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But we are proud to say that Georg Kääb contributed 94 entries already.
The Mainz-based biotech company BioNTech is facing a historic leadership change as the minds behind the COVID-19 vaccine prepare for a fresh start. Uğur Şahin and Özlem Türeci plan to focus entirely on mRNA platform technology and will launch a spin-off at the end of the year.
Setback after earlier optimism: the Roche drug giredestrant has delivered mixed clinical data. Several clinical trials had suggested the drug could play an important role in the treatment of hormone-dependent breast tumours and potentially become a blockbuster for the company. Now, however, a key Phase III study has failed to meet its primary endpoint, even as regulatory submissions are already under way.
The Zurich-based developer is increasingly focusing its pipeline on radiopharmaceutical cancer therapies. A recent development agreement with isotope specialist Eckert & Ziegler marks another step in that direction. The collaboration aims to develop and manufacture so-called Radio-DARPin therapeutics, in which targeted protein molecules deliver radioactive isotopes directly to tumours. Early clinical data on the DARPin molecules in combination with radioisotopes suggest targeted tumour localisation. Proof of efficacy, however, is still pending.
Quantum computers? While most people have heard that their massively parallel data processing could open up an entirely new dimension of information technology, tangible real-world examples remain scarce. NVision Imaging Technologies in Ulm has been active in the field for years and has now developed a visible and practical innovation in metabolic imaging: real-time MRI. Leading academic institutions have already expressed strong interest.
Oxford-based immunology specialist Sitryx has entered into a new agreement with Boehringer Ingelheim aimed at advancing a novel small-molecule programme in autoimmune and inflammatory disease. The deal could be worth USD500 million in total, but the breakdown of the payments in upfront and milestones was not disclosed in detail.
Takeover in Wuppertal: Aicuris Anti-Infective Cures AG, which specializes in active ingredients for infectious diseases, is being acquired by Japanese pharmaceutical company Asahi Kasei for almost €800 million (around US$920 million). The company, founded by former Bayer employees Helga Rübsamen-Schaeff and Holger Zimmermann using substances from Bayer, had obtained its own approval and is currently in late-stage clinical development with active ingredients that are currently being presented with positive data at scientific conferences.
As a co-investor in the USD 25 million Series B round, Beiersdorf AG is signalling that artificial intelligence is becoming strategically important for skin research. The Hamburg-based group is participating through its venture unit in the AI biotech Turbine, founded in Budapest and now also headquartered in London.
A study recently published in Nature on the use of mRNA “vaccines” targeting cancer neoantigens in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) has generated considerable attention in scientific circles. However, with only 14 patients treated in this Phase I trial, it is far too early to declare a breakthrough. Still, the highly encouraging data breathe new life into a cancer vaccine approach that in recent years had fallen behind antibodies, ADCs and checkpoint inhibitors.
A pause in the collaborative Alzheimer trial of Johnson & Johnson and partner AC Immune from Switzerland raises some questions. Whether the pause has something to do with overall recruting difficulties or with the application of the drug under investigation is not yet clear.
Setback for Boehringer Ingelheim: the company has halted development of its inhaled gene therapy BI 3720931 for cystic fibrosis after a phase 1/2 trial failed to deliver efficacy data supporting further progress. While the safety profile met expectations, the programme has now been shelved.