Seattle-based Oncothyreon saw its shares plummet today amid speculation among investors that its experimental lung cancer vaccine isn’t going to work. Oncothyreon (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ONTY]]) shares fell 3.14 a share, or 37 percent, to $5.27 at 11 am Eastern today. The sell-off was triggered by news that Oncothyreon’s partner, Germany-based Merck KGaA, said an independent monitoring … Continue reading “Oncothyreon Shares Tumble on Lung Cancer Study Speculation”
Author: Luke Timmerman
Luke is an award-winning journalist specializing in life sciences. He has served as national biotechnology editor for Xconomy and national biotechnology reporter for Bloomberg News. Luke got started covering life sciences at The Seattle Times, where he was the lead reporter on an investigation of doctors who leaked confidential information about clinical trials to investors. The story won the Scripps Howard National Journalism Award and several other national prizes. Luke holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and during the 2005-2006 academic year, he was a Knight Science Journalism Fellow at MIT.
Five Reasons Illumina Should Fight Roche’s Insulting Low-Ball Bid
Illumina is like the Apple of the genomics business. Tools made by the San Diego company (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ILMN]]) are revered by genomics researchers around the world just like millions of consumers love their iPhones and iPads. And Illumina holds its dominant position at an enviable moment in history, as we’re heading into a scientific golden … Continue reading “Five Reasons Illumina Should Fight Roche’s Insulting Low-Ball Bid”
CytomX Therapeutics Seeks to One-Up Lilly, Amgen Cancer Drugs
There are lots of little biotech companies with dreams of beating the big boys, and one of those classic storylines is playing out in South San Francisco at CytomX Therapeutics. CytomX has fixed its attention on making an engineered antibody drug (which it calls a Probody) that is more precisely targeted to cancer cells, and … Continue reading “CytomX Therapeutics Seeks to One-Up Lilly, Amgen Cancer Drugs”
Xconomist of the Week: Roger Perlmutter’s Parting Thoughts on Amgen
[Updated: 1:50 pm PT] Roger Perlmutter had a long run by biotech standards, a full 11 years, to put his stamp on R&D at Amgen. Some of the work he oversaw was unequivocally good (denosumab for osteoporosis and cancer), some bad (the EPO debacle), and some of the record is still a work in progress (44 … Continue reading “Xconomist of the Week: Roger Perlmutter’s Parting Thoughts on Amgen”
Concert Nabs $200M Deal From Avanir to Make Psych Drugs
Lexington, MA-based Concert Pharmaceuticals has found a second partner looking to take advantage of its technology for making deuterium-modified drugs. Concert is announcing today that Aliso Viejo, CA-based Avanir Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AVNR]]) has bought a worldwide license to Concert’s experimental drug that modifies dextromethorphan as a treatment for neurological and psychiatric disorders. Concert is getting … Continue reading “Concert Nabs $200M Deal From Avanir to Make Psych Drugs”
Verinata’s Big Day Arrives, With Prenatal Down Syndrome Test Debut
Researchers have been dreaming for a couple decades of taking a simple blood draw from a pregnant woman, and using it to determine whether a developing fetus has Down syndrome. Now this week, after a decade of R&D fits and starts and $100 million of investment, doctors will be able to get their hands on … Continue reading “Verinata’s Big Day Arrives, With Prenatal Down Syndrome Test Debut”
Dendreon Adds ImClone Vets to New Management Team
[Updated: 1:40 pm 3/1] Seattle-based biotech company (NASDAQ: [[ticker:DNDN]]). Johnson, who took over as Dendreon’s CEO on February 1, today installed a trio of new executives. Two of the three are new hires who previously worked with Johnson at New York-based ImClone Systems before that company was acquired for $6.5 billion by Eli Lilly (NYSE: … Continue reading “Dendreon Adds ImClone Vets to New Management Team”
Tonic Health Looks to ‘Gamify’ Dull Doctor Office Forms
