Dealmaking by a pair of pharmas has given the biotech industry its best day of transactions in months, tallying nearly $13 billion in guaranteed payments across two deals. On the latest BioCentury This Week podcast, BioCentury’s analysts discuss how the takeout of Blueprint Medicines for $9.1 billion up front gives Sanofi a drug for a rare immunological disorder and bolsters the French pharma’s already strong presence in immunology.
The analysts also assess the $3.5 billion partnership between BioNTech and Bristol Myers Squibb for an asset targeting cancer’s hottest target, PD-(L)1 x VEGF, and underwhelming data from the leading asset against the target, PD-1 x VEGF bispecific ivonescimab, from Summit and Akeso Inc. Those data coincided with the kick-off of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) meeting in Chicago, where almost a dozen companies were presenting readouts for another hot target, CLDN18.2. Evopoint is among the companies; its program recently attracted Astellas as a partner.
Meanwhile, the biopharma industry is racing to counter the White House’s most favored nation drug pricing strategy. BioCentury’s Washington analyst, Steve Usdin, explains the urgency and details some of industry’s options.

View full story: https://www.biocentury.com/article/656097

#biotech #biopharma #pharma #lifescience #deals

00:00 - Introduction
04:39 - Sanofi Buys Blueprint
09:22 - BMS-BioNTech
20:01 - Hot Targets
23:40 - Drug Pricing

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Dutch biotech Merus’ EGFR x LGR5 bispecific antibody has caught investors’ attention in the run-up to ASCO as a new approach to block EGFR signaling. On the latest BioCentury This Week podcast, BioCentury’s analysts discuss Phase II data from Merus for petosemtamab as they preview the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s upcoming annual meeting. The analysts also assess a setback in a gene therapy trial for Rocket Pharmaceuticals, renewed interest in cancer target EpCAM, and a flurry of biopharma activity on the Hong Kong stock exchange. Finally, the team previews BioCentury’s second annual Grand Rounds R&D meeting, which takes place next week in Chicago. This episode was sponsored by Jeito Capital.

View full story: https://www.biocentury.com/article/656038

#biotech #biopharma #pharma #lifescience #RandD #DrugDevelopment

00:01 - Sponsor Message: Jeito Capital
24:52 - HK IPOs
07:12 - ASCO
16:37 - EpCAM
20:16 - Rocket

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Political and market turmoil has raised questions whether the U.S. can retain its biopharma leadership position, and in turn presents Europe with an opportunity to attract talent back to the continent with an offer of a more stable biomedical funding and regulatory environment. Jeito Capital’s Ksenija Pavletic and Cambridge Innovation Capital’s Anne Horgan join BioCentury’s analyst to wrap up the 25th annual Bio€quity Europe conference in Bruges, Belgium, by discussing their key takeaways from the two-day event. This episode was sponsored by Jeito Capital.

View full story: https://www.biocentury.com/article/655998

#biotech #biopharma #pharma #lifescience #networking

00:01 - Sponsor Message: Jeito Capital
02:10 - Key Takeaways
09:13 - Challenges and Opportunities for Europe
19:23 - Capital Efficiency and Success Stories
28:27 - Leadership, Teams & Talent

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The turbulence that has come with the Trump administration’s policies related to the U.S. biopharmaceutical industry is creating an opening for Europe to bolster its life sciences industry. On the latest BioCentury This Week podcast, BioCentury’s editors look at how Europe can capitalize on staffing cuts at FDA and NIH and an uncertain policy environment to lure back talent to bolster regulatory agencies and biotech R&D engines and attract assets and partners from China.
The editors also discuss two biotech deals driven by former leaders of BD at Roche, Biomarin's James Sabry and Sophie Kornowski at Boston Pharmaceuticals. Under the leadership of Sabry and CEO Alexander Hardy, Biomarin delivered its first takeout in a decade by acquiring Inozyme as it positions itself to take advantage of a regulatory and policy environment that they believe is favorable to their rare disease strategy. CEO Kornowski, meanwhile, executed on a plan to focus her company on a single liver disease asset that GSK acquired for $1.2 billion up front. Finally, BioCentury’s editors discuss the management shake-up at obesity company Novo Nordisk, where Lars Fruergaard Jørgensen, the leader who spearheaded Novo Nordisk’s transformation into a dominant player in obesity, is stepping down.
Chan Zuckerberg Chicago Biohub is hosting an exclusive, invite-only reception on June 3 — the eve of BioCentury's Grand Rounds conference — gathering top voices in biotech innovation and investment to exchange bold ideas, spark new collaborations and channel the energy of Chicago’s thriving innovation ecosystem. If you’re interested in attending, please register here. This episode was sponsored by Jeito Capital.

View full story: https://www.biocentury.com/article/655964

#biotech #biopharma #pharma #lifescience #politics #policy #law

00:01 - Sponsor Message: Jeito Capital
05:05 - European Biotech's Moment?
19:00 - Boston Pharma, Biomarin Deals
29:41 - Novo Nordisk CEO

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Biopharmas developing therapies for obesity are looking to a future where the quality of weight loss matters as much as the quantity — what targets and programs could help realize that vision? On the latest BioCentury This Week podcast, BioCentury’s editors discuss the signaling pathways that may exclusively target fat mass while preserving, or even increasing, lean mass — and which companies are playing in the space.
The editors also assess what Vinay Prasad’s past comments say about how he might lead FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research (CBER) — and examine how investors are evaluating the possibility that he might move the bar for regulatory approvals. The team then introduces the first in a new BioCentury series, with a look at a Literature Dive into ovarian cancer “atlases” — large-scale molecular profiling studies that point to predictive signatures and patient stratification strategies. This episode was sponsored by Jeito Capital.

