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But we are proud to say that Georg Kääb contributed 138 entries already.
Veraxa Biotech, an oncology company spun out of research at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), has completed its merger with SPAC company Voyager Acquisition Corp. and will be trading as of today on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol VRXA. For the company, which has roots in the Heidelberg region, the move marks its transition from a research-driven company to a publicly listed biotech developer.
The announcements came almost simultaneously and send a clear signal to policymakers and the industry: both US pharmaceutical group Eli Lilly and German-based Boehringer Ingelheim are calling planned investments in Germany into question, citing the country’s healthcare policy framework.
A restart from within: Molecular Health is becoming Lucera. After years of shifting corporate fortunes, a substantial part of Heidelberg-based Molecular Health is continuing in a new form. An investor consortium has acquired the company’s pharma technology business and relaunched it as Lucera GmbH. Dr Friedrich von Bohlen remains at the helm, while Dr Stephan Brock, the mind behind the Dataome data engine, also stays on board as CTO.
T-CURX acquires Pantherna: does this mark the start of a new race for the next generation of CAR-T therapies? The Würzburg- and Munich-based CAR-T company T-CURX is acquiring the Berlin-based mRNA and LNP company Pantherna Therapeutics. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed. Pantherna is to continue operating in Hennigsdorf as a wholly owned subsidiary.
Basel-based Nuclidium AG has secured an additional tranche for its ongoing Series B financing round, bringing the total to approximately €115 million. The theranostics company is developing copper-based radiopharmaceuticals that are used both for diagnostic imaging and therapeutic applications.
Shopping spree at Eli Lilly? The US pharma giant is acquiring no fewer than three companies, all active in infectious diseases. Among them is Swiss biotech LimmaTech Biologics AG, led by former CureVac CEO Franz-Werner Haas. Yet Lilly’s ambitions extend well beyond classical infectious disease markets, targeting areas ranging from autoimmune disorders and antimicrobial resistance to chronic immune dysfunction and even cancer.
With $55m in fresh capital, Ulm-based NVision is expanding its quantum technology platform from MRI sensing into quantum computing for drug development. The diagnostics company Abbott is the round’s anchor investor.
German Boehringer Ingelheim is doubling down on next-generation autoimmune therapies with a deal worth up to €407.5m for a preclinical Immunitas (USA) antibody programme. The agreement highlights the growing race for selective immune-cell depletion approaches — and adds another strategic win for Novartis-, Merck-, Bayer- and Evotec-backed Immunitas.
As Amgen’s competing therapy has come under growing regulatory scrutiny, an opportunity has emerged for InflaRx N.V. to position its own oral C5aR inhibitor in the market. The Jena-based biotech company is now moving quickly to capitalise on that opening: InflaRx is refocusing its pipeline on severe renal diseases while simultaneously advancing a US$150m capital raise intended to fund development through key clinical milestones.
Bayer AG is strengthening its ophthalmology portfolio with the acquisition of Perfuse Therapeutics for up to $2.45bn. The focus is on a Phase II candidate for glaucoma and diabetic retinopathy with potential as a disease-modifying therapy.