|
|
|
Pfizer to Acquire Trillium Therapeutics Inc.
“Today’s announcement reinforces our commitment to pursue scientific breakthroughs with the addition of potentially best-in-class molecules to our innovative pipeline,” said Andy Schmeltz, Global President & General Manager, Pfizer Oncology. “The proposed acquisition of Trillium builds on our strong track record of leadership in Oncology, enhancing our hematology portfolio as we strive to improve outcomes for people living with blood cancers around the globe. Our deep experience in understanding the science of blood cancers, along with the diverse knowledge base we have developed across our growing hematology portfolio of eight approved and investigational therapies, provide us with a foundation to advance these important potential medicines to patients who need them.”
|
|
Bolt Biotherapeutics and Innovent Biologics Announce Collaboration to Develop Three New Oncology Boltbody™ ISAC Programs
"Innovent is a leader in the development of innovative antibody therapeutics for the treatment of cancer, with advanced research and development teams and an expanding commercial infrastructure in China. We look forward to collaborating with Innovent on the development of novel ISAC anti-cancer therapeutic candidates,” said Randall Schatzman, Ph.D., CEO of Bolt Bio. “Our preclinical and early clinical studies have demonstrated the safety and efficacy of the ISAC approach and the benefits of stimulating both the innate and adaptive arms of the immune system in the fight against cancer.”
|
|
|
Moderna Founder Flagship's next big fundraiser is $440M for Laronde’s programmable 'eRNA'
The biotech investor behind Moderna and Denali, Flagship Pioneering, raises $440M on August 30th, 2021, for even more audacious startup Laronde, to pursue a programmable RNA platform. The long non-coding RNA construct can theoretically offer more durable therapeutic benefits than current or next-gen mRNA technology. Endless RNA™, or eRNA, was invented at Flagship Labs and is a new class of synthetic, closed-loop RNA. Because eRNA has no free ends, it is not recognized by the immune system and is very stable, enabling a long duration of protein expression. In addition, eRNA can serve protein-coding and non-protein-coding functions, and its protein translation capabilities are completely modular - switching an eRNA “protein sequence cassette” enables the expression of a different protein or multiple proteins that can be tuned as needed on an application-by-application basis. The biotech has previously said could roll out 100 marketed drugs or drug programs in 10 years.
Just within three months of its launch in May, Laronde draws much attention to its ambitious project. "Endless RNA represents a whole new approach to making medicines and treating disease," said Diego Miralles, M.D., Chief Executive Officer of Laronde and CEO-Partner at Flagship Pioneering. "Laronde is creating a new class of drugs that can be programmed to persistently express proteins in the body, is redosable, and can be administered through simple delivery mechanisms, resulting in highly tunable protein levels. The therapeutic possibilities enabled by eRNA are vast with the potential to greatly improve global human health. Having assembled such a knowledgeable and committed group of investors gives us the ability to not only advance this powerful technology platform but also build a transformative company to support our bold vision."
Laronde targeting to start supply clinical materials next year and possibly becoming public in near future. To keep up with the exceptional growth, Laronde is hiring new team members to build internal capacity and keeping options open for potential partnerships with Big Pharma.
|
|
Novartis’s Antibody for Obesity gets $70M funding from Atlas + Medicxi
Versanis Bio launched Tuesday, August 31st 2021 with $70 million from Atlas and Medicxi to offer a stable GLP-1 diabetes drug. Their Lead candidate is the Bimagrumab, an in-licensed Novartis drug originally targeting muscle weakness, gearing up for a Phase II study in obesity. The poor safety and efficacy track records of previous anti-obesity drugs and the lack of compelling targets for drug discovery delayed any major progress in treatment strategy. Bimagrumab may end the decades-long failures in the obesity field with some major progress.
Bimagrumab is a highly potent, first-in-class, fully human monoclonal antibody to the activin type II receptors that block the binding of ligands including activin A and myostatin. Bimagrumab has been studied by Novartis in more than a dozen controlled clinical trials that enrolled more than 1,500 people.
Dr. Mark Fishman, Co-Founder of Aditum Bio and member of the Versanis Bio Board of Directors said, “As people age, loss of muscle mass makes it even harder to lose weight. All existing obesity treatments risk further loss of muscle, together with fat. Bimagrumab is a unique therapy that builds muscle while markedly reducing fat, providing a potential breakthrough in the obesity epidemic.” This is an efficacy profile more in line with improving clinical outcomes and lowering risk factors than other drugs that target weight alone. Versanis is working to re-manufacture the drug for the mid-stage test as well as expand the potential patient population beyond just diabetes while also working on developing a more user-friendly subcutaneous application.
|
|
Click here for more on mergers, acquisition and business news
|
|
Disclaimer
The editors take care to share authentic information. In case of any discrepancies please write to medness.newsletter@gmail.com
The sponsors do not have any influence on the nature or kind of the news/analysis reported in MedNess. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Medness. Examples of analysis performed within this article are only examples. They should not be utilized in real-world analytic products as they are based only on very limited and dated open source information. Assumptions made within the analysis are not reflective of the position of anyone volunteering or working for Medness. This blog is strictly for news and information. It does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment nor investment suggestions. This content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or another qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this website.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|