Fun isn’t the first thing that pops to mind when you’re asking thousands of people about their last mammogram. But Sterling Lanier is wagering that one of the dullest parts of modern healthcare, the standard patient questionnaire on a clipboard, can be made fun. It’s the organizing principle behind the startup he co-founded, Tonic Health. … Continue reading “Tonic Health Looks to ‘Gamify’ Dull Doctor Office Forms”
Dendreon Stock Tumbles As Company Projects ‘Moderate’ Sales Growth
Dendreon is finding out just how much investors love the precision of hard facts, and how irritated they can get with the squishiness of communicating in adjectives. The Seattle-based biotech company (NASDAQ: [[ticker:DNDN]]) saw its stock plummet about 21 percent today after saying in its quarterly financial update that it expects only “moderate” sales growth … Continue reading “Dendreon Stock Tumbles As Company Projects ‘Moderate’ Sales Growth”
Bruce Booth, a LifeSciVC Shining Some Much-Needed Light on Biotech
Techies who want to learn about high-tech venture capital learn quickly they must read blogs by guys like Fred Wilson and Brad Feld. They are insiders who speak with clear, consistent, and insightful voices about an otherwise opaque little corner of the investing world. Nobody has ever performed this kind of service for biotech venture … Continue reading “Bruce Booth, a LifeSciVC Shining Some Much-Needed Light on Biotech”
Crescendo Bioscience Takes Arthritis Into the World of Hard Data
Medicine can still sometimes look awfully primitive, despite all the whiz-bang developments in biotech. Take rheumatoid arthritis. Scientists don’t know what causes it, and clinicians have little hard data to help them diagnose it or measure patients’ progress over time. But that’s starting to change, based on a new molecular test from South San Francisco-based … Continue reading “Crescendo Bioscience Takes Arthritis Into the World of Hard Data”
Vertex Stays in HepC Game, as All-Oral Combo Passes Small Study
Vertex Pharmaceuticals, some investors theorized in recent months, was about to be left in the dust by other companies with more effective drugs in development against hepatitis C. Today, Vertex released some clinical trial data which just might make some folks wait a minute before declaring this story to be “Game Over.” The Cambridge, MA-based … Continue reading “Vertex Stays in HepC Game, as All-Oral Combo Passes Small Study”
Seattle Genetics Gets New Commercial Boss for Early Days of Adcetris
[Update: 2/24/12, 11 am PT] Seattle Genetics is getting a new leader for the commercial side of its business, about six months after its first cancer drug hit the U.S. market. The Bothell, WA-based cancer drugmaker (NASDAQ: [[ticker:SGEN]]) said today that Chris Boerner, the former vice president of marketing, has been promoted to senior vice … Continue reading “Seattle Genetics Gets New Commercial Boss for Early Days of Adcetris”
Reinventing Biotech: Meet Corey Goodman, Kevin Starr & More April 3
When people think of innovation in biotech, it’s usually about the whiz-bang science behind new drugs. But after years of sticking to a pretty standard playbook, we’re now starting to see more creative thinking in the business models needed to attract investors who keep the industry afloat. This is one of the big questions of … Continue reading “Reinventing Biotech: Meet Corey Goodman, Kevin Starr & More April 3”
Satori Snaps Up $15M for Alzheimer’s Drugs
A little more than 5 million people in the U.S. have Alzheimer’s disease, the numbers are climbing as baby boomers age, and pharma companies have never really come up with a good treatment. But now a group of venture capitalists are betting $15 million that a Cambridge, MA-based startup, Satori Pharmaceuticals, has found a better … Continue reading “Satori Snaps Up $15M for Alzheimer’s Drugs”
InDi, Lee Hood’s Vision for Spotting Cancer in Blood, Snags $10M
Biotech pioneer Leroy Hood has spent years outlining a vision of finding networks of proteins in the blood that can offer an early warning sign of cancer on the move. Now the startup that Hood and Caltech’s Jim Heath founded to pursue that idea, Seattle-based Integrated Diagnostics, has raised another $10 million to turn it … Continue reading “InDi, Lee Hood’s Vision for Spotting Cancer in Blood, Snags $10M”
Enanta Enters HepC Big Leagues, With $34M Upfront From Novartis
