Get Smarter on Biotech in 5 Minutes a Day.
Focused insights — expertly curated, clearly delivered, ready for action.
Get the Daily Brief
What’s in Today’s Brief? (February 25th Preview)
-
Novo, Vivtex pact: $2.1B push to make oral biologics real
Novo Nordisk signed a collaboration and licensing agreement with Vivtex that could total up to $2.1 billion in payments to develop oral formulations of peptide and protein therapies for obesity, diabetes and related metabolic diseases. The deal gives Novo access to Vivtex’s gut‑screening and formulation platform and commits Vivtex to scale R&D efforts with tiered milestones and royalties. Novo already markets oral semaglutide and recently launched an oral form of Wegovy; the pact reflects an explicit commercial strategy to expand oral biologics across metabolic indications. Vivtex, an MIT spinout co‑founded by Robert Langer and Giovanni Traverso, will receive upfront and potential milestone payments tied to program progress and commercialization. For drug developers, the agreement signals continued industry investment in overcoming GI absorption barriers for biologics using high‑throughput formulation screening and microphysiological models. The terms and scale of payments position Vivtex as a sought‑after delivery partner and underscore competition to convert injectable peptide franchises into oral formats.
-
GSK shells out $950m for 35Pharma’s pulmonary hypertension asset
GSK agreed to acquire 35Pharma for $950 million in cash to secure HS-235, a protein‑based candidate poised for pulmonary hypertension (PH) studies, the companies said. HS‑235 completed a Phase I evaluation and is positioned to enter patient studies in pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and PH due to HFpEF. GSK framed HS‑235 as a potentially differentiated activin‑receptor pathway agent with metabolic effects observed in Phase I—reductions in visceral fat and preservation or increases in lean mass—alongside target engagement signals. Tony Wood, GSK’s CSO, noted the asset could expand the company’s respiratory, inflammation and metabolic portfolio. The transaction, subject to standard regulatory clearances, expands GSK’s respiratory and immunology pipeline and follows recent dealmaking aimed at bolstering late‑stage and specialty cardio‑pulmonary programs. For 35Pharma, the sale converts early clinical progress into near‑term cash and development support under GSK’s global infrastructure.
-
GSK inks up to $1B siRNA pact with Frontier Biotechnologies
GSK licensed two small interfering RNA (siRNA) assets from Frontier Biotechnologies in a deal that starts with a $40 million up‑front payment and can reach roughly $1 billion with milestones, the companies announced. Frontier retains progress on one candidate in Phase I in China and is completing IND‑enabling work on the other. Under the agreement, GSK will assume global development, manufacturing and commercialization responsibilities once clinical thresholds are met; Frontier stands to receive development and sales milestones plus royalties. The deal broadens GSK’s oligonucleotide portfolio alongside other recent oligo and siRNA transactions. For oligonucleotide developers, the transaction highlights continued Big Pharma appetite for externally sourced RNA therapeutics to fill immunology and rare‑disease pockets of their pipelines.
-
Gilead, Merck race on new daily HIV pills — weekly candidate also eyed
Gilead Sciences and Merck each reported data updates as they push forward novel daily HIV oral therapies while also exploring a longer‑acting weekly pill in partnership, the companies said. Both firms presented findings that advance individual daily compounds through clinical development and highlighted parallel efforts to create more convenient regimens for people living with HIV. The announcements reflect continued investment in oral antiretroviral innovation—optimizing tolerability, resistance profiles and dosing frequency. Industry participants noted that a weekly oral regimen, if proven safe and efficacious, would represent a meaningful adherence and quality‑of‑life improvement versus current daily dosing. Regulators and payers will watch safety and comparative efficacy closely as these programs advance; successful differentiation on dosing frequency and tolerability could reshape competitive dynamics in chronic HIV management.
-
Pharma joins federated AI for ADMET: Apheris launches ADMET Network
Apheris announced the ADMET Network, a federated data initiative enabling pharmaceutical companies to collaboratively train ADMET (absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion, toxicity) prediction models without sharing raw proprietary data. Founding members include Lundbeck, Orion, Recursion, Servier and another undisclosed partner; each committed substantial internal data to jointly train a global foundation model. Apheris’ CEO Robin Roehm said partners can fine‑tune models locally inside secure environments and run inference without exposing datasets, preserving program confidentiality while benefiting from broader industrial training. Recursion’s CEO Najat Khan emphasized ADMET’s role in reducing downstream clinical failures tied to dosing and PK issues. The network targets a critical preclinical bottleneck—ADMET‑related attrition—and illustrates growing adoption of federated learning in drug discovery to pool signal across corporate boundaries while minimizing competitive risk.
...and 5 more selected Biotech stories in today’s full edition — or archive.
Why BioBriefs?
- Expertly curated. We scan 200+ sources daily to deliver only what matters.
- Smart context. Each brief explains why it matters and who it impacts.
- Made for pros. Trusted by founders, scientists, investors, and strategists.
Who Reads BioBriefs?
- Biotech founders & execs
- R&D and Clinical leads
- Life sciences investors
- Regulators and BD pros
- Translational scientists and tech scouts
Stay sharp. Be first to what’s next.
About BioBriefs
We’re a team of biotech analysts, technical writers, and founders who know what it’s like to scan 40 tabs and still miss what matters. BioBriefs was built to solve that. We track the signals, condense the insights, and get them to you before your day starts.