Viking Therapeutics enjoyed a nice share rally on the news that rival Pfizer is discontinuing obesity candidate danuglipron. But the biotech has a long way to go to recover after six straight months of decline.
Pfizer’s discontinuation of danuglipron brings the company down to a single molecule in its obesity pipeline.
Vanda is criticizing the FDA’s restrictions on information companies can provide regarding off-label use of approved medicines.
Future Pak—whose acquisition offer was rejected by Vanda Pharmaceuticals last summer—is offering to buy Theratechnologies for an unsolicited $255 million. The Canadian biotech is under an exclusivity agreement with another yet-to-be-disclosed potential purchaser.
Leerink analysts warned that Kennedy’s remarks to FDA staff would likely be a negative for the biotech industry.
Health and Human Services employees aren’t the only ones out of work. Thousands of private-sector biopharma professionals lost their jobs in the first quarter.
FEATURED STORIES
From revenue to R&D investment, Novo and Lilly and their mega-blockbuster weight loss drugs Zepbound and Wegovy have moved into a new pharma stratosphere, far eclipsing their rivals.
Compounding pharmacies aren’t the only makers of off-brand versions of Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy and Eli Lilly’s Zepbound. The situation is causing the FDA regulatory headaches and, more seriously, posing potential risks to the public.
BioSpace Senior Editor Annalee Armstrong headed to the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference with a months-long story idea brewing. Unfortunately, it was one she’s written before.
FROM BIOSPACE INSIGHTS
In a year when eradicated diseases are on the uptick in America, how will American children survive RFK Jr.’s vaccine scrutiny and inconsistency? Two experts call on pharma and regulatory bodies to rebuild trust.
LATEST PODCASTS
The FDA took center stage last week as it approved the first-ever MASH therapy and considered additional approvals for CAR-T therapies, whose safety the agency has been investigating since last year.
This episode focuses on a healthy discussion regarding the IRA, particularly the unintended consequences to small molecule development within the industry and for patients.
Heather, Greg and Tyler discuss a busy news week including Wegovy’s label expansion, biosimilars, surprise donanemab delays for Eli Lilly and speculate on election impact.
Job Trends
The Phase IIa COURSE trial was a proof-of-concept study in people with moderate to very severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease with a broad range of blood eosinophil counts and irrespective of emphysema, chronic bronchitis or smoking status.
Subscribe to Genepool
Subscribe to BioSpace’s flagship publication including top headlines, special editions and life sciences’ most important breaking news
SPECIAL EDITIONS
A new generation of checkpoint inhibitors is emerging, with some showing more promise than others. From recent TIGIT failures to high-potential targets like VEGF, BioSpace explores what’s on the horizon in immuno-oncology.
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.
DEALS
-
The Federal Trade Commission has asked for an additional 30 days for its review of Novo Nordisk’s $16.5 billion acquisition of Catalent, with the companies expecting to complete the merger by the end of 2024. -
The Swiss drugmaker is paying $1 billion and committing up to $750 million in milestones for Mariana Oncology’s preclinical cancer pipeline and clinical supply capabilities, the companies announced Thursday. -
Ono Pharmaceutical will pay $25.60 per share in an all-cash deal to buy Deciphera Pharmaceuticals for its potential blockbuster oncology drugs and U.S. sales infrastructure, the companies said Monday. -
Citing anonymous sources involved in a Phase III trial, STAT News reported Sunday that MorphoSys’ pelabresib may worsen the risk of progression to acute myeloid leukemia, potentially putting Novartis’ proposed $2.9 billion acquisition at risk. -
Is there a connection between Bristol Myers Squibb’s announcement that it will reduce its headcount by 6% and the company’s recent acquisitions of Karuna, Mirati and RayzeBio?
WEIGHT LOSS
-
Patients taking Novo Nordisk’s blockbuster GLP-1 drug appear to be more likely to harbor thoughts of suicide or self-harm, especially if they are already suffering from anxiety or depressive disorders, according to a new study. -
Experts say Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly’s GLP-1 drugs are unlikely to reach more countries in the near term, but Sanofi’s diabetes treatment has gained ground globally. -
Eli Lilly released topline Phase III data on Tuesday showing that after more than three years of follow-up, pre-diabetic patients treated with tirzepatide were less likely to progress to type 2 diabetes. -
Eli Lilly’s new research and development facility in Boston’s Seaport district will focus on DNA- and RNA-based therapies, as well as other priority areas such as diabetes and obesity. -
Rivus Pharmaceuticals will push HU6 into Phase III development and is looking to engage with regulatory authorities and launch a late-stage study next year in obesity-related heart failure with preserved ejection fraction.
