All articles tagged with #biotech
After Novo Nordisk shuttered its cell-therapy unit, Cellular Intelligence hired neurologist Nuno Mendonça to perform due diligence on Novo’s Parkinson’s stem-cell program. The data trail—drawn from Lund University research and Nature Medicine–published work on dopamine-neuron therapies—appears to have driven the AI-driven assessment that led the firm to pursue Novo’s asset.
As Chinese biotech competition intensifies, US drugmakers are increasingly secretive and cautious about intellectual property and development strategies, fueling a shift toward more guarded operations in areas like AI-driven drug discovery and next-gen therapies.
AstraZeneca and Ionis reported that their heart-disease drug Wainua failed to outperform placebo in a pivotal trial for ATTR-CM (transthyretin-mediated amyloid cardiomyopathy), not reducing cardiovascular death or clinical events, and the news pushed both companies' shares down in premarket trading.
MeiraGTx secured up to $400 million from Oberland Capital to push its late-stage gene therapies toward launch, anchored by an initial $125 million loan with low single-digit royalties and a $10 million equity stake. The deal also includes up to $50 million in milestones for FDA approvals (one per program for bota-vec and AAV2-hAQP1), up to $100 million more via mutual commitments, and a right for Oberland to buy an additional $15 million in equity. In addition, $50 million could follow a positive AQUAx2 phase 2 readout for dry mouth. Beyond bota-vec and AAV2-hAQP1, MeiraGTx is advancing AAV-GAD for Parkinson’s, with a 2029 follow-up study, and noted a 2025 Lilly license for AAV-AIPL1, highlighting a pipeline with several near-term regulatory milestones.
A British startup launched a grapefruit-sized autonomous lab into orbit to study live cells and disordered aging-related proteins in microgravity, collecting data to train AI models that could improve predictions of protein behavior for drug research; the mission is a test of the system and data capture, with no plan to return the lab to Earth.
Vertex will spend $10 billion to acquire Crinetics Pharmaceuticals, its largest-ever deal, expanding Vertex's portfolio in rare endocrine disorder therapies and signaling a major strategic move in biotech mergers and acquisitions.
The FDA approved Vera Therapeutics' drug Trutakna to treat IgA nephropathy, a chronic autoimmune kidney disease that can progress to kidney failure, marking a milestone for Vera and advancing biotech options for patients.
Scribe Therapeutics filed for a Nasdaq IPO to gauge investor appetite for early-stage biotech and gene-editing startups, backed by major investors including RA Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, OrbiMed and Avoro Capital.
Revolution Medicines revealed early data for a two-KRAS inhibitor drug combination, including Daraxonrasib, and plans a Phase 3 trial, signaling potential progress in targeting KRAS-driven cancers.
Anthropic unveiled Claude Science, a version of its Claude large language model tuned for scientific laboratories and pharmaceutical research operations, with the aim of fundamentally reshaping life-sciences workflows and accelerating drug development, echoing Claude Code’s reported impact on software engineering.
Moderna co-founder Kenneth Chien remains bullish on mRNA’s potential, predicting an mRNA cancer vaccine could reshape oncology and lift the entire field, even as past Moderna–AstraZeneca deals failed to deliver the planned drugs.
Edison Scientific, spun off from FutureHouse with roughly $70 million in funding, is being tapped by the Metsera-backed team and Population Health Partners to scale the creation of new biotech companies using AI agents capable of autonomous reasoning, reflecting pharma’s growing interest in AI-driven drug discovery.
Nature Medicine has retracted a high-profile February paper detailing the results of a China-based trial on the timing of cancer therapy, a move that could energize anti-China policymakers and influence debates around immunotherapy timing.
Sangamo Therapeutics filed for voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy and cut about 40% of its staff as Lilly and Astellas act as stalking horse bidders to acquire key asset platforms, including AAV capsid delivery and gene-editing tools. Lilly is also eyeing the prion therapy ST-506, while Astellas pursues Fabry disease gene therapy ST-920; Giroctocogene fitelparvovec may be sold separately. The restructuring aims to maximize value amid cash constraints and creditor claims.
Lilly has granted compassionate-use access to its obesity drug candidate retatrutide for a single patient, according to STAT’s exclusive reporting; The Readout also covers Pfizer’s lung-cancer trial results and other biotech news.