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A year of significant policy change at the FDA brought momentum and scrutiny into the new year. As 2026 gets underway, biopharma companies are responding to sweeping vaccine changes while concerns surface about the politicization of the agency.
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After Replimune’s advanced melanoma drug was rejected for a second time, CEO Sushil Patel slammed the FDA for failing to exercise regulatory flexibility, while other experts bemoaned the agency’s lack of consistency. With new safety guidelines for gene editing therapies, the FDA has taken a first step toward fixing both problems.
The Merck update, which will shed light on a $588 million bet to succeed Keytruda, is part of a roster of presentations that could shape the future of ADCs, protein degraders and KRAS-targeted therapies.
Gilead, AstraZeneca and Vertex have acquired more than just a therapeutic asset in recent deals. BioSpace takes a look at five recent transactions where the staff was the real centerpiece.
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Novo Nordisk’s oral Wegovy has a few months’ head start on Eli Lilly’s newly approved pill. While the Indianapolis pharma has come from behind the Danish rival in the weight loss space before, last time it clearly had the better drug.
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The multivalent candidate, being developed by Pfizer and French partner Valneva under a 2020 pact, generated higher than 73% efficacy against the tick-borne disease in a Phase 3 trial—but failed to hit a predetermined confidence interval.
Kali Therapeutics’ T cell engager, for which Sanofi is initially paying $180 million, could potentially be developed for a range of B cell–driven autoimmune disorders.
The FDA detected 14 cases of vitamin B6 deficiency–linked seizures and two deaths in patients with Parkinson’s disease taking carbidopa/levodopa drugs. Both AbbVie and Novartis market levodopa-based products.
Earendil Labs’ AI-centered platform has produced more than 40 programs, including anti-inflammatory assets that have attracted a pair of partnership agreements with Sanofi.
Oryon Cell Therapies’ lead cell therapy is an autologous treatment designed to replace dopaminergic neurons in patients with Parkinson’s disease. Phase 1b/2a data showed that the asset can improve motor function and mobility in patients.
Longevity is a long-standing buzzword in life sciences, but it now has staying power. The smart trajectory is to stop chasing aging as an abstract target and concentrate on specific mechanisms that can clearly target specific, age-related diseases, according to two investors in a discussion with BioSpace.
Eli Lilly and Regeneron are leading the push to treat congenital deafness with gene therapies, seeking a piece of a potential billion-dollar market and banking on local delivery and the small amount of drug required to overcome key safety concerns.
The FDA’s Commissioner’s National Priority Voucher program, unveiled in June 2025, is “shrouded in secrecy,” Democratic representative Jake Auchincloss said last month, as regulatory and biopharma leaders try to decode the criteria for investigational or approved drugs to receive a voucher.
A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services refuted the claim, made Thursday on social media by ACIP Vice Chair Robert Malone, calling it “baseless speculation.”
Biotech, in particular companies that are pre-commercial with a longer-duration risk profile, could be great investments as Operation Epic Fury rolls on, according to a Truist Securities analysis.