Watertown, MA-based Enanta Pharmaceuticals just took a step ahead in the hepatitis C drug development derby. Enanta said today it has secured an exclusive deal with Novartis to co-develop an experimental hepatitis C drug, dubbed EDP-239, that’s designed to work by blocking a protein called NS5A. The deal provides Enanta with $34 million in upfront … Continue reading “Enanta Enters HepC Big Leagues, With $34M Upfront From Novartis”
Oh, And One More Thing: A Wowser Moment in DNA Sequencing
[Updated and corrected, 10:15 am PT] Steve Jobs used to love being on stage, getting the audience in the palm of his hand. Famously, he’d say, “Oh, and one more thing,” to build suspense right before delivering some stunning line about a new Apple product. Last week, that same showmanship was at work in a … Continue reading “Oh, And One More Thing: A Wowser Moment in DNA Sequencing”
Cell Therapeutics Stock Rises on EU Recommendation for Lymphoma Drug
The roller coaster known as Cell Therapeutics is back on the ascent today. The Seattle-based biotech company (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CTIC]]) said its experimental lymphoma drug pixantrone (Pixuvri) has received a positive recommendation from the European Medicines Agency’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use. This is one of the key steps in the European regulatory process … Continue reading “Cell Therapeutics Stock Rises on EU Recommendation for Lymphoma Drug”
Amp Orthopedics Takes Aim at Boomers’ Achy Knees and Shoulders
Westlake Center is the place in Seattle to shop, people watch, or protest. It’s not exactly ground zero for hotshot medical device startups. But to Amp Orthopedics, the town’s downtown retail core was as good a place as any to pursue its dream of making a fortune by soothing the ailing knees and shoulders of … Continue reading “Amp Orthopedics Takes Aim at Boomers’ Achy Knees and Shoulders”
AvidBiotics Sees New Angle for Personalized Medicine in Antibiotics
When you hear about personalized medicine, you might think first of the applications for cancer treatment, or maybe cystic fibrosis. But Dave Martin, the former head of R&D at Genentech, is thinking about personalized medicine in a whole new context—for antibiotics. This concept, at South San Francisco-based AvidBiotics, is still at its earliest stages of … Continue reading “AvidBiotics Sees New Angle for Personalized Medicine in Antibiotics”
Vertex’s Big Day Felt Like Moon Landing, Seattle Researcher Says
Bonnie Ramsey said three years ago that a cystic fibrosis drug from Vertex Pharmaceuticals was a huge medical advance in the making, and would end up being an achievement on par with putting a man on the moon, at least for her patients. Yesterday, she says, was the day it truly felt like she was … Continue reading “Vertex’s Big Day Felt Like Moon Landing, Seattle Researcher Says”
Vertex Gets FDA Go-Ahead To Sell New Cystic Fibrosis Drug
[Updated: 1:25 pm] Vertex Pharmaceuticals is now officially more than just a one-hit wonder. The Cambridge, MA-based biotech company (NASDAQ: [[ticker:VRTX]]), best known for its hepatitis C drug, has won clearance from the FDA to start selling a new twice-daily pill called ivacaftor (Kalydeco) for a rare form of cystic fibrosis. The FDA said today … Continue reading “Vertex Gets FDA Go-Ahead To Sell New Cystic Fibrosis Drug”
Optimer, Following Pfizer’s Playbook, Has Big Plans for Antibiotic
Pfizer was where Pedro Lichtinger learned about pharmaceutical marketing from people who did some amazing things. For starters, New York-based Pfizer (NYSE: [[ticker:PFE]]) turned an old-school antifungal medicine into a $1.6 billion cash cow. Now as the CEO of San Diego-based Optimer Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:OPTR]]) Lichtinger is borrowing some ideas from that experience, looking to make … Continue reading “Optimer, Following Pfizer’s Playbook, Has Big Plans for Antibiotic”
Gates, 13 Pharmas Join $785M Push for Neglected Diseases
[Corrected 2/8/12. See below.] The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has joined with 13 pharmaceutical companies and leading public health organizations as part of a massive $785 million drive to wipe out—or at least better control—10 historically neglected tropical diseases by the end of the decade. [Edited to reflect that the total value of the … Continue reading “Gates, 13 Pharmas Join $785M Push for Neglected Diseases”
