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Today's Rundown

Featured Story

A tale of 2 (bio) cities: Moderna tops $100B valuation, matching GlaxoSmithKline

Moderna's market cap hit $100 billion on Wednesday, briefly matching Big Pharma GlaxoSmithKline, as the pandemic cements the once controversial biotech into a major behemoth.

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Top Stories

Biogen's Aduhelm win opened up market frenzy for Alzheimer's-focused companies

Companies working on Alzheimer’s disease treatments were chugging along with the occasional blip in their stock price. And then came Aduhelm. The FDA’s controversial decision to approve Biogen’s Alzheimer’s treatment June 7 sent shares of a select group of publicly traded biotechs working on the neurodegenerative disorder on a wild ride, according to a Fierce Biotech analysis.

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Galapagos avoids 'complete whiff' as key anti-inflammatory drug fails to beat placebo in midphase trials

Galapagos is switching its attention to preclinical SIK inhibitors after the lead compound in the critical program delivered underwhelming midphase data. The Belgian biotech is advancing other molecules against a target that has become vital to its future as other pipeline prospects have flamed out.

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Sponsored: Evaluating current manufacturing platforms for recombinant AAV production

Choose the right AAV platform for your viral vector-based gene therapy.

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Psychedelics-focused investment firm Palo Santo launches with $35M to tackle mental health crisis

Palo Santo is on a journey to help address the growing mental health crisis. Err, it's on a trip. The Chicago-based venture capital group emerged Thursday with an initial $35 million in capital to support psychedelic-based startups across biopharma, digital therapeutics, healthcare services and tech-enabled companies. 

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New CEO, check. $172M round, check. Wugen's off-the-shelf cell therapies are ready for takeoff

When Dan Kemp was plotting his next move after Takeda, he was “blown away” by data from Wugen, a biotech working on off-the-shelf natural killer cell therapies. Now, after four months in the CEO seat, he’s ready to take those treatments to the next level with a $172 million financing.

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Shape builds out RNA editing tech with a major $112M funding boost

Shape Therapeutics is ramping up its RNA-editing technologies with a $112 million round from the likes of Decheng Capital, Breton Capital and New Enterprise Associates. In addition to supporting the development of multiple RNA platforms, the proceeds will also bankroll partnership opportunities for the Seattle-based biotech.

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China's Adlai Nortye nabs another cool $100M for its immuno-oncology pipeline

The Chinese clinical-stage biopharmaceutical raised its second $100 million round in 11 months, this time securing series D financing to fuel late-stage clinical trials and boost other earlier-stage programs in immuno-oncology.

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PAQ Therapeutics emerges with $30M series A for autophagy-based treatments

PAQ Therapeutics, taking its name in part from the timeless classic Pac-Man, now has the funds to fuel preclinical development of treatments based on autophagy-dependent degradation, a space that got a boost after a 2016 Nobel prize was awarded for discoveries in the field.

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Brain implant helps paralyzed patient communicate by translating thoughts into full sentences

A study of the system—funded by Facebook and the National Institutes of Health and published in the New England Journal of Medicine—found it was able to decode entire sentences at once with a median rate of about 15 words per minute and an average 75% accuracy, with a word error rate of just over 25%.

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Gene therapy delivered to the brain shows promise in children with rare neurodegenerative disease

Scientists from Ohio State University developed a novel method for delivering gene therapy to specific regions of the brain and tested it in children with a rare neurodegenerative disorder called AADC deficiency. Based on positive results from the trial, they're now eyeing the technology in more widespread brain disorders like Alzheimer's.

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Illumina faces months-long EU antitrust probe over Grail acquisition: report

Illumina may face a protracted legal battle with the EU over its takeover of the cancer test maker Grail unless it makes further concessions, according to a Reuters report.

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After 10,000% price hike, pharma companies face $350M+ fine in UK

After a years-long probe, the U.K.'s Competition and Markets Authority handed down fines worth more than £260 million ($360 million) to more than 10 pharmaceutical companies. 

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Resources

Whitepaper: To De-Risk Your Next Trial, Seek Outside Expertise

Engage Independent Expert Endpoint Adjudication and Data Monitoring Committees in a strategic manner to identify methods for retrospective and prospective evaluations that may improve competitive advantage and bolster regulatory submissions.

Whitepaper: Strategies for mitigating supply chain risk in clinical trials

Take a closer look at your supply chain to ensure it delivers with speed, efficiency, and quality — all within budget.

Report: Cell & Gene Therapy in 2040: Seizing the moment to propel the industry forward

What does the future of Cell & Gene Therapy look like?

Whitepaper: Evaluating current manufacturing platforms for recombinant AAV production

Choose the right AAV platform for your viral vector-based therapy

E-Book: Digital Therapeutics 101

E-book to get newcomers “up to speed” quickly on digital health and digital therapeutics while also addressing key issues important to those already familiar with the topic.

Content Hub: Process Intensification Resource Center

A one-stop hub for Cytiva resources to support process intesification

Content Hub: Remarque Systems Resource Hub

Remarque Systems consolidates data, then layers on visualization and automated metrics to generate consistent, actionable data insights in real-time. Click here for more info. 

eBrief: Drug Product Process Development: Ensuring a Consistent, High-quality Biologic

Learn about drug product process development challenges and risks, the difference between innovator and biosimilar drug product process development, and more during the drug product process development phase.

Whitepaper: Achieving a Successful Drug Product Technology Transfer

Get insights on key considerations for a successful tech transfer process for manufacturing a biologic drug product, including a case study on overcoming challenges in a process transfer for a sterile diluent.

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