North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW), a state located in the North-West of Germany, is investing €200 million to connect university hospitals in Aachen, Bochum, Bonn, Düsseldorf, Essen, Cologne and Münster, as well as the Technical University Dortmund in an AI network for cancer medicine.
Spanish biotech Vaxdyn has raised an €11 million Series A to take K-VAX, its vaccine against Klebsiella pneumoniae and Acinetobacter baumannii, into a first-in-human Phase 1 trial. Portuguese investor Biovance Capital led the round with a €4 million investment, joined by the European Innovation Council (EIC) Fund and the Impacto Andalusia fund managed by Arcano Partners.
Copenhagen’s BioInnovation Institute (BII) is providing six early-stage companies with €1.3 million each in convertible loans, taking its total financing of each startup to €1.8 million.
Novartis’ pelacarsen failed to reduce cardiovascular events in the first Phase 3 outcomes trial of an Lp(a)-lowering drug, despite successfully lowering the genetically driven cardiovascular risk factor.
Novartis could pay up to $3.223 billion (€2.8 billion) for access to Alteogen’s technology for turning intravenous biologics into subcutaneous drugs. Behind the eye-catching figure is more than patient convenience: Drug delivery is becoming an increasingly important tool for lifecycle management and emerging drug classes.
Italian pharma Menarini Group has licensed European rights to bofanglutide for obesity and excess weight, a long-acting GLP-1 receptor agonist from China’s Gan & Lee Pharmaceuticals dosed once every two weeks, for €62 million upfront, up to €664 million in milestones, and “double-digit” royalties. Menarini will handle regulatory submissions and commercialization across 39 European markets.
French biotech Transgene said all 16 head and neck cancer patients treated with its personalized cancer vaccine TG4050 in a randomized Phase 1 trial remained disease-free after three years, while three of 16 patients in the control arm relapsed.
GSK has licensed ex-China rights to HUTCHMED’s HMPL-A830, an experimental antibody conjugate that delivers a KRAS inhibitor to EGFR-expressing tumors, in a deal worth up to $1.295 billion (€1.12 billion). The preclinical asset is expected to enter the clinic this year.
Swiss biotech NovaGo Therapeutics has raised CHF 24 million ($30 million/€25.5 million) in a Series B round to advance its lead anti-Nogo-A antibody into a randomized proof-of-concept study in patients with acute spinal cord injury. The financing was co-led by Neurimmune and Pureos, with participation from existing and new investors. The round is complemented by non-dilutive funding from the Swiss Paraplegic Foundation and Wings for Life.
Novartis’ remibrutinib has beaten teriflunomide in two Phase 3 trials in relapsing multiple sclerosis (MS), adding another important clinical win for a class of BTK inhibitors that has endured several high-profile failures in autoimmune disease.