Replicate Bioscience has entered into a multi-year research collaboration with Novo Nordisk A/S to develop self-replicating RNA (srRNA) therapies for obesity, type 2 diabetes and other cardiometabolic diseases. The deal combines Novo Nordisk’s expertise in metabolic disorders with Replicate’s proprietary srRNA platform, designed to enable scalable and durable protein expression.
Britain’s plans for expanding its position as a global centre for biopharmaceutical research and development hit a barrier on 10 September when Merck & Co Inc announced a decision to stop development of a £1 billion research centre in London, and vacate two other laboratories in the city.
UK-based CHARM Therapeutics Ltd has raised $80 million from an international investor syndicate to support a preclinical product, based on a novel algorithm, for patients with acute myeloid leukaemia (AML). AML accounts for about one out of three leukaemias in adults in the US, but for those over the age of 65 years, the incidence is much higher. Announced on 2 September, the financing was co-led by new investors New Enterprise Associates and SR One with participation from existing groups including NVentures, the investment arm of the chipmaker Nvidia Corp.
Scientists across 25 countries representing 51 different nationalities have been awarded €761 million from the European Union to support original research in the physical and life sciences, social sciences and the humanities. The awards were announced on 4 September by the European Research Council, a public body established by the European Commission in 2007. The programme falls under Horizon Europe, the European Union’s seven-year programme for research and development.
Cyted Health, a UK diagnostics company with a focus on gastrointestinal health, has raised $44 million to expand its business in the US, taking advantage of a Food and Drug Administration approval of its lead product and experience using the device for patients in the UK. Announced on 2 September, the Series B funding is being led by the private equity group EQT Life Sciences and co-led by Advent Life Sciences and the British Business Bank. It follows FDA approval of the product EndoSign in 2024.
Novartis Pharma AG has entered into an option and collaboration agreement with BioArctic AB to develop an antibody treatment for a neurodegenerative disorder that takes advantage of the Swedish company’s technology for helping drugs cross the blood-brain barrier. The target for the prospective treatment has not been disclosed. But the transporter technology is public and is being used by BioArctic in multiple projects. It is based on the transferrin receptor, a protein responsible for the delivery of iron to cells. This can also enable antibody drugs to cross the barrier.
Anocca AB has raised SEK 440 million ($46 million) from Mellby Gård, a Swedish investment group, and existing shareholders to conduct a programme of trials of T cell immunotherapies for pancreatic cancer. The trials will investigate multiple approaches for targeting mutations in the KRAS gene which is involved in the regulation of cell division. KRAS mutations are drivers of pancreatic cancer, as well as lung and colorectal cancers.
The private equity and investment groups Nordic Capital and Permira, are poised to take over Bavarian Nordic A/S of Denmark in order to help the company scale up its vaccine work globally. An offer of DKK 19 billion ($2.95 billion) was published on 28 July and accepted by the company’s management subject to the approval of shareholders. Bavarian Nordic is listed on Nasdaq Copenhagen and also has an American Depository Share (ADS) programme allowing US investors to trade the shares locally.
Merck & Co Inc’s $10 billion acquisition of Verona Pharma Plc is set to close in the 2025 fourth quarter marking one of the larger transactions in the biopharma space in recent times. The deal will give Merck a recently approved asset for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) that is on a promising trajectory. When Merck announced its offer on 9 July, some share analysts were already predicting blockbuster status for the asset, Ohtuvayre (ensifentrine), which was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration on 26 June 2024.
US-based MapLight Therapeutics Inc has raised $372.5 million in a Series D financing to advance its portfolio of drugs for central nervous system disorders. Announced on 28 July, the deal was co-led by Forbion and Life Sciences at Goldman Sachs Alternatives and stands out as one of the larger private financings of the year. It will support ongoing Phase 2 clinical trials in schizophrenia and Alzheimer’s disease psychosis, a condition that is estimated to affect 40% of people with the disease.