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Tristan Manalac

Tristan Manalac

Contributing Writer | News

Tristan is an independent science writer based in Metro Manila, with more than eight years of experience writing about medicine, biotech and science. Being formally trained in molecular biology, he once dreamed of collecting degrees and starting his own lab. But these days, he finds his greatest joy in a bottle of beer and a beautiful sentence. He can be reached at tristan.manalac@biospace.com, tristan@tristanmanalac.com or on LinkedIn.

Reaching an agreement. Businessmen shake hands and make a deal. vector
Collaboration
Boehringer Ingelheim Bets up to Nearly $1B in ADC Play With AimedBio Deal
2025 has been a busy year for Boehringer Ingelheim, which has so far inked at least five hefty partnerships—including its latest one with South Korea’s AimedBio for an antibody-drug conjugate therapy for cancer.
October 15, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: Bristol Myers Squibb office in California
ALS
BMS Deepens ALS Alliance With Insitro, Puts $2B+ On the Line
Bristol Myers Squibb and insitro first partnered in 2020 to develop induced pluripotent stem cell models of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and frontotemporal dementia. Last December, BMS exercised its option for an ALS target.
October 15, 2025
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1 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Creative poster collage of two business partners having deal financial payment giving money banknote isolated on beige color background.
Mergers & acquisitions
BioCryst Snaps Up Fellow Angiodema Player Astria for $700M
The acquisition will give BioCryst an investigational injectable drug for hereditary angioedema, potentially complementing its FDA-approved oral drug Orladeyo.
October 15, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Washington, D.C., USA- January 13, 2020: FDA Sign at its headquarters in Washington DC. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA or USFDA) is a federal agency of the USA.
Gene therapy
FDA’s Second Platform Designation Goes to Krystal After Sarepta Withdrawal
After the FDA revoked Sarepta Therapeutics’ platform designation in July, Krystal Biotech is “poised to be the first major beneficiary” of this program, according to analysts at William Blair.
October 15, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Robotic claw clutching a money stock illustration
Series B
Kailera Banks Massive $600M Raise for Phase III Obesity Study
Kailera’s lead asset, KAI-9531, elicited an average weight loss of more than 17% in a Phase III study in China. The biotech expects to launch a global late-stage program for the drug this year.
October 14, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Cancer of the brain as tumor growth diagnosis and symptoms of gliomas meningiomas astrocytomas and oligodendrogliomas as diagnosis of symptoms as a paper sculpture.
Alzheimer’s disease
Roche, Lilly Win First FDA Nod for Alzheimer’s Blood Test for Primary Care Use
Elecsys’ approval could help boost the uptake of currently approved Alzheimer’s disease therapies, including Biogen’s Eisai-partnered Leqembi, with CEO Chris Viehbacher recently noting that such biomarker-based tests could “remove some of the bottlenecks” in uptake.
October 14, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Facade of Novo Nordisk's office in Fremont, California
Manufacturing
Violations at Novo’s Indiana Plant ‘Unacceptable,’ FDA Says
Slapped with the most severe post-inspection classification, the state of Novo Nordisk’s Indiana manufacturing site could pose a problem for clients, including Regeneron and Scholar Rock.
October 14, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Deerfield - Circa June 2019: Takeda Pharmaceutical Company. Takeda recently acquired Irish drugmaker Shire I
Artificial intelligence
Takeda Makes $1B+ AI Bet With Nabla to Build Out Early Pipeline
Nabla and Takeda first joined hands in 2022, to push “the boundaries of next-generation biologics discovery,” according to the startup’s CEO Surge Biswas.
October 14, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: Regeneron logo on a light brown building
Gene therapy
Regeneron Readies FDA Run for Hearing Loss Gene Therapy That Could ‘Transform Patients’ Lives’
Regeneron is aiming to file a regulatory application for DB-OTO by the end of the year.
October 13, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
2006 James Gathany Captured by James Gathany, Centers for Disease Control's biomedical photographer, this 2006 image depicted the exterior of the new "Tom Harkin Global Communications Center", otherwise known as Building 19, located on the organization's Roybal Campus in Atlanta, Georgia. The facility houses the CDC's Information Center/Library, auditoria and meeting halls, which are used to accommodate in-house staff meetings, and national/international conferences hosted by the CDC, and the National Center for Health Marketing's, Division of Creative Services, which includes a full service television broadcast facility. The exhibit area currently features the "Global Symphony", the first of several permanently installed exhibitions, and changing exhibitions that focus on a variety of public health topics. The exhibits in the Center are self-guided, and require no advance reservations. Additional curriculum-based exhibits and programming will be added in the future. Tom Harkin Global Communications Center Exhibit Area Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - 1600 Clifton Road, N.E., Atlanta, Georgia 30333 - Hours: Monday – Friday, 9 am – 5 pm, except for federal holidays Admission is free - Government-issue photo ID is required for entry. Please note that CDC is a working federal facility and as such does not provide public tours of its campus and laboratories. - For more information please call 404-639-0830.
Government
Chaos at CDC Continues as Hundreds Fired, Rehired
The last few months have been tumultuous for the CDC, which has seen the ouster of Director Susan Monarez and all 17 members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.
October 13, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Stand out from the crowd and different creative idea concepts , Longest light ladder glowing and aiming high to goal target among other short ladders on green background with shadows . 3D rendering.
Cancer
Moderna Claims Early Victory for Cancer Antigen in Melanoma
Moderna’s mRNA-4359, when used with Keytruda, achieves a 24% overall objective response rate in patients with melanoma, with efficacy increasing to 67% in those positive for PD-L1.
October 13, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Illustration showing hand sweeping out half of employees
Layoffs
Novo Retreats From Cell Therapy, Axes Hundreds as Restructuring Rolls On
Novo had around 250 employees working on cell therapies, all of whom will be laid off, though a spokesperson declined to reveal which offices and locations will be affected.
October 13, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Isometric Business people pushing cubes. Winner easily moving the cube. Winning strategy, efficiency, innovation in business concept
Rare Diseases
Ascendis Readies BioMarin Challenge in Achondroplasia While Others Search for Root Cause
Therapies from industry leaders BioMarin and Ascendis Pharma supply a key hormone that promotes bone growth. In order to move the field forward, challengers are looking to address the underlying cause of the rare, genetic disease.
October 13, 2025
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7 min read
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Tristan Manalac
External view of Bristol Myers Squibb's office California
Mergers & acquisitions
BMS Makes $1.5B Cell Therapy Play With Orbital Takeover
Investor reaction to the deal was muted, with BMO Capital Markets analysts saying they “continue to look for more” from Bristol Myers Squibb before they can “get excited about the near term turnaround story.”
October 10, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Business negotiation and cooperation vector concept. Symbol of a deal, handshake, success. Minimal design eps10 illustration.
Gene therapy
AviadoBio Looks to China for Eye-Based Gene Therapy in $413M UgeneX Pact
AviadoBio will have the option to exclusively license UGX-202, a vision-restoring gene therapy for the rare eye condition retinitis pigmentosa.
October 10, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
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