View full story: https://www.biocentury.com/article/655898

#biotech #biopharma #pharma #obesity #FDA #CBER #LifeScience #OvarianCancer

00:01 - Sponsor Message: Jeito Capital
03:22 - Obesity: Quality over Quantity
15:47 - Prasad at FDA
27:58 - Ovarian Cancer Atlases

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This year’s Bio€quity Europe conference — the 25th edition of the event — will focus on what’s next for Europe amid biotech’s current complex moment, Editor in Chief Simone Fishburn said on a special edition of the BioCentury This Week podcast previewing the meeting, which kicks off May 12 in Bruges, Belgium. McKinsey & Co.’s Alexandra Zemp and Henk Joos, an investment specialist at Medvia, which fosters health innovation in Flanders, joined BioCentury to discuss the state of Belgium’s biopharma ecosystem and preview some of the conference’s networking events, fireside chats and panel discussions. Claire Macht, portfolio director, Europe, of BioCentury’s conference partner EBD Group, also joined the podcast to detail what to expect in terms of one-on-one partnering meetings at the event.
Bio€quity Europe 2025 is sold out, but space on the waitlist remains, and digital passes are available. See the conference website for more information.

View full story: https://www.biocentury.com/article/655883

#biotech #biopharma #pharma #networking #LifeScience

00:00 - Introduction
01:25 - What's Next for Europe?
06:58 - Belgium's Biotech Ecosystem
10:29 - McKinsey on European Biotech
15:27 - Partnering, Panels of Note

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Among the formerly undruggable targets gaining translational momentum, SMARCA2 has intrigued researchers for its potential to treat challenging solid tumors. On the latest BioCentury This Week podcast, BioCentury's editors zero in on preclinical research supporting different degraders of SMARCA2 at this year’s American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) annual meeting.
They also discuss takeaways from Editor in Chief Simone Fishburn’s conversation with David Baker, the Nobel-prizewinning pioneer in protein design, and Steve Usdin reports that pharmaceutical industry executives are in a state of alarm over President Trump’s push to include a “most favored nation” policy for Medicaid drug purchases in budget reconciliation legislation. Usdin also discusses why industry executives are confident of a fix for the Inflation Reduction Act’s “pill penalty” and FDA Commissioner Marty Makary’s decision to reject proposals to reorganize the agency. This episode was sponsored by Jeito Capital.

View full story: https://www.biocentury.com/article/655851

#biotech #biopharma #pharma #LifeScience #RandD #DrugDevelopment #AACR #SMARCA2

00:01 - Sponsor Message: Jeito Capital
03:01 - AACR Spotlight
11:21 - David Baker Protein Design
19:12 - Trump's Drug Pricing Plan

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Belief in tau — both as a target and surrogate endpoint — for Alzheimer’s is building among leaders in the field. On the latest BioCentury This Week podcast, Executive Editor Selina Koch discusses how tau could be reaching a tipping point. Also on this week’s episode, Washington Editor Steve Usdin details how political moves have begun to intrude into the Trump administration’s regulation of vaccines, a topic that’s also taken up by Phil Krause and Luciana Borio in a BioCentury Guest Commentary published Monday. BioCentury’s editors then discuss delays for drug regulation at FDA, Merck KGaA's $3.9 billion deal to acquire Springworks, and why biotech IPOs could soon have a moment in Hong Kong. This episode of BioCentury This Week podcast is sponsored by RemeGen.

View full story: https://www.biocentury.com/article/655780

#biotech #biopharma #pharma #lifescience #alzheimers #RandD #DrugDevelopment #IPO

00:01 - Sponsor Message: RemeGen Co.
02:06 - Tau Time for Alzheimer's
13:10 - Vaccine Drama at FDA
23:32 - Merck KGaA's SpringWorks Buy
24:52 - Hong Kong Biotech IPOs

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Biopharma companies are vying to dethrone Vyvgart as a leading therapy for myasthenia gravis, with the latest data for therapies treating the rare autoimmune neuromuscular disease coming at this month’s American Academy of Neurology. On a special episode of the BioCentury This Week podcast, BioCentury’s editors discuss the landscape for MG therapies, including anti-BLyS and APRIL therapy telitacicept from Remegen. Joining BioCentury’s editors are Qing Zuraw, chief development officer of podcast sponsor RemeGen, and Amit Sachdev, PI on global trials of the biotech’s therapy. BioCentury’s editors also preview the American Association for Cancer Research annual meeting, where degraders and bispecifics are defining translational trends at this year’s event. This episode of BioCentury This Week podcast was sponsored by RemeGen.

View full story: https://www.biocentury.com/article/655751

#biotech #biopharma #pharma #lifescience #AAN #AACR

00:01 - Sponsor Message: RemeGen Co.
01:02 - Myasthenia Gravis at AAN
08:31 - RemeGen's Telitacicept
18:03 - AACR: Targets and Trends

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The academia-industry interface is more important than ever for sustaining biomedical innovation’s forward momentum, even as the Trump administration injects turbulence into academic funding for universities. On a special edition of the BioCentury This Week podcast, BioCentury’s Simone Fishburn and Karen Tkach Tuzman preview Grand Rounds, BioCentury’s second annual R&D conference, along with special guests.
Spots are filling up for the Grand Rounds U.S. Presenting Company Class of 2025. Find out how to apply here.

View full story: https://www.biocentury.com/article/655696

#biotech #biopharma #pharma #lifescience #academia #chicago #asco

00:00 - Introduction
01:42 - Key Themes and Featured Sessions
07:37 - Chicago's Role in Biotech Innovation
15:06 - McKinsey's Insights
25:18 - Upcoming Events and Networking Opportunities

To submit a question to BioCentury’s editors, email the BioCentury This Week team at [email protected].

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