Cell Therapeutics Pulls FDA Application, Saying It Isn’t Ready For Panel
Cell Therapeutics suffered an embarrassing defeat the last time it appeared in front of an FDA advisory panel and today the company made a move that will enable it to avoid another public shellacking, at least for a while. The Seattle-based biotech company (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CTIC]]) said today it has withdrawn its application to start selling … Continue reading “Cell Therapeutics Pulls FDA Application, Saying It Isn’t Ready For Panel”
Never Back Smug: A Lesson for Life Sciences From Newt Gingrich
Newt Gingrich comes across on TV as someone who radiates smugness. It’s that sense that he’s not just confident in his own abilities, but extremely satisfied with his talents and his utter superiority over mere mortals like you and me. I’m no political pundit, nor a psychologist, so I’ll let others analyze whether Newt is … Continue reading “Never Back Smug: A Lesson for Life Sciences From Newt Gingrich”
Amylin, Alkermes Win FDA Approval of Once-Weekly Diabetes Drug
[Updated: 3:47 pm] Amylin Pharmaceuticals and Alkermes have gone to the FDA twice before to seek approval of their new diabetes drug, and been turned back, but now the persistence has paid off. The FDA has cleared their once-weekly injectable diabetes drug for sale in the U.S. San Diego-based Amylin (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AMLN]]) and Dublin- and … Continue reading “Amylin, Alkermes Win FDA Approval of Once-Weekly Diabetes Drug”
Infinity Drug Fails in Pancreatic Cancer Trial, Shares Fall
Bad news out today from Infinity Pharmaceuticals. The Cambridge, MA-based biotech company said it is halting a mid-stage clinical trial of its drug for pancreatic cancer early after learning that patients were living longer in the placebo comparison group. Infinity (NASDAQ: [[ticker:INFI]]) shares fell more than 30 percent after the news. The trial of 122 … Continue reading “Infinity Drug Fails in Pancreatic Cancer Trial, Shares Fall”
OncoGenex Stays in Prostate Cancer Fray, After J&J, Medivation
Prostate cancer was once a backwater for innovation, but suddenly it’s become one of the most competitive battlegrounds in all of biotech. And one of the darkhorses in this race, Bothell, WA and Vancouver, BC-based OncoGenex Pharmaceuticals, is getting ready to show next week whether it has another contender in the pipeline. OncoGenex (NASDAQ: [[ticker:OGXI]]) … Continue reading “OncoGenex Stays in Prostate Cancer Fray, After J&J, Medivation”
Why Biogen Idec Got Out of the Corporate VC Business
Steve Holtzman got his first taste of corporate venture capital back in 1987, when he raised money from SR One, back when it was part of an old company known as Smith, Kline & French. The concept was unorthodox 25 years ago, yet over time, most every Big Pharma company has become an active equity … Continue reading “Why Biogen Idec Got Out of the Corporate VC Business”
Verastem Bucks the Trend, Raises $55M in IPO
Cambridge, MA-based Verastem, the biotech startup seeking to make drugs against cancer stem cells, found a way to rustle up enough demand from investors to complete its initial public offering. The company (NASDAQ: [[ticker:VSTM]]) said tonight that it raised $55 million by selling 5.5 million new shares at $10 apiece. It was a strong showing … Continue reading “Verastem Bucks the Trend, Raises $55M in IPO”
Shout Outs for Avila From Polaris, Atlas, & the Twittersphere
Avila Therapeutics, after just five years in business and $51 million in venture capital, made big news today when it agreed to be acquired by Celgene for $350 million upfront plus another $575 million in milestone payments. Naturally, there are a lot of people celebrating the success of the Bedford, MA-based company today around the … Continue reading “Shout Outs for Avila From Polaris, Atlas, & the Twittersphere”
Theraclone, VLST Founders Form New Antibody Startup, V-Gene
Two of the scientific founders of a couple of Seattle’s best-funded biotech startups have come together in a new company that aims to create a valuable antibody drug candidates while burning through the least amount of venture capital possible. The new Seattle-based company, called V-Gene, is being started by combining a couple of technologies developed … Continue reading “Theraclone, VLST Founders Form New Antibody Startup, V-Gene”
