long-acting versions of molecules against GLP-1 and other incretins. -
Looking at licensing deals struck in the past 10 years, Jefferies found that many Big Pharmas do not ultimately follow through with M&A after earning a right of first negotiation. Sanofi, on the other hand, almost always does, as it did with Vigil recently. -
Jefferies has predicted more small tuck-in deals to come, as biotechs struggle to access capital despite key clinical milestones on the horizon. -
A new report from Pitchbook suggests we’re in for a period of more sustainable investing, with VC firms continuing to create and invest in companies, just more carefully. -
The cancer conference overwhelms the senses and shows off the might of the pharmaceutical industry.
WEIGHT LOSS
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Terns, once a rising star in obesity and the MASH space, will refocus on cancer and partner out a handful of obesity assets. -
Maziar Mike Doustdar, who was named as Novo Nordisk’s new CEO last week, spoke on a second quarter earnings call of reallocating resources to the company’s “main core” of metabolic disease. -
George Tidmarsh takes over temporarily at CBER following Vinay Prasad’s abrupt departure; Replimmune trial leaders protest rejection reportedly driven by FDA’s top cancer regulator Richard Pazdur; Merck’s $3 billion savings push claims 6,000 jobs; and Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla addresses President Donald Trump’s new threats around Most Favored Nation drug pricing. -
Earlier this year, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services scrapped a previous proposal, from the Biden administration, to include anti-obesity medications in Medicare Part D coverage. -
Roche obtained CT-173, a PYY mimetic, in its $2.7 billion acquisition of Carmot Therapeutics in December 2023. The company reported the change in its second quarter earnings call.
POLICY
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The move comes after Robert F. Kennedy Jr. received pressure from the Children’s Health Defense, an anti-vaccine non-profit that he co-founded, which last month sued him over his failure to run the “statutorily required Task Force on childhood vaccine,” according to the lawsuit. -
The Department of Health and Human Services’ mRNA pullback only applies to their use in upper respiratory disease, according to Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. -
As Trump has pressured drugmakers to lower the cost of medicines in the U.S., the pharma industry has coalesced behind a message of rebalancing what nations pay to better reflect the innovation and value of drugmaking. -
The HHS secretary recently canceled $500 million worth of BARDA contracts around mRNA vaccine research. But the U.S. government has already spent billions on this work, which has saved millions of lives. -
Citing other priorities—such as the upcoming U.S.-Russia summit—four anonymous sources claim that pharma tariffs could still be weeks away, according to Reuters.
The FTC’s final rule banning most new noncompetes should go into effect later this year, although it faces opposition from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
By understanding the different types of difficult bosses, you can shift your perspective and approach the situation from a less stressful, more effective angle.
Despite the benefits of hiring foreign-born STEM employees, some companies avoid it largely due to unfamiliarity with the visa process, according to two recruitment experts.
Plus, what to expect in a phone screen and how to handle an impending layoff.
Employees worried about layoffs can practice self-care, use employer resources and contact a mental health professional, if needed.
The first Bioversity cohort includes several graduates placed at Massachusetts life sciences companies.
HOTBEDS
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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In advance of this week’s adcomm, the FDA flags ocular toxicities associated with the antibody-drug conjugate, which received accelerated approval in August 2020 but was pulled from the market two years later after a confirmatory trial failed to improve progression-free survival. -
Shanghai-based LaNova Medicines—which has captured the attention of some of the biggest Western pharmas—will be folded into fellow Chinese company Sino Biopharmaceutical in a deal worth up to $951 million. -
Only with the adoption of digital imaging and AI-powered analysis will next-generation precision oncology therapies reach their full potential and ensure no eligible patient is overlooked. -
In this episode presented by Eclipsebio, BioSpace’s head of insights Lori Ellis discusses mRNA and srRNA with Andy Geall of Replicate Bioscience and Alliance for mRNA Medicines, and Pad Chivukula of Arcturus Therapeutics. -
The deal, which involves a $700 million upfront payment, gives AbbVie access to ISB 2001, a clinical-stage first-in-class trispecific antibody currently being tested for certain kinds of multiple myeloma as well as autoimmune indications.
NEUROSCIENCE
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Second-quarter earnings come amid many high-level challenges for the biopharma industry. How will these five closely watched biotechs fare? -
A retrospective cohort study found that semaglutide and tirzepatide are linked with significantly lower risks of dementia and stroke, hinting at potential neuroprotective effects of GLP-1 therapies. -
Sarepta Therapeutics faces serious FDA action after news broke of a third patient death, the FDA gets a new top drug regulator in George Tidmarsh, a handful of new drugs get turned away from the market and pharma companies continue to commit billions to reshoring manufacturing.
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Otsuka and Lundbeck’s data are insufficient to establish significant efficacy of Rexulti plus sertraline in PTSD, according to the FDA’s outside experts. -
The patient, who was being treated with an investigational gene therapy for limb-girdle muscular dystrophy, died of acute liver failure, the same complication responsible for the deaths of two boys taking Sarepta’s Duchenne muscular dystrophy treatment Elevidys.
CELL AND GENE THERAPY
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The high court sides with HHS on HIV PrEP drugs; Health Secretary RFK Jr.’s newly appointed CDC vaccine advisors discuss thimerosal in flu vaccines, skip vote on Moderna’s mRNA-based RSV vaccine; FDA removes CAR T guardrails; AbbVie snaps up Capstan for $1.2B to end first half; and psychedelics take off again with data from Compass and Beckley.
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Cell and gene therapy leaders say the agency’s decision to remove the Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies that had been attached to approved CAR T cancer therapies reflects “thoughtful consideration of real-world evidence” and “regulatory trust.” -
The pivotal trial for Neurogene’s Rett syndrome gene therapy makes use of baseline controls and a rigorous endpoint that could help ensure a broader label for the drug product, if approved, according to analysts. -
The all-cash buyout, which gives AbbVie access to Capstan Therapeutics’ in vivo edited CAR T therapy for B cell–mediated autoimmune diseases, adds to a growing sense of momentum in M&A, according to BMO Capital Markets. -
Changing how biopharmas package their products, how regulators review new drugs and how mutated genes are fixed could make ultrarare disease treatments possible.
