Eli Lilly and Company has broadened an existing partnership with Shanghai, China-based Abbisko Therapeutics Co Ltd to collaborate on the discovery and development of new, but still unidentified medicinal products. In a statement released on 23 June, the US company said the upgraded collaboration is valued at about $1.9 billion.
California, US-based Frazier Life Sciences has led a $115 million Series A financing for RQ Biotechnology Ltd, a UK company developing engineered antibody therapies for influenza in order to provide durable protection against serious viral infections. The investor syndicate also includes the venture capital groups Forbion and EQT Life Sciences, alongside founding investor LifeArc Ventures.
AbbVie Inc, which for years marketed Humira, a former blockbuster medicine, is to replenish its portfolio with the acquisition of Apogee Therapeutics, a clinical stage biotech company with candidate products for inflammatory and immunological diseases. Announced on 22 June, the all-cash transaction values Apogee at $135.11 per share or approximately $10.9 billion. This represents a premium of about 49.5% over Apogee’s closing price on Nasdaq the day before the announcement.
Ona Therapeutics SL, a 2019 spin-out from a Spanish research institute and foundation, has raised $86.6 million from venture capitalists to advance a portfolio of early-stage antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) for refractory cancers. The Series B round was co-led by Columbus Venture Partners of Spain and Mérieux Equity Partners of France. They were joined by the existing Spain-based investors Alta Life Sciences and Asabys Partners and Bpifrance, the French public investment bank.
GSK Plc is to acquire the US oncology developer Nuvalent Inc for $10.6 billion, giving it two late-stage products for non-small cell lung cancer to complement its own Phase 3 antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) for a different lung cancer. The deal, which will be financed with new and existing debt facilities, also gives the UK company a third lung cancer drug in Phase 1 and a preclinical portfolio of undisclosed cancer assets.
A biotechnology company in Scotland, backed by Archangel Investors Ltd, made its first public appearance on 8 June as a potential player in the rapidly expanding field of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs). Emerging from stealth mode, Bead BioPharma Ltd disclosed its leadership and technology for the first time. The company’s interim chief executive is Dan Ozanne a serial entrepreneur, and its chair is Mike Sun. Mr Sun formerly worked for Seattle Genetics Inc (now Seagen), a pioneer in ADC field. Bead BioPharma has reportedly raised $1.14 million since its founding in 2023.
Les Laboratoires Servier SAS of France has extended its reach into the rare disease space with the acquisition of the muscular dystrophy business of Edgewise Therapeutics Inc of Boulder Colorado, US. The lead asset is sevasemten, a small molecule drug that is being developed for both Becker muscular dystrophy and Duchene muscular dystrophy. The two disorders are caused by mutations in the DMD gene which encodes for the dystrophin protein.
Eli Lilly and Co has announced plans to invest up to $3.83 billion to buy three companies developing candidate vaccines, effectively charting new territory in the field of infectious disease. Announced on 26 May, the acquisitions include Curevo Inc and Vaccine Company Inc of the US, and LimmaTech Biologics AG of Switzerland.
Isomorphic Labs Ltd, with headquarters in London and global business offices in Lausanne, Switzerland and Cambridge, US, announced funding of $2.1 billion on 12 May, said to be the second largest equity funding round for a company since the start of the biotechnology industry. The Series B round comes only a year after the company raised $600 million for its activities, the company’s first external financing since its launch in 2021.
Bristol Myers Squibb Co has signalled a commitment to artificial intelligence with a strategic agreement with Anthropic PBC to deploy the AI tool Claude across the company’s research, clinical development, manufacturing, commercial and corporate functions. Announced on 20 May, the agreement will make the technology available to more than 30,000 BMS employees. The financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.