Blackstone Life Sciences, an active investor in the biopharma sector, is to provide $150 million upfront to Autolus Therapeutics Plc to support its lead T cell product, obecabtagene autoleucel, for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL), as well as earlier oncology projects.
Daprodustat, a candidate drug for the treatment of anaemia due to chronic kidney disease, has generated positive data in five Phase 3 trials – the first oral inhibitor of an enzyme linked to a protein complex to show efficacy without an increased cardiovascular risk. Data from two of the trials were published in The New England Journal of Medicine on 5 November 2021.
A candidate antiviral for the treatment of Covid-19 has delivered an 89% reduction in the risk of Covid-19 related hospitalisation or death compared with placebo in a Phase 2/3 clinical study, the developer Pfizer Inc, announced on 5 November. On the recommendation of the trial’s independent data monitoring committee, the study was stopped and data will be sent to the US Food and Drug Administration to support an emergency use authorisation.
Novartis has reached an agreement with Roche to sell its minority stake in the company in order to raise money for its proprietary medicines. The announcement, on 4 November, follows Novartis’ launch of a strategic review of its Sandoz generics unit which could result in a divestiture. The sale of shares in Roche is expected to generate $20.7 billion based on a price of $388.99 per share for 53.3 million bearer shares.
Valneva SE, the France-based vaccine company, has raised $102 million in a global share offering to specialised investors which included an offering of American Depositary Shares (ADSs) in the US and a private share placement in Europe and elsewhere. The proceeds are expected to be used for the company’s vaccine portfolio which includes a candidate Covid-19 vaccine. Valneva’s ordinary shares are listed on Euronext Paris, and its ADSs trade on Nasdaq.
Addex Therapeutics Ltd advanced its clinical portfolio in the three months to 30 September bringing its lead product dipraglurant a step closer to registration for patients suffering from dyskinesia associated with the use of levodopa to treat Parkinson’s disease. Dipraglurant is a small molecule allosteric modulator which is currently in a Phase 2b/3 pivotal study. Altogether, the company has three programmes in the clinic in addition to a research collaboration with Indivior Plc into treatments for addiction disorders.
Sanofi SA had net sales of €10.4 billion in the third quarter, up by 10% from a year earlier, and lifted by strong demand for Dupixent, the anti-inflammatory drug jointly developed with Regeneron Inc. Dupixent’s sales were €1.4 billion, or 13% of the company’s total turnover. The quarter also featured strong demand for Kevzara in rheumatoid arthritis, Libtayo in oncology, and Sarclisa in muliple myeloma.
GlaxoSmithKline Plc has declared an unchanged dividend of 19 pence per share for the third quarter after delivering increases in both turnover and operating profit. Earnings per share at constant exchange rates are expected to decline by 2% to 4% for the year as a whole – an improvement over the company’s earlier forecast of a decline in the mid-to-high single digit range. The earnings per share forecast excludes impairments and the amortisation of intangible assets.
Novartis has started a strategic review of its Sandoz generics division following a further sales decline in the third quarter. Sandoz’s sales were down by 1% in the quarter on weak retail demand and price competition for its generic medicines and biosimilars. Announcing the review on 26 October, the company said “options range from retaining the business to separation.”
An experimental breast cancer treatment for patients with estrogen receptor positive and HER2 negative breast cancer has met the primary endpoint in a Phase 3 trial paving the way for regulatory submissions in the US and Europe in 2022, the developers Menarini Group and Radius Health Inc, announced on 20 October.