Funding
The Biotech Ecosystem Venture Fund will combine the sourcing capabilities of venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) with Eli Lilly’s expertise in R&D—plus half a billion in capital from the Big Pharma.
Ouro is planning to leverage T cell engagers to deplete B cells and “reset” the immune system to treat immune-mediated diseases.
The company’s lead asset is a potentially first-in-class oral GLP-1 receptor agonist that has the potential to be dosed weekly, which according to CEO Khurem Farooq can help improve accessibility and affordability.
Maze’s IPO comes on the heels of its oversubscribed Series D funding round, which infused the biotech with $115 million in funding to support the development of its kidney disease pipeline.
BioSpace presents 25 noteworthy biopharma startups in ’25; analysts forecast stronger M&A as the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference kicks off next week; GLP-1s continue to expand their reach as Novo, Lilly fight against compounders; and a look ahead to five key FDA decisions in Q1.
While layoffs have slowed in the second half of the year, according to BioSpace data, companies including Bayer, Bristol Myers Squibb and Johnson & Johnson are cutting hundreds or even thousands of employees in 2024.
Blackstone and Bain Capital are said to be among the final bidders for the Japanese company’s Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma, sources told Reuters Friday.
California-based biotech Nuvig Therapeutics scooped up $161 million from the investment arms of Sanofi, Bayer, Novo Holdings, BMS and others for its Fc fragment immunomodulator aimed at improving autoimmune dysregulation.
The Danish startup, whose lead candidate has parallels to Amgen’s MariTide, launches on the heels of Amgen’s Phase II data release for the drug last week.
Trump is rounding out his health cabinet with another controversial figure: one of the authors of the Great Barrington Declaration, which advocated for herd immunity through infection during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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