Biopharma BioLineRx, headquartered in Israel with a Waltham presence, has announced FDA approval for Aphexda, the company’s first approved therapeutic. The drug helps physicians harvest stem cells for the treatment of multiple myeloma, the second most-common hematologic malignancy. Autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) is part of the standard of care treatment for multiple myeloma and […]

Moderna has announced it will partner with German biotech Immatics in a strategic research and development collaboration to pioneer novel and transformative therapies for cancer patients with high unmet medical need. This broad multi-platform collaboration will leverage the deep scientific expertise and core operational capabilities of both companies, combining Immatics’ TCR platform with Moderna’s cutting-edge […]

MassBio’s newly released 2023 Industry Snapshot shows significant job growth across the life sciences industry with Massachusetts outpacing nearly all competitor states for both research and development and biomanufacturing jobs added. At the close of 2022, Massachusetts employed nearly 114,000 people in the biopharma industry. “Even amidst challenging times for biotech companies, we still saw […]

Ginkgo Bioworks and Google Cloud have inked a five-year strategic cloud and AI partnership, intended to enable Ginkgo to develop and deploy AI tools for biology and biosecurity. Under the strategic partnership, Ginkgo will work to develop new, state-of-the-art large language models (LLMs) running on Google Cloud’s Vertex AI platform across genomics, protein function, and synthetic biology, helping […]

Sage Therapeutics plans to reorganize its business operations and pipeline priorities to support goals for long-term business growth, including the planned commercial launch of Zurzuvae for women with postpartum depression in late 2023. Following a strategic review, the company will refine pipeline development efforts with the goal of making evidence-driven investments; implement a 40% workforce […]

Moderna announced that preliminary clinical trial data confirm its updated COVID-19 vaccine for the fall 2023 vaccination season showed a significant boost in neutralizing antibodies against EG.5 and FL.1.5.1 variants. These results suggest that Moderna’s updated COVID-19 vaccine may effectively target the expected circulating variants of COVID-19 during the upcoming vaccination season. The World Health […]

Biogen has agreed to acquire Plano, Texas-based Reata Pharmaceuticals for $172.50 per share in cash, reflecting an enterprise value of approximately $7.3 billion. Reata has made significant advancements developing therapeutics that regulate cellular metabolism and inflammation in serious neurologic diseases. Reata’s FDA-approved Skyclarys (omaveloxolone) is the first and only approved treatment in the U.S. for the […]

Biogen and its collaboration partner Sage Therapeutics have announced that the FDA has approved Zurzuvae (zuranolone) for adults with postpartum depression (PPD). Zurzuvae is the first and only oral, once-daily, 14-day treatment that can provide rapid improvements in depressive symptoms for women with PPD. Zurzuvae is expected to launch and be commercially available in the […]

Pharma giant Regeneron Pharmaceuticals and clinical-stage biotech Decibel Therapeutics have announced a definitive agreement for the acquisition of Decibel by Regeneron. The proposed acquisition values Decibel at a total equity value of approximately $109 million based on the amount payable at closing, and a total equity value of up to approximately $213 million upon achievement […]

Following hot on the heels of FDA approval for the Biogen/Eisai Alzheimer’s drug Leqembi, Eli Lilly presented results from its Phase 3 study of donanemab which showed that the drug significantly slowed cognitive and functional decline in people with early symptomatic Alzheimer’s. The data were shared at the 2023 Alzheimer’s Association International Conference as a featured […]