LONDON – Biotech billionaire Bob Duggan is taking a majority stake in Summit Therapeutics plc, as part of a proposed subscription and placing to raise $50 million. The scheme has to be voted through by shareholders, but assuming it is approved, Duggan will control approximately 73% of Summit’s enlarged share capital. Duggan previously invested $25 million in the company at the start of 2019, and already holds 49% of the stock.
HYDERABAD, India – India, home to a quarter of the global tuberculosis (TB) cases, plans to enhance its capacity to fight TB drug resistance and bolster susceptibility testing under a new initiative launched by the Geneva-based nonprofit Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics (FIND).
LONDON – Initiating antiretroviral treatment (ART) as soon as infants who are positive for HIV-1 infection are born has significant protective effects, with fewer viral reservoir cells and improved immune system development, according to new research.
Proteus Digital Health Inc.’s digital medicine program, Digimeds, achieved 95% adherence in patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV) who typically would not be offered direct-acting antivirals because of their high risk for nonadherence as a result of mental illness, transportation issues or previous evidence of nonadherence.
Evaxion Biotech A/S is leveraging two artificial intelligence (AI) platforms to quickly identify targets for cancer immunotherapies and infectious diseases.
Following its phase II stumble of AR-105, Aridis Pharmaceuticals Inc. is dropping its development of the IgG1 monoclonal antibody. The study failed to meet its primary endpoint of showing superiority in clinical cure rates compared to placebo for treating ventilator-associated pneumonia caused by gram-negative Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
Shares of San Diego-based Cidara Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:CDTX) enjoyed a skyward ride, closing Tuesday at $2.35, up 67 cents, or 40%, on word of a deal with Mundipharma International Ltd., of Cambridge, U.K., to develop and commercialize rezafungin for invasive fungal infections. "Historically, [antifungal] pricing has been much stronger in the EU, so that is an important opportunity for us and now for Mundipharma as well," Cidara CEO Jeffrey Stein said.
MEXICO CITY – Merck Sharp & Dohme's MK-8591, a nucleoside reverse transcriptase translocation inhibitor (NRTTI), impressed in both treatment and prevention studies at the 2019 International AIDS Society (IAS) Conference on HIV Science.
Durect Corp. (NASDAQ: DRXX) got a solid bump after announcing it granted Gilead Sciences Inc. exclusive worldwide rights to develop and commercialize a long-acting injectable HIV product created with Durect's platform, Saber, in a deal that could generate more than $300 million for Durect.
MEXICO CITY – The 2019 International AIDS Society (IAS) Conference on HIV Science kicked off over the weekend with the usual pre-conference workshops, including a workshop by the IAS Towards an HIV Cure initiative.