News
A surprising deal from Vertex Pharmaceuticals adds to Big Pharma’s acquisitive streak as Crinetics folds into the cystic fibrosis drugmaker. Meanwhile, IPOs and venture capital raises trend upward, but mostly for derisked companies. Plus, FDA decisions slow only slightly as the hunt for a permanent leader drags on.
FEATURED STORIES
After debuting on the public markets with $256.3 million and raking in an additional $472 million, Veradermics has emerged as one of biotech’s biggest post-IPO standouts. CEO Reid Waldman credits the weight loss craze for establishing consumer-driven channels.
Molecular glue degraders are gaining traction in the clinic as well as funding from Big Pharma, with their potential to treat previously “undruggable” cancers and immunological diseases. Here are five clinical programs worth keeping an eye on.
Last month, the FDA launched TrialBlazer, intended to streamline the IND path and bring early clinical trials and medical innovation home to the U.S. It’s a start, but new agency leadership must see it through.
FROM OUR EDITORS
Read our takes on the biggest stories happening in the industry.
Congressional letters sent to the CEOs of Eli Lilly, Pfizer, Merck, BMS and AbbVie this week voicing concerns about the pharmas’ clinical trials in China highlight an ongoing discrepancy in how government and industry think about the rise of the Asian country’s biotech industry.
THE LATEST
The regulator on Thursday approved Opill, the first oral contraceptive available in the U.S. without a prescription. Perrigo shares rose 6% in response to the news.
Data from the OCARINA II trial shows that a 10-minute subcutaneous injection of Ocrevus achieves similar pharmacokinetics as the typical hours-long intravenous infusion in multiple sclerosis patients.
Following its initial lawsuit last month, Merck has now requested that a federal judge rule on its Inflation Reduction Act case against the Biden administration without a trial.
As the market recovers from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, employers are beginning to regain some of the power they lost in recruiting, forcing candidates to adjust their asks.
The tech giant is investing $50 million in the Utah-based biotech to accelerate development of its AI foundation models for drug discovery.
The FDA recently approved the first cellular therapy for Type 1 diabetes and others may not be far behind. But experts say challenges still exist to the widespread application of these treatments.
For closing its $8 billion acquisition of Grail without regulatory approval, the European Union has slapped Illumina with a record $476 million fine—the maximum sanction allowed under the EU’s rules.
Following the regulator’s request for more data beyond the scope of its Phase III TIDES trial, Takeda decided to voluntarily withdraw the Biologics License Application for its TAK-003 dengue vaccine.
The company’s ruxolitinib cream Opzelura led to higher rates of treatment success in children with atopic dermatitis than with a control cream.
Severe respiratory problems killed seven patients and affected five others, though the company said that most of these were likely unrelated to the drug.