February 2, 2023 07:03 AM ESTUpdated 10:24 AM

#JPM23: Is 2023 going to be a better year for biotech dealmaking?

John Carroll

Editor & Founder

Last year offered a disappointing stretch for biotech, with fewer deals than expected and lots more headwinds. Endpoints News Editor-in-Chief John Carroll sat down with some of the industry’s top dealmakers to explore what happened, and what’s ahead in 2023. This transcript has been edited for brevity and clarity.

John Carroll:

I’d say this is one of the most important conversations that’s going on right now. Particularly, of course, at JP Morgan, because so many people have come here, specifically to get involved in a deal, to see what they can do about a deal, to see what the deal potential is, where things are headed, what the trends are. Everything that we’re going to be covering here in the next hour.

Premium subscription required

Unlock this article along with other benefits by subscribing to one of our paid plans.

Forge Biologics’ cGMP Compliant and Commercially Viable Bespoke Affinity Chromatography Platform

Victoria Maharaj

M.S.,Technical Sales & Scientific Advisory, Forge Biologics

Forge Biologics has developed a bespoke affinity chromatography platform approach that factors in unique vector combinations to streamline development timelines and assist our clients in efficiently entering the clinic. By leveraging our experience with natural and novel serotypes and transgene conformations, we are able to accelerate affinity chromatography development by nearly 3-fold. Many downstream purification models are serotype-dependent, demanding unique and time-consuming development strategies for each AAV gene therapy product1. With the increasing demand to propel AAV gene therapies to market, platform purification methods that support commercial-scale manufacturing of high-quality vectors with excellent safety and efficacy profiles are essential.

March 30, 2023 02:31 PM EDT

Pharma

FDA+

Marketing

Lupus drug development market heating up, while FDA links with advocacy group to further accelerate research

Beth Snyder Bulik

Senior Editor

The long-underserved systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) market is suddenly buzzing with treatment possibilities. Less than two years after AstraZeneca’s approval for Saphnelo — the first new SLE drug in a decade and joining just one other approved in GSK’s Benlysta – the pipeline of potential drugs numbers in the dozens.

Although most are very early stage — Spherix Global Insights estimates five in Phase II/III — the pharma R&D enthusiasm is catching on among doctors, patients and advocacy groups. On Wednesday, the Lupus Research Alliance and the FDA formed a novel private-public partnership called Lupus Accelerating Breakthroughs Consortium (Lupus ABC) to help advance lupus clinical trial success.

Keep reading Endpoints with a free subscription

Unlock this story instantly and join 163,900+ biopharma pros reading Endpoints daily — and it's free.

March 30, 2023 02:28 PM EDT

Law

Massachusetts judge dismisses lawsuit against Biogen over failed launch of Alzheimer's drug Aduhelm

Katherine Lewin

News Reporter

A Massachusetts federal judge on Wednesday dismissed a class action lawsuit filed by investors against Biogen and several of its current and former executives over the company’s failed Alzheimer’s drug, Aduhelm (aducanumab).

The investors argued that Biogen’s contact with the FDA was unlawful and that the company made 25 false and misleading statements, including statements about the rollout and price of the drug.

ENDPOINTS CAREERS

Site Head - Houston, Texas - Cell & Gene

Lonza

Houston, TX, USA

view job offer post your job now

March 30, 2023 02:26 PM EDT

R&D

After safety review, EMA mirrors FDA with updated recommendations for JAK inhibitors

Katherine Lewin

News Reporter

The EMA released updated recommendations today for the use of JAK inhibitors (JAKi) after reviewing data from several clinical trials that showed increased incidents of issues in certain patients who have rheumatoid arthritis and other risk factors.

The EMA noted malignancy, major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE), serious infections, venous thromboembolism (VTE) and mortality in some patients.

Stéphane Bancel, Moderna CEO (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

March 30, 2023 11:57 AM EDT

Deals

Pharma

Manufacturing

Moderna solidifies deal with Kenya to build mRNA manufacturing facility

Tyler Patchen

News Reporter

The mRNA player Moderna is further cementing its presence on the African continent.

Moderna announced on Thursday that it has finalized an agreement with Kenya’s government to partner up and bring an mRNA manufacturing facility to the east African nation. The new facility aims to manufacture up to 500 million doses of vaccines annually. Moderna also said the new facility will have the ability to spike its production capabilities to respond to public health emergencies on the continent or globally.

Feng Zhang (Susan Walsh/AP Images)

March 29, 2023 11:28 AM EDT

R&D

In search of new way to deliver gene editors, CRISPR pioneer turns to molecular syringes

Lei Lei Wu

News Reporter

Bug bacteria are ruthless.

Some soil bacteria have evolved tiny, but deadly injection systems that attach to insect cells, perforate them and release toxins inside — killing a bug in just a few days’ time. Scientists, on the other hand, want to leverage that system to deliver medicines.

In a paper published Wednesday in Nature, MIT CRISPR researcher Feng Zhang and his lab describe how they engineered these syringes made by bacteria to deliver potential therapies like toxins that kill cancer cells and gene editors. With the help of an AI program, they developed syringes that can load proteins of their choice and selectively target human cells.

Keep reading Endpoints with a free subscription

Unlock this story instantly and join 163,900+ biopharma pros reading Endpoints daily — and it's free.

Luke Miels, GSK chief commercial officer

March 30, 2023 07:34 AM EDTUpdated 09:11 AM

Deals

Pharma

GSK picks up Scynexis' FDA-approved antifungal drug for $90M upfront