The diversity of life testifies to proteins’ amazing capacity as chemical tools. They control and drive all the chemi­cal reactions that together are the basis of life. Proteins also function as hormones, signal substances, antibodies and the building blocks of different tissues. This year’s Nobel Prize in Chemistry is shared by three scientists who have […]

Gary Ruvkun, professor of genetics at Harvard Medical School and an investigator at Massachusetts General Hospital, and Victor Ambros, of the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School. have received the 2024 Nobel Prize in Medicine for the discovery of microRNAs, a class of tiny RNA molecules that regulate the activities of genes in plants and animals, including […]

In the largest lease deal for newly-built lab space so far this year, The Davis Companies and Boston Development Group (BDG) have entered into lease agreements with life sciences firms LifeMine Therapeutics and a new stealth-mode biotech (NewCo) for space in the brand-new, purpose-built, 225K square-foot, Class A life science building at 66 Galen Street […]

Neuropsychiatric medicines company Seaport Therapeutics has closed an oversubscribed $225 million Series B financing round. The financing brings the total capital raised by Seaport to $325 million since the company’s launch in April 2024. Seaport will use the proceeds to advance its clinical-stage pipeline of first and best-in-class medicines through important clinical milestones as well […]

City Therapeutics has launched with $135 million in financing and a vision to lead the future of RNA interference (RNAi)-based medicine. Led by executive chair John Maraganore, founding CEO of Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, the startup aims to harness next-generation engineering of small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) – the “trigger” molecules that mediate RNAi – to build a […]

The Healey-Driscoll administration and the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MLSC) have announced $21.4 million in tax incentive awards to 19 life sciences companies. The awards, provided through the MLSC’s Tax Incentive Program, are expected to create 1,155 new life sciences industry jobs in Massachusetts. The MLSC Tax Incentive program is offered to companies engaged in life […]

The FDA has approved Cobenify, an oral medication for the treatment of schizophrenia in adults. Cobenify represents the first new class of schizophrenia medicine in several decades and introduces a fundamentally new approach to treating the illness. “Today’s landmark approval of our first-in-class treatment for schizophrenia marks an important milestone for the community, where after more […]

Boston-based Bicara Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biopharma developing therapies for patients with solid tumors, this week announced the closing of its initial public offering which raised gross proceeds of approximately $362 million. Bicara’s lead asset, ficerafusp alfa, is a bifunctional antibody that combines two clinically validated targets, an epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) directed monoclonal antibody […]

Moderna used its annual R&D Day to announce program and financial updates demonstrating progress and strategic prioritization of its mRNA pipeline including data readouts in the company’s respiratory vaccine portfolio and a revised financial framework. Over the past three years, Moderna’s robust pipeline has achieved milestones across multiple late-stage clinical trials, and its early-stage portfolio […]

Massachusetts added almost 3,000 net new jobs in the biopharma industry in 2023, accounting for nearly 17% of overall job growth in the state. Meanwhile, the research and development workforce grew by 3.7%, even as the national R&D workforce decreased by 0.5%. This is according to the annual MassBio Industry Snapshot which tracks the state’s life […]