Ultragenyx to spin out new company around Alzheimer’s gene therapy

CEO Emil Kakkis says the company's findings are too exciting to ignore, but the “high-risk, high-return” venture needs to be pursued outside the organization.

By Kristin Jensen • Oct. 18, 2023

Novo’s Uli Stilz on biotech innovation and the future of diabetes drugs

The Danish drugmaker's innovation hub in Boston has teamed up with the Broad Institute, Mass General Brigham, Harvard and Yale, expanding its research into cardiometabolic diseases.

By Gwendolyn Wu • Oct. 17, 2023

Explore the Trendline➔

Emerging biotech

New biotechs continue to emerge despite a challenging market environment that has forced venture firms to build their drug startups more cautiously.

By BioPharma Dive staff

Concentra makes bid for struggling biotech Rain

The takeout offer, from Concentra owner Tang Capital, comes after a difficult year for Rain, which has cut back its spending and trimmed staff.

By Delilah Alvarado • Oct. 16, 2023

Cell therapy developer Sana turns again to layoffs

The once high-flying biotech is cutting staff for the second time in a year and delaying some research to save cash.

By Kristin Jensen • Oct. 11, 2023

A decade later, biotech’s CRISPR revolution is still going strong

Once the specialty of a few select drugmakers, CRISPR gene editing is now an essential technology for a growing group of biotechs, many led by former students of the field's pioneering scientists.

By Gwendolyn Wu , Shaun Lucas , Julia Himmel • Oct. 11, 2023

FDA denies expanded approval for Alnylam RNA drug

The agency rejected Alnylam’s application for approval of its medicine patisiran in people with a rare heart condition, setting back the company’s plans.

By Jonathan Gardner • Updated Oct. 9, 2023

UniQure lays off 20% of staff, cuts research to ‘significantly’ lower costs

All told, the biotech said it will discontinue more than half of its research and technology projects, including a Parkinson’s disease treatment.

By Gwendolyn Wu • Oct. 5, 2023

Dana-Farber spinout Precede exits stealth with blood test technology and $57M

Precede has used the money to develop a platform that reveals the activity of genes and pathways.

By Nick Paul Taylor • Oct. 5, 2023

Sanofi buys into Teva gut disease drug

The pharma will pay $500 million to collaborate with Teva on the anti-TL1A therapy, which is seen as a competitor to similar drugs from Merck and Roivant.

By Ned Pagliarulo • Oct. 4, 2023

How biotech IPOs performed in the third quarter

Only two of the eight biotech companies that priced offerings since July 1 trade at or above their debut share price, according to data from BioPharma Dive.

By Gwendolyn Wu • Oct. 3, 2023

Ready for open source in life sciences? Your pharma analytics journey might be

It’s time to adopt open-source technology – but not without security, compliance and guardrails.

By Mark Lambrecht, Senior Director, Health and Life Sciences Practice • Oct. 2, 2023

PTC to lay off more staff following drug setback in Europe

The biotech is expanding cuts it announced a few months ago after the EMA decided against renewing a conditional clearance for its drug Translarna.

By Delilah Alvarado • Sept. 29, 2023

Adlai Nortye IPO gives old Novartis cancer drug new life

The biotech is using the proceeds to bankroll Phase 3 testing of a drug the Swiss pharma studied widely before selling it off for cheap a few years ago.

By Ben Fidler • Sept. 29, 2023

Gritstone wins ‘Project NextGen’ funding to run head-to-head COVID vaccine study

In a note to clients, Evercore ISI analyst Jonathan Miller described the Project NextGen contract for Gritstone as “certainly a nice signal of continued government support for COVID research.”

By Delilah Alvarado • Sept. 28, 2023

Karuna submits schizophrenia drug for US approval

The drug’s success in two late-stage clinical trials has buoyed Karuna to a market valuation exceeding $6 billion. 

By Kristin Jensen • Sept. 28, 2023

Harbinger Health raises $140M to study blood-based cancer screening test

The test developer will use the Series B funding to complete a 10,000-person clinical trial ahead of a planned launch in 2025.

By Nick Paul Taylor • Sept. 28, 2023

Roche bets on Ionis RNA medicines with neuroscience deal

The Swiss drugmaker is restocking its pipeline by buying into preclinical Ionis medicines for Alzheimer’s and Huntington’s diseases.

By Jonathan Gardner • Sept. 27, 2023

ProQR sale of eye drugs comes undone over employment contracts

Laboratoires Théa terminated its planned purchase of ProQR’s sepofarsen after certain ProQR personnel opted against working for the French company.

By Kristin Jensen • Sept. 27, 2023

Former Novartis executive Tsai to lead UK heart drug startup

John Tsai, previously Novartis’ chief medical officer, has been named CEO of Forcefield Therapeutics, an 18-month-old biotech that recently licensed AAV technology from Freeline Therapeutics.

By Ned Pagliarulo • Sept. 27, 2023

Inside Bavarian Nordic’s late-stage stumbles — and drive to become a vaccine giant

Despite the company's recent Phase 3 setbacks in RSV and COVID, CEO Paul Chaplin sees a path forward for the Danish biotech in the travel vaccine market.

By Karissa Waddick • Sept. 27, 2023

Intercept, after biotech rollercoaster ride, agrees to buyout by Alfasigma

Once valued at more than $7 billion, the liver drug company couldn’t secure a long-sought FDA approval in NASH and last month said it would abandon that research.

By Jonathan Gardner • Sept. 26, 2023

FDA staff hold ‘major concerns’ with Brainstorm ALS therapy, documents show

A panel of expert FDA advisers is meeting today to discuss the treatment, and whether Brainstorm’s data provide “substantial evidence” of its effectiveness.

By Ned Pagliarulo • Sept. 25, 2023

Novo Nordisk parent backs cell therapy manufacturing facility

The Novo Nordisk Foundation’s planned manufacturing facility will help both private companies and academic researchers develop new cell therapies.

By Jonathan Gardner • Sept. 21, 2023

Cell therapy developer closes funding round to support diabetes program

More than $50 million in venture funding has now gone into Seraxis, which is among a series of biotechs trying to fundamentally alter diabetes treatment.

By Kristin Jensen • Sept. 21, 2023

Genentech takes up a deal to make ‘molecular glue’ drugs

Targeted protein degradation has emerged as one of the more competitive areas of pharmaceutical research in recent years as scientists develop new ways to reach difficult-to-drug targets.

By Gwendolyn Wu • Updated Sept. 20, 2023