Merck & Co. Inc. is paying $1.85 billion, or $60 per share, to acquire Pandion Therapeutics Inc. on the back of early stage data in human volunteers for its lead program, PT-101, an engineered interleukin-2 (IL-2) mutein fused to an Fc backbone, which is designed to stimulate targeted expansion of regulatory T cells (Tregs) for use in autoimmune disease indications. By any yardstick, the deal represents both a large and a rapid return on investment. Watertown, Mass.-based Pandion raised $291 million in equity financing since its formation in 2017, including a $58 million series A round in 2018 and an $80 million series B round in 2020. For investors in Pandion’s IPO, which it completed last July, the deal is a sweet outcome. The company priced its IPO at $18 per share. Its closing price (NASDAQ:PAND) on Feb. 24, immediately before the acquisition deal was disclosed, was $25.63. Overnight, the company’s valuation has jumped from just over $750 million to almost two and a half times that.

Yisheng moves COVID-19 vaccine to clinic after $130M series B

Eight months after Beijing-based Yisheng Biopharma Co. Ltd. unveiled its recombinant protein vaccine candidate for COVID-19, YS-SC2-010, the company raised $130 million in a series B round to pave the way for the vaccine to enter clinical trials in the second quarter of this year, company CEO David Shao told BioWorld.

Jaguar primed to pounce with portfolio of early stage gene therapies

Jaguar Gene Therapy LLC, a startup reuniting former Avexis Inc. executives to develop a portfolio of potential treatments for severe genetic diseases, announced its public debut Feb. 25 with more than $40 million in series A financing from co-creator Deerfield Management. The Lake Forest, Ill.-based company is initially focused on advancing AAV9-based gene therapies for the metabolic condition galactosemia, genetically caused autism spectrum disorder, type 1 diabetes and, via a subsidiary, a form of Bardet-Biedl syndrome called BBS1.

Xilio advancing immunotherapies to the clinic with $95M series C

Cancer immunotherapy developer Xilio Therapeutics Inc. has raised $95 million in series C financing to support its efforts to move a duo of tumor-selective candidates into the clinic. IND applications for both its interleukin-2 (IL-2) agonist, XTX-202, and anti-cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated protein 4 (anti-CTLA4) antibody, XTX-101, are planned for this year. Rock Springs Capital led the round for the Waltham, Mass.-based company, formerly known as Akriveia Therapeutics.

Biologic patent thickets, global settlements at stake in 7^th Circuit case

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit grappled with whether so-called patent thickets and certain global patent settlements constitute antitrust behavior as it heard arguments Feb. 25 in UFCW Local 1500 Welfare Fund v. Abbvie Inc. The welfare fund argued that Abbvie’s global patent settlements with Humira (adalimumab) biosimilar developers were anticompetitive reverse-payment settlements because they gave the biosimilars early entry in Europe in 2018 while delaying U.S. entry until 2023, which is still years before a multitude of Humira patents expire. It also argued that a patent thicket, in and of itself, is anticompetitive behavior. While the case revolves around Abbvie’s mega blockbuster, the decision could have far-reaching impact on the biologics space should the appellate court agree with UFCW.

Bacterial protease takes on ‘undruggable’ oncoprotein

Scientists, despite their best efforts, have not been able to identify a way to inhibit the oncoprotein Myc. Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC), though, has apparently figured it out. In the Feb. 11, 2021, online issue of Nature Biotechnology, researchers reported that an UPEC-produced protease depleted cellular Myc and improved survival in mouse models of bladder and colon cancer.

Newco news: Curocell adds first South Korean IND approval for CAR T to its cart

HONG KONG – Daejeon, South Korea-based Curocell Inc. has received the first IND approval for a CAR T therapy in South Korea from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS). The MFDS approved a phase I/II study application for the company’s CRC-01, an anti-CD19 CAR T-cell therapy candidate for the potential treatment of relapsed/refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. The trial is targeted to start in the first half of 2021.

Also in the news

180 Life Sciences, Abbvie, Acadia, Adamas, Adial, Agios, Aimmune, Aivita, Akari, Altimmune, Amarin, American Cryostem, Amgen, Antibe, Aquestive, Aslan, Avita, Avoxia, Bioage, Biontech, Biotherapeutic Labs, Bioxcel, Bluebird, Bristol Myers Squibb, Cellarity, Celsion, Chimerix, Clene, CNS, Coherus, Compugen, CPDC, Cullgen, EMD Serono, Entera, Enveric, Essa, Exelixis, Gannex, Glaxosmithkline, Halozyme, I-Mab, Inercept, Inflarx, Intra-Cellular, Janone, Janssen, Jubilant, Karuna, Kronos, Mannkind, Moderna, Nektar, Oncocyte, Pacira, Paratek, Pfizer, Portage, Puretech, Psybio, Radius, RDIF, Regeneron, Retrotope, Roche, Selecta, Solid, Springworks, Stero, T-Cypher, Viela, Viiv, Viracta, Xencor, Zentalis