Biotech
Azenta has acquired UK Biocentre, a UK provider of sample management, storage and high-throughput sample processing services, in a deal worth up to £20.5m. The acquisition was completed through Azenta’s wholly owned subsidiary Azenta UK Ltd. Azenta said the deal strengthens its ability to deliver end-to-end lifecycle solutions in the UK while expanding its presence [...]
Generate:Biomedicines has raised US$400m in the year’s biggest biotech IPO so far, with proceeds earmarked for clinical trials and R&D on its artificial intelligence platform. The drug developer, which focuses on immunology and inflammation as well as oncology, priced shares at US$16 and began trading on the Nasdaq Global Market under the symbol GENB. [...]
By Sanius Health Gene therapy has now moved decisively from scientific ambition to clinical reality, and in doing so, it has redefined what is possible for patients living with severe genetic conditions such as sickle cell disease, where curative intent is no longer a distant aspiration but a regulated, deployable therapeutic pathway. What we are [...]
Novo Nordisk has struck a US$2.1bn deal with Vivtex to develop next-generation oral obesity and diabetes drugs, the companies said. Under the partnership, privately held Vivtex will license some of its oral drug-delivery technology, while Novo Nordisk will lead global development and commercialisation. Novo Nordisk will make an undisclosed upfront payment, alongside milestone payments and [...]
mRNA nanobodies have shown promise in colorectal cancer, with a preclinical study reporting tumour suppression using lipid nanoparticle-delivered anti-PD-L1 therapy. An original study published in eGastroenterology describes how lipid nanoparticles carrying nucleoside-modified mRNA encoding anti-PD-L1 nanobodies suppressed tumour growth in both sporadic and colitis-associated colorectal cancer models. Colorectal cancer is the third most common cancer [...]
Sanofi has backed Altesa BioSciences in a US$75m series B round for the rhinovirus-focused biotech led by former acting FDA commissioner Brett Giroir. The funding will mainly support a phase 2b study, a mid-stage clinical trial, of vapendavir, an oral antiviral pill for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a long-term lung condition that [...]
Preclinical eye-disease biotech EIR Biopharma aims to raise up to US$17.1m via a NYSE listing. San Francisco-based EIR plans to offer 3.75m shares priced between US$4 and US$5, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing. At the midpoint, it expects US$14.9m in net proceeds. If underwriters take up their option for an extra 562,500 [...]
Eli Lilly has agreed to buy Orna Therapeutics for US$2.4bn. The deal was announced on Monday. Orna is developing a treatment that uses circular RNA and specialised lipid particles to prompt a patient’s body to produce the cell therapies needed to fight disease. Circular RNA is a form of genetic material that forms [...]
QuantX Biosciences has raised US$85m in Series B funding to develop two oral small-molecule drug candidates. The financing will back a STAT6 inhibitor and an IL-17 inhibitor, oral small molecules designed for immunology and inflammation diseases. The raise brings QuantX’s total funding to US$130m since its founding in 2022. Alongside its two lead [...]
ArrayPatch has raised €1.6m in the first close of its €3m seed funding round to advance ITZ-DerMap, its microneedle patch for nail fungus. The Cork-based biotech is developing microneedle therapeutics, with its lead programme focused on onychomycosis, commonly known as nail fungus. ArrayPatch’s DerMap platform uses pain-free microneedle patches made up of tiny needles that [...]
