
AbbVie touts new data for Humira successor; Gilead inks discovery deal
→ AbbVie is touting new positive data comparing their aging blockbuster Humira with their hoped-for blockbuster upadacitinib. Over 48 weeks a larger proportion of patients taking the experimental drug experienced clinical remission than in the control arm with Humira. Their drug brought in $20 billion last year, topping the scales in the number 1 slot.
→ Gilead has turned to Vancouver-based AbCellera for its latest discovery deal. AbCellera will use its know-how in “single-cell screening of natural immune sources” to find antibody candidates for Gilead to pursue in the infectious disease field. The deal includes an upfront and milestones.
→ Mereo BioPharma $MREO notes that Celgene has informed the company that they won’t be licensing etigilimab, the anti-TIGIT antibody, one of two product candidates Mereo acquired through its April 2019 merger with OncoMed. The drug is up on the auction block in case you’re interested.