POLICY
-
Women are already underrepresented in clinical trials; the new abortion and IVF laws could make it worse. -
Sen. Bernie Sanders’ aggressive targeting of Danish drugmaker Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic and Wegovy pricing, and not Eli Lilly’s rival drugs, is not fair. -
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. -
In a Tuesday Senate hearing on Novo Nordisk’s drug pricing, CEO Lars Fruergaard Jørgensen said he would be willing to sit down with the three largest pharmacy benefit managers who committed that they would expand coverage of Ozempic and Wegovy if Novo lowers its list prices for the blockbuster drugs. -
Many Big Pharma companies including Pfizer, Merck and BMS make the drugs that some researchers expect to be selected by CMS for next year’s Medicare price negotiations alongside analysts’ top pick, Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic.
Take a look at which states pay the highest and lowest salaries for pharmacists and how that pay compares to the cost of living.
From research to sales and marketing, the pharma industry has a wide range of employment opportunities to accommodate those looking for a chance to work in the field.
A life science degree can provide various academic and professional opportunities to you. Here’s an overview of what you can do with a life science degree.
Understanding the difference between talent acquisition and recruitment is vital not only for your hiring process but for the entire organization.
Discover the most common departments that make up a BioPharma company, learn about the responsibilities of each department and figure out which role is the right fit for you.
Like any field, there are upsides and downsides to working in biotech, and educating yourself can help you make an informed decision if you’re considering a career in this industry.
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
-
The move is a blow to Gilead’s cancer portfolio. Trodelvy, an antibody-drug conjugate granted accelerated approval for bladder cancer in 2021, failed its confirmatory trial earlier this year. -
The regulator has delayed its respective decision dates on whether to grant full approval to Amgen’s Lumakras in metastatic colorectal cancer and Intercept Pharmaceuticals’ Ocaliva for primary biliary cholangitis. -
Opdivo showed a 52% progression-free survival advantage over Adcetris in newly diagnosed Hodgkin’s lymphoma, according to a Phase III study that combined either therapy with doxorubicin, vinblastine and dacarbazine. -
Thursday’s agreement with Orano Med is the second in as many months. Sanofi in September made its first foray into the radioligand space with a $110 million licensing deal with Orano Med and Texas biotech RadioMedix. -
Jazz Pharmaceuticals contends that its alkylating agent Zepzelca significantly improved both overall survival and progression-free survival in patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer, when used as a front-line maintenance therapy with Roche’s Tecentriq.
NEUROSCIENCE
-
The BTK inhibitor showed promise in non-relapsing secondary progressive multiple sclerosis but not relapsing MS. The company said it plans to apply for approval for the former “as soon as possible.”
-
The FDA has three regulatory milestones in the next two weeks, including a decision on a subcutaneous formulation of an effective multiple sclerosis therapy. -
Neurocrine Biosciences’ potential competitor to Bristol Myers Squibb’s KarXT improved symptoms of schizophrenia in a Phase II trial, but only at the low dose tested. -
While approved by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, the Alzheimer’s drug failed to win the backing of the U.K.’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, which said that its benefits were “too small to justify the cost.” -
Psychedelic drug developers are undeterred by the FDA’s Complete Response Letter for the company’s MDMA therapy for PTSD, and experts expect Lykos will ultimately obtain approval.
CELL AND GENE THERAPY
-
The FDA is facing four big target action dates in the final week of June, including one label expansion for a bispecific antibody and another for an investigational gene therapy. -
The plethora of genes involved in obesity presents an intriguing opportunity for both gene silencing and ex vivo gene therapy approaches. -
Results of a large Stanford Medicine study, published Wednesday in The New England Journal of Medicine, finds CAR-T therapies carry a low risk of secondary malignancies not related to the T cells. -
Pfizer’s investigational Duchenne muscular dystrophy gene therapy, fordadistrogene movaparvovec, failed in a late-stage study to significantly improve motor function in patients versus placebo. -
Given their seven-figure price tags, it’s not clear how accessible the would-be cures will be to U.S. patients on public or private insurance.
