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After its next-generation obesity asset CagriSema lost a head-to-head matchup with Eli Lilly’s Zepbound, Novo Nordisk is throwing more money into the obesity space, striking a deal with Vivtex to advance novel weight loss pills.
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IPO
LB Pharma needed $350 million to advance a promising schizophrenia candidate at a time when the biotech markets were locked up tight. Fortunately, it wasn’t CEO Heather Turner’s first rodeo.
Rare disease drug developers struggle to survive in a biopharma investment market that prioritizes large patient populations. Initiatives like the Orphan Therapeutics Accelerator are attempting to solve what CEO Craig Martin says is not a science problem, but a math problem.
Eli Lilly’s win in a head-to-head trial drove Novo Nordisk’s market cap to pre-Wegovy levels not long after the victor became the first pharma company to top a $1 trillion valuation. It seems one company can do no right, while the other can do no wrong.
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Read our takes on the biggest stories happening in the industry.
FDA
Following the FDA’s refusal to review Moderna’s investigational mRNA flu vaccine last week, Commissioner Marty Makary faced questions from the U.S. president about the agency’s handling of vaccines. It’s a clear signal that the tension long brewing at the drug regulator has now gone all the way to the top.
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Following clearer overall survival data from the PSMAfore trial, Novartis on Thursday affirmed plans to file for a prostate cancer label expansion for its targeted radioligand therapy Pluvicto later this year.
Due to slow uptake of its Humira biosimilar Cyltezo in the U.S., Boehringer Ingelheim is laying off an undisclosed number of its sales employees, Reuters reported on Thursday.
FDA
Basilea Pharmaceutica received FDA approval for its antibiotic Zevtera in three indications Wednesday, finally getting the drug across the finish line a decade and a half after the agency rejected an earlier submission.
Amid a flurry of deals in the antibody-drug conjugate space, Merck KGaA is getting in on the action with a partnership with Caris Life Sciences to accelerate the discovery and development of first-in-class ADCs for oncology.
Following disappointing late-stage data, Amylyx on Thursday said it is withdrawing the company’s amyotrophic lateral sclerosis drug Relyvrio from the U.S. and Canadian markets and cutting its workforce by approximately 70%.
Three Biopharma firms disclosed concerns about how emerging geopolitical tensions between the U.S. and China might impact their business with the contract manufacturer.
A Delaware judge on Wednesday agreed with Roivant subsidiary Arbutus and Genevant’s interpretation of specific patent claims regarding the lipid nanoparticle delivery system used by Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine.
Sanofi has in principle reached a settlement related to its discontinued heartburn drug Zantac, though the French pharma did not disclose the financial terms of the deal.
Congress and the Biden administration have set their sights on lowering prescription drug costs.
FDA
Fierce competition. Thin pipelines. Patent cliffs. The stakes are sky-high for pharmaceutical companies and investors alike.