The Bay State, home to the busy bio-hub Genetown, is experiencing some growing pains. Companies like Biogen and Eisai (H3 Biomedicine) are reducing their headcount.
The Bay State, home to the busy bio-hub Genetown, is experiencing some growing pains. As pharma giants like Bayer, Takeda, AstraZeneca and Sanofi open new sites that bring in hundreds of new employees, other companies, such as Biogen and Eisai, are seeing a reduction in headcount.
Eisai’s oncology subsidiary H3 Biomedicine is closing up shop. According to The Boston Business Journal, the company’s shuttering will result in the loss of at least 88 jobs. Pointing to a WARN (Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification) notice filed with the state, the Journal noted that up to 79 positions were on the chopping block in Massachusetts come September.
“Role Complete,” Eisai to Close H3, Cut 79 Jobs
Citing a statement from the Japanese pharma company, the Journal said Eisai considers the role of H3 to be “complete.” The company said H3, which was established in 2010, filed four Investigational New Drug applications with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and forged two licensing deals, one with Bristol Myers Squibb that harnesses H3’s RNA splicing platform, and completed clinical proof of concept for H3B-6545, a selective ERα covalent antagonist (SERCA) being developed for the treatment of patients with ER-positive, HER2-negative breast cancer.
“With these achievements, H3 has validated the founding concept for the company and this venture is complete,” Eisai said in its statement to the Boston Business Journal.
The oncology research performed by H3 Biomedicine will shift to a new Eisai-established entity known as Deep Human Biology Learning, the Journal said. That group is launching alongside another Eisai-backed group, Global Alzheimer’s Disease & Brain Health, which will continue to build on the company’s research into Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.
Biogen’s MA Headcount Down By 300
Eisai’s longtime Alzheimer’s partner Biogen is also going through its own growing pains. In May, the company announced plans to streamline its operations in order to save up to $1 billion. While the number of total layoffs has not been officially announced, the Journal reported that Biogen is now employing 300 fewer people in Massachusetts.
According to the report, as of this month, Biogen now employs 2,469 people in the state. In September 2021, the number of Biogen employees in the Bay State was 2,770, the Journal said.
There have been rumors that Biogen could lay off as many as 1,000 employees, according to a report by Stat News. Biogen has remained tight-lipped about the total numbers. Earlier this year, a Biogen spokesperson told BioSpace that the layoffs will allow the company to remain flexible and will allow additional investments to be made in its pipeline, as well as other strategic initiatives.
“As previously shared, Biogen is implementing cost-reduction measures that are expected to yield approximately $500 million in annualized savings. In support of these measures, some of our colleagues in the U.S. were recently informed that their roles are being eliminated,” the company told BioSpace. “As part of our headcount reductions we’ve prioritized not fulfilling open positions. Some employees will be able to apply for the open positions we are filling.”
These two companies are certainly not the only ones in Genetown to see trouble. In April, Flagship Pioneering-backed Kaleido Biosciences, a company focused on the microbiome, announced its plans to cease all company operations and shutter its doors. That decision was prompted by troubles related to a Phase II study in chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder.
One month later, Genocea Biosciences halted operations after its oncology asset failed to impress in a Phase I/II study.
While the job losses and closed-down companies are certainly disappointing news, some of those who lost their jobs could find new employment with the other companies securing a toehold in the area. Sanofi is opening a 900,000-square-foot campus at Cambridge Crossing, and AstraZeneca also announced plans to open a new site in Cambridge, which is expected to become a strategic R&D center for the company. Takeda secured 600,000 square feet of R&D space, and Bayer has opened its new Research and Innovation Center in town.
