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Hypertension drug approval in a new class
The FDA approved AstraZeneca’s baxdrostat (branded Baxfendy), marking the first authorization in a new aldosterone synthase inhibitor class for certain patients with hypertension. AstraZeneca said...
Biopharma funding signals: De-risked deal structures and shifting capital
JPMorgan reported that biopharma dealmaking surged in Q1 2026 even as early-stage venture funding stayed under pressure, with licensing activity carrying a large share of announced value. The...
New translational platform for cell and gene therapy trials in China
Dark Horse Consulting and Beijing-based KunTuo Research and Development announced a memorandum of understanding to streamline cell and gene therapy trial execution in China. The agreement is...
Clinical biomarkers and liquid biopsy to improve screening uptake
Delfi Diagnostics reported clinical utility data for its cfDNA-based FirstLook Lung liquid biopsy assay, showing increased lung cancer screening participation in a cluster-randomized...
Cell therapy innovation: IND clearance for CD94-targeted CAR T
MD Anderson received FDA IND clearance to begin a Phase I trial of JV-394, a CD94-targeted CAR T-cell therapy for patients with relapsed or refractory CD94-positive T/natural killer (NK) cell...
Oncology translational tech: CTC platform adoption for exercise-outcome studies
CelLBxHealth said AdventHealth will use its CelLBxHealth Parsortix circulating tumor cell (CTC) platform in two cancer studies evaluating whether exercise can improve patient outcomes. The ACTION...
Regulatory science: BIO comments on Plausible Mechanism Framework
The Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) submitted written comments supporting the FDA’s proposed “Plausible Mechanism Framework” for individualized or disease-targeted therapies when...
Biotech startup funding: Violet Therapeutics seed extension for RABID-seq mapping
Violet Therapeutics raised $4.8 million in a seed extension financing to advance its RABID-seq platform, which combines barcoded viral tracing with single-cell RNA sequencing to study interactions...
Regulatory – Medicare drug pricing legal fight ends
The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear multiple biopharma challenges to the Inflation Reduction Act’s Medicare drug price negotiation program, dealing another blow to the brand-drug industry’s...
FDA approval – First-in-class aldosterone synthase inhibitor expands hypertension options
The FDA approved AstraZeneca’s Baxfendy (baxdrostat), a first-in-class aldosterone synthase inhibitor intended for patients with hypertension not adequately controlled on other therapies. FDA...
Oncology – LAG-3 inhibitor fianlimab stumbles again in late-stage cancer
Regeneron’s LAG-3 inhibitor fianlimab missed a late-stage mark in melanoma, failing to significantly outperform Keytruda (pembrolizumab) in a Phase 3 setting in untreated patients with...
Dealmaking – Regeneron and Parabilis expand into peptide platform ADC-like strategy
Regeneron struck a collaboration with Parabilis Medicines to pursue new drugs across five undisclosed targets using Parabilis’ Helicon peptide platform. The structure includes $125 million upfront...
Diagnostics – cfDNA lung cancer screening tool lifts uptake in real-world trial
Delfi Diagnostics reported interim clinical-utility results for its FirstLook Lung cfDNA liquid-biopsy assay presented at the American Thoracic Society International Conference. In the...
Biotech funding – Violet Therapeutics raises for single-cell tracing platform
Violet Therapeutics raised $4.8 million in a seed extension financing as it advances its RABID-seq platform for mapping brain-cell interactions. The approach combines barcoded viral tracing with...
Rare disease / Neurodevelopment – Fragile X gets new preclinical target via EPAC2
UCLA Health researchers identified EPAC2 as a potential drug target for Fragile X syndrome after work in genetically engineered Fmr1 knockout mice. The study, published in Neuron, reported that...
Cancer therapeutics – Universal framework claim surfaces via award recognition
A research team associated with Davis Joseph announced a “universal framework” for treating cancer regardless of the organ of origin, and the work received the 2025 Ciechanover International...
Hematology / Emergency medicine – Whole blood versus components in prehospital trauma trial
A nationwide clinical trial from the University of Pittsburgh and UPMC found that whole blood and blood components were equally effective for prehospital resuscitation in patients with severe...
Infectious disease – WHO escalates DRC Ebola outbreak to PHEIC
The WHO classified the ongoing Bundibugyo ebolavirus outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo as a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC). The escalation reflects...
AstraZeneca hypertension approvals expand Baxfendy’s addressable market
The FDA approved AstraZeneca’s baxdrostat, extending access to the company’s adrenal-suppression hypertension approach for certain patients, AstraZeneca said Monday. The approval adds regulatory...
Merck’s next-generation ADC wins global Phase 3 traction
Merck reported its sac-TMT antibody-drug conjugate achieved a first global Phase 3 win ahead of schedule, marking a milestone for the company’s late-stage pipeline. The candidate, developed with...