Plus, news about Brixton Biosciences, Merck KGaA, Medincell, CellProthera and GSK:
Adaptimmune inks up to $125M debt financing: The biotech gets $25 million to start as it prepares for a commercial launch of its cell therapy. The money came through shortly after Genentech axed a collaboration that could’ve delivered $3 billion to Adaptimmune. — Kyle LaHucik
Tenaya lays off 22% of its staff: The biotech will reduce its workforce to save money for its gene therapies that are in the clinic for certain forms of cardiomyopathy. It had 140 full-time employees at the end of 2023, according to its most recently disclosed tally. — Kyle LaHucik
Brixton Biosciences raises $33M: The Series B is set to support clinical testing of a drug-free injectable. The startup, a Massachusetts General Brigham spinout, seeks to treat chronic and acute pain. — Kyle LaHucik
Merck KGaA’s healthcare sales up 15.5% in Q1: The German conglomerate said its drug sales totaled €2.05 billion ($2.23 million) in the first three months of 2024, driven by the strong growth of oncology brands Erbitux and Bavencio. On the R&D side, the company expects to have a Phase 3 interim analysis sometime in the second quarter for xevinapant, its drug candidate for squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck. — Ayisha Sharma
Medincell’s Ph3 fail: The company’s non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug called F14 did not hit its primary endpoint in a late-stage study. The trial was testing F14’s ability to reduce pain intensity after 14 days in patients who received knee replacement surgery. Patients were given either F14 and multimodal analgesia (MMA) or MMA alone. — Max Gelman
CellProthera touts Ph1/2b data: The company is developing a stem cell therapy designed to repair heart tissue after a severe heart attack. Researchers saw “no significant difference” between the active treatment and standard of care. — Max Gelman
GSK to set up vaccine center in Abu Dhabi: The pharma company is partnering with the UAE’s health regulator to launch a “regional vaccine distribution hub” in the nation’s capital. The hub will aim to meet demand in the Persian Gulf, Near East and South Asia. — Max Gelman