News
M&A and IPOs got off to a quick start in 2025 only to crash into a wall of policy challenges. Upfront payment for licensing transactions, however, grew as pharmas looked for less-risky deals.
FEATURED STORIES
In a tough fundraising space, cell therapy biotechs pursuing autoimmune indications review staffing to ensure the right expertise is in place to tackle the new disease area.
A suit against Novartis and Vitaris by Henrietta Lacks’ estate hinges on questions about the morality and legality of using the line for biopharmaceutical research.
Multiple players are exploring whether modalities designed to combat B cell malignancies can be repurposed against lupus, myasthenia gravis and other conditions traced to misdirected immune response.
Job Trends
Merck, known as MSD outside of the United States and Canada, announced that Robert M. Davis, chairman and chief executive officer, and Dr. Dean Y. Li, executive vice president and president, Merck Research Laboratories, are scheduled to participate in a fireside chat at the 42nd Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference on Monday, Jan. 8, 2024, at 4:30 p.m. PST / 7:30 p.m. EST.
FROM OUR EDITORS
Read our takes on the biggest stories happening in the industry.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.—along with FDA Commissioner Marty Makary and CBER Director Vinay Prasad—argued against vaccine mandates, partly because they limited medical choice. This week, the FDA under their leadership approved updated COVID-19 vaccines with restrictions that do the same.
THE LATEST
After a patient taking the Duchenne muscular dystrophy gene therapy Elevydis died of liver injury, Sarepta will update the label to reflect the safety signal.
Mirador debuted last year with a massive $400 million and the goal of developing game-changing therapies for inflammatory and fibrotic diseases. The company aims to enter the clinic this year.
In the third podcast in a special series focused on BioSpace’s NextGen Class of 2025, Senior Editor Annalee Armstrong speaks with Mark McKenna, CEO of Mirador Therapeutics.
Under the terms of the agreement, OPKO will accept 60% of the development costs, while Entera will shoulder 40%.
Monday was a busy day for AstraZeneca, which also paid up to $1 billion to acquire Belgian biotech EsoBiotec and its cell therapy pipeline and technology.
The gene therapy world is in turmoil, but Arbor, armed with more than $1 billion in partnerships and raises, is going forward.
Japan-based Taiho Pharmaceutical has worked with Araris Biotech since 2023 developing antibody-drug conjugates for the oncology space.
AstraZeneca has recently been investing heavily in the cell therapy space, including two acquisitions for TeneoTwo and Gracell Biotechnologies.
The appeals court for the Federal Circuit upheld a lower court’s ruling, finding that Regeneron has not sufficiently established that Amgen’s biosimilar Pavblu violates key patents of Eylea.
The company unveiled plans last week to test its GLP-1/glucagon dual receptor agonist in alcohol use disorder and alcohol-related liver disease.