Roche has licensed worldwide rights to Rona Therapeutics’ experimental ALK7-targeting RNA interference therapy for obesity and metabolic diseases, offering up to $100 million (about €89 million) in upfront and near-term payments, plus up to $1.06 billion (about €0.95 billion) in milestone payments.
Paris-based Enodia Therapeutics is entering a partnership with big pharma Pfizer to discover and develop small molecules for targeted protein degradation at the point of synthesis with a deal that could potentially bring more than $500 million (€446 million) to the biotech company.
Swedish biotech Elicera Therapeutics reported complete metabolic responses in eight of 12 patients treated with its experimental CAR-T therapy ELC-301 in the Phase 1 portion of its CARMA trial. Six remained in complete response at their latest assessment.
Finnish biotech Desentum has raised €28 million in an oversubscribed equity round to advance three allergy immunotherapy programs, with Phase 2 results for its lead birch pollen candidate expected before year-end.
Over the past few years, Belgium’s argenx has become a biotech force to be reckoned with, driven by the success of its autoimmune drug Vyvgart (efgartigimod alfa) in diseases such as generalised myasthenia gravis (gMG) and chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP). We caught up with CEO Karen Massey to discuss how she plans to build on this success after joining argenx in March 2023 and taking up the role of CEO at the start of this year.
Italy’s Newron Pharmaceuticals has disclosed that the FDA kept U.S. enrollment in a Phase 3 trial of its schizophrenia drug evenamide on hold, citing five deaths across all the drug’s clinical studies. The company will ask the agency to lift the hold by screening patients for hidden heart-rhythm disorders, including with genetic tests.
Every Friday, The Leadership Edit follows people taking new roles across European biotech and what their moves may tell us about the companies they join. This week: a CEO transition shaped by a strategic retreat, a finance hire ahead of a gene therapy trial and a medical appointment as an influenza antibody approaches the clinic.
Swiss biotech ADC Therapeutics has secured an $86.6 million (€77.5 million) financing agreement alongside debt and royalty deal amendments that extend its expected cash runway into 2029 and remove a potential obstacle to a takeover.
Zealand Pharma shares fell about 4% in Thursday trading after new Phase 2 results for its Roche-partnered obesity drug petrelintide showed encouraging weight loss but a modest improvement in blood sugar control. It’s the second positive trial readout that has failed to reassure investors in the course of a week.
Roche has partnered with China’s Defand Therapeutics to discover molecular glue degraders for cancer and immune diseases, in a research and licensing agreement reportedly worth close to $1 billion (€895 million).