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AI protein design draws capital—Profluent and Iambic scale platforms
Two AI‑focused protein design firms announced major financings to accelerate therapeutics and enzyme development. Profluent raised $106 million to expand large‑scale models for protein design and...
Genetic elements stabilize ecDNA; tumor‑reactive CD8 clusters mapped
A Nature study identified specific genetic elements that promote retention of extrachromosomal DNA (ecDNA) in cancer cells, clarifying a key mechanism behind oncogene amplification and rapid tumor...
FDA clears targeted oncology drugs – Komzifti and Bayer’s Hyrnuo
Regulators advanced two targeted oncology approvals. The U.S. FDA approved ziftomenib (Komzifti), a selective oral menin inhibitor from Kura Oncology/Kyowa Kirin, for relapsed/refractory...
U.S. biomanufacturing push gains momentum – COE bill and Thermo Fisher centers
U.S. lawmakers introduced bipartisan legislation to create a National Biopharmaceutical Manufacturing Center of Excellence (COE) to accelerate domestic manufacturing methods, regulatory...
Abbott in talks — Exact Sciences acquisition could reshape cancer testing
Bloomberg reported that Abbott Laboratories is in talks to acquire cancer-diagnostics company Exact Sciences, potentially within days. Exact Sciences sells the stool-based colorectal-screening...
Prime editing... one platform to treat many genetic diseases
David Liu’s Broad Institute team published a prime-editing approach called PERT that permanently converts an endogenous tRNA into a suppressor tRNA, enabling one editing agent to rescue diverse...
FDA clears ziftomenib — first menin inhibitor for NPM1‑mutant AML
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Kura Oncology and Kyowa Kirin’s ziftomenib (Komzifti), a selective oral menin inhibitor, for relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia with NPM1...
Tessera to test gene writing in humans — in vivo program enters clinic
Tessera Therapeutics confirmed it will begin its first-in-human trial next month for an in vivo gene‑writing platform, targeting adults with a rare genetic disease (alpha‑related condition...
Genomic foundation models and semantic design reshape synthetic biology
Researchers announced two advances that move AI‑driven genomics toward practical design: BGI’s Genos, a human‑centric genomic foundation model trained on hundreds of near telomere‑to‑telomere...
Merck shells out for Cidara — big bet on long‑acting influenza prevention
Merck agreed to acquire Cidara Therapeutics for $9.2 billion to secure CD388, a late‑stage, long‑acting, strain‑agnostic antiviral designed to prevent symptomatic influenza in high‑risk...
Roche’s oral SERD delays recurrence — adjuvant win shakes breast‑cancer landscape
Roche/Genentech reported positive Phase III data from Lidera showing its oral selective estrogen receptor degrader giredestrant improved invasive disease‑free survival compared with standard...
First‑in‑class FcγRI blockers suppress autoimmune pathology in preclinical models
Scientists at UMC Utrecht reported two FcγRI‑specific antibodies (C01 and C04) that competitively block high‑affinity IgG binding to CD64 (FcγRI) and suppress autoimmune responses in preclinical...
AI biotech funding surges — Profluent and Iambic raise major rounds
Two AI‑focused biotechs announced large financing rounds this week: Profluent raised $106 million to accelerate its AI protein‑design platform and commercial deployments across therapeutics,...
Spatial multi‑omics alliance and tumor atlases boost translational cancer biology
Two separate spatial‑biology initiatives advanced this week: the Asia‑Pacific Spatial Translational Research Alliance (ASTRA), led by Garvan Institute and University of Tokyo, will use 10x...
Merck snaps up Cidara for $9.2B — Influenza prevention bet
Merck agreed to buy Cidara Therapeutics for $9.2 billion to add CD388, a long-acting, strain-agnostic influenza antiviral, to its respiratory portfolio. Cidara’s CD388 combines a neuraminidase...
J&J shells out $3.05B for Halda — Precision oncology scale-up
Johnson & Johnson agreed to acquire Halda Therapeutics for $3.05 billion in cash to expand its oncology pipeline with Halda’s precision oncology candidates, led by HLD‑0915 for metastatic...
Roche’s oral SERD wins pivotal adjuvant readout — breast cancer landscape shifts
Roche reported positive Phase III adjuvant results for its oral selective estrogen receptor degrader (SERD) giredestrant, showing a statistically significant improvement in invasive disease‑free...
Broad’s Liu unveils PERT prime‑editing platform — one agent, many diseases
Researchers in David Liu’s lab at the Broad Institute described a prime editing strategy called PERT (prime editing‑installed suppressor tRNAs) that converts endogenous tRNAs into suppressor RNAs...
Tessera to enter humans: Flagship’s gene writing platform hits clinic
Tessera Therapeutics announced it will start its first human trial next month, testing its in vivo gene writing platform in adults with a rare genetic disease (alpha‑related indication disclosed...
Arrowhead’s RNAi drug cleared — commercial launch and pricing battle begins
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals’ RNAi therapy plozasiran (Redemplo) for familial chylomicronemia syndrome (FCS), making Arrowhead a commercial‑stage RNAi...