Verismo Therapeutics Inc., the U.S. subsidiary of South Korea’s HLB Co. Ltd., inked a license agreement with the University of Pennsylvania for two newly discovered CD19 binders – one of which will be used to develop Synkir-310, its investigative CAR T therapy for blood cancers.
SK Bioscience Co. Ltd. and Vaxxas Pty. Ltd. have entered into a joint development agreement that could revolutionize vaccines by developing a vaccine-delivery device combination product using Vaxxas’ high-density microarray patch (HD-MAP) coupled with SK Bioscience’s typhoid vaccine, Skytyphoid.
Verastem Oncology Inc. and Genfleet Therapeutics Ltd. have inked a discovery and development deal to advance three oncology discovery programs targeting RAS pathway-driven cancers.
Immuno-oncology company Imugene Ltd. has acquired a worldwide exclusive license to Precision Biosciences Inc.’s allogeneic CD19 CAR T-cell therapy program in a deal worth more than $227 million. The off-the-shelf CD19 CAR T-cell therapy, azercabtagene zapreleucel (azer-cel), could potentially be the first allogeneic CAR T to be approved, Imugene CEO Leslie Chong told BioWorld.
South Korea’s Celltrion Inc. is rolling out a tweaked plan to merge its three affiliates – electing for a two-way merger followed by consolidation with the final branch – in its latest efforts to rise through the ranks and emerge as a “true” big pharma.
With a U.S. biotech identified as One Bio, Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. has inked an out-licensing deal potentially worth $1.05 billion for its asthma and chronic sinusitis-targeting drug, SHR-1905. The latest deal gives One Bio exclusive rights to develop, produce and commercialize SHR-1905 worldwide, excluding the greater China territory.
Modalis Therapeutics Corp. – previously Edigene Corp. – has regained full rights to two gene therapy candidates for muscle disorders, MDL-201 and MDL-202, that were co-developed with Astellas Pharmaceutical Inc. since 2019.
Novavax Inc. has signed off 6.5 million shares to SK Bioscience Co. Ltd. for an $85 million equity investment from the South Korean pharmaceutical firm, which also wrote off some of Novavax’s manufacturing liabilities, as part of their continuing vaccine alliance. Seongnam-si, South Korea-based SK Bioscience purchased Novavax shares at $13 each, reflecting a 59% premium over the 90-day trading value, to gain a 6.45% stake in the Gaithersburg, Md.-based mRNA vaccine company, an SK Bioscience spokesperson confirmed to BioWorld.
Amarin Corp. plc has chosen Taiwan-based Lotus Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. to make headway in Southeast Asia and South Korea for omega-3 fatty acid-based Vazkepa, its icosapent ethyl drug that’s facing increasing generic and pricing pressure in the U.S. and Europe.