Seattle
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Novartis Lines Up $3.2B Deal for Kidney Disease Drugs, But FTC Questions Loom
Novartis is acquiring Chinook Therapeutics in a $3.2 billion deal that brings two late-stage drug candidates for a rare kidney disorder. The Novartis drug pipeline already has a molecule in late-stage development for the same kidney disease, which could raise questions from antitrust regulators.
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Sobi Emerges as Savior for CTI Biopharma Cash Crunch With $1.7B M&A Deal
Swedish Orphan Biovitrum is acquiring CTI Biopharma in a $1.7 billion deal centered on the biotech’s commercialized drug for the blood cancer myelofibrosis. Sobi says the drug, Vonjo, complements one of its own assets approved for a different blood disorder.
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Payer’s Place: Dawn Maroney
Dawn Maroney, President, Markets of Alignment Health and CEO of Alignment Health Plan, to discuss how they are using technology to provide better service and care to consumers.
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Chinook Therapeutics Pauses Kidney Disease Drug Trial Following Adverse Event Report
The serious adverse event reported in the early-stage study resolved quickly, but Chinook Therapeutics said it is suspected to be related to its experimental primary hyperoxaluria therapy. Meanwhile, Human Immunology Biosciences is looking ahead to Phase 3 after its rare kidney disease drug posted positive mid-stage data.
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Alpine stops enrollment in cancer drug study after second patient death this year
The second patient who died in the Phase 1 test of Alpine Immune Sciences cancer drug, davoceticept, reportedly suffered the same cardiovascular complication as the first patient. The biotech company is stopping enrollment in two clinical tests of the drug and assessing all participants in the studies.
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BMS protein degradation drug research turns to a startup to find molecular glues
Bristol Myers Squibb’s drug R&D includes targeted protein degradation, an approach that can require proteins that don’t normally interact to find a way to stick together. BMS is turning to startup A-Alpha Bio to discover “molecular glues” that can accomplish the task.
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Cell therapy biotech Aurion gets $120M to restore vision and revamp organ donor economics
Organ donation has long been a matter of demand outstripping supply, but Aurion Biotech aims to improve the supply part of the equation with a cell therapy. Aurion’s technology turns a single donated cornea into treatments for up to 100 patients and the startup now has $120 million for clinical trials.
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Cell therapy biotech Affini-T gets $175M; KRAS is lead genomic cancer target
Affini-T Therapeutics is developing new cell therapies for cancer that could overcome limitations of the first generation of cell therapies. The initial genomic cancer targets of the startup are mutations of KRAS and p53, both of which have proven difficult to drug.
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Alpine Immune Sciences cancer drug trial placed on partial hold after patient death
The FDA placed a partial clinical hold on a Phase 1 study testing experimental Alpine Immune Sciences cancer drug davoceticept in combination with Merck cancer immunotherapy Keytruda. The partial hold does not affect a separate study testing the Alpine drug as a monotherapy.
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Taking aim at the brain, Takeda strikes up cell therapy R&D alliance with Immusoft
Takeda Pharmaceutical is partnering with startup Immusoft in a research alliance aiming to develop B cell therapies that cross the blood-brain barrier to treat rare neurometabolic disorders. Depending on the progress of the research, Takeda could pay its new partner more than $900 million.
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Applying Remote Patient Monitoring to Surgery Prep and Recovery, Oncology and Women’s Health
Join us to learn about the latest trends in remote monitoring and how to extend its benefits beyond chronic conditions to more patients – all while using fewer staff resources.
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How Xealth amassed 14 hospital backers for its digital health platform
Xealth, which was spun out of Providence, recently raised $24 million in a series B round. Advocate Aurora Enterprises led the round, bringing its health system backers to 14.
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Pharma, Artificial Intelligence, BioPharma
Startup A-Alpha Bio sets out to solve a major protein problem facing big pharma
A-Alpha Bio’s technology analyzes millions of protein-protein interactions simultaneously, a capability that speeds up drug discovery research. Biotech industry partners are already using the technology and now with $20 million in Series A funding, the startup plans to build machine-learning capabilities to crunch the data produced by all of those protein interactions.
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Artificial Intelligence, BioPharma
Startup Modulus embraces AI to design better NK cell therapies for cancer
Modulus Therapeutics recently emerged from stealth with technology from various disciplines and seed funding that the startup is using to develop better cell therapies. Natural killer cells directed against breast cancer is Modulus’s initial focus, but the startup says its approach can apply to multiple types of immune cells and multiple types of cancer.
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Impel NeuroPharma’s drug-device combo product nabs FDA nod for migraine
The FDA approved an Impel NeuroPharma migraine treatment, a nasal spray intended to bring pain relief more quickly than drugs administered in other ways. It marks the first approval for the Seattle company, which has developed a proprietary nasal delivery technology.
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Icosavax’s $182M IPO haul is key for RSV, but eyes are on its Covid vaccine too
Icosavax’s research developing a vaccine for a virus that can lead to deadly respiratory infections in the very young and the very old has found an additional application in the pursuit of a vaccine for the novel coronavirus. The biotech’s $182 million IPO gives it the capital to move forward with clinical research on multiple programs.
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Icosavax lands $100M to take its virus-like particle vaccines into clinical trials
RA Capital led the $100 million Series B round of funding for Icosavax, a startup developing vaccines based on virus-like particles. The biotech is preparing for clinical tests of vaccines for respiratory syncytial virus, human metapneumovirus, and SARS-CoV-2.
Promoted
Payer’s Place: Dr. Anil Singh
Dr. Anil Singh shares his insights into the strategies employed by the organization to identify the most effective digital solutions for their members.
Promoted
Discover the Next-Gen Platform for Integrated Collaborative Care
Beyond EHRs and digital front doors, reducing the gaps in patient care journeys.