Roche Makes $5.7B Hostile Takeover Bid for Illumina
San Diego-based Illumina, the market leading maker of DNA sequencing instruments, has just made it through a rough year, and now it may be entering its final chapters as an independent company. Illumina (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ILMN]]) said last night that it has gotten an unsolicited (that’s polite PR language for hostile) takeover bid from Switzerland-based Roche. … Continue reading “Roche Makes $5.7B Hostile Takeover Bid for Illumina”
Affymax Prepares to Mount Challenge to Amgen Anemia Drug Monopoly
Affymax shocked the world when an FDA advisory committee recommended last month that its anemia drug was good enough to earn a spot on the U.S. market. Now the Palo Alto, CA-based company (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AFFY]]) is making all sorts of moves behind the scenes that will determine how big a bite it will take out … Continue reading “Affymax Prepares to Mount Challenge to Amgen Anemia Drug Monopoly”
Vertex Vows to Fight On With Alios Drugs in High-Stakes Hepatitis C Race
Vertex Pharmaceuticals went from king of the hill in the treatment of hepatitis C to yesterday’s news in about six wild months. But while many on Wall Street say Vertex’s big drug will soon become obsolete, Vertex and its small partner in South San Francisco have quietly put themselves in position to defend a big … Continue reading “Vertex Vows to Fight On With Alios Drugs in High-Stakes Hepatitis C Race”
Novo Nordisk Adds Diabetes Research to Seattle Immunology Team
Novo Nordisk, the world’s largest maker of diabetes treatments, is increasing its bet on Seattle’s biomedical research community. Denmark-based Novo said today it is establishing a new center with 20 scientists in Seattle who will conduct research into type 1 diabetes. This new group will be housed in South Lake Union alongside Novo’s team of … Continue reading “Novo Nordisk Adds Diabetes Research to Seattle Immunology Team”
Millennium Wins FDA OK for New Velcade, Looks to Fend Off Onyx
Millennium is the house that Velcade built, and today it’s gotten the green light to start marketing what it considers to be a new and improved version of the hit drug for multiple myeloma. The Cambridge, MA-based cancer drug developer, part of Japan-based Takeda Pharmaceuticals, said today it has gotten clearance from the FDA to … Continue reading “Millennium Wins FDA OK for New Velcade, Looks to Fend Off Onyx”
Biotech Is Raising More Cash, But Don’t Be Fooled: Startups are Hurting
Mark Twain used to toss around a saying about three kinds of lies. There are lies, damned lies, and statistics. This week in biotech, we saw some statistics that could lead some people to get a false impression that everything is just peachy in biotechland. If you measure the state of life science innovation by … Continue reading “Biotech Is Raising More Cash, But Don’t Be Fooled: Startups are Hurting”
Infinity Offers Hint Of Effect With Pancreatic Cancer Drug
Infinity Pharmaceuticals released some preliminary data last June that suggested it may be onto something for pancreatic cancer, and now it has gathered a bit more evidence to support its case. The Cambridge, MA-based biotech company (NASDAQ: [[ticker:INFI]]) is announcing results today from a small study of 16 patients that suggest its experimental once-a-day pill, … Continue reading “Infinity Offers Hint Of Effect With Pancreatic Cancer Drug”
Report: UCSF Chancellor Proposes Autonomy in State University System
[Updated: Noon, 1/21/12] UCSF could end up being a much more independent institution if chancellor Susan Desmond-Hellmann gets her way. That’s according to a story today in the San Francisco Chronicle, which reported on a proposal Desmond-Hellmann put forward this week to University of California regents, who were meeting at UC Riverside. The plan would … Continue reading “Report: UCSF Chancellor Proposes Autonomy in State University System”
Genzyme, Veracyte Strike Deal to Market Thyroid Cancer Diagnostic
Veracyte has been gaining momentum the past few months with a new molecular diagnostic for thyroid cancer, and today it’s taking another step ahead by forming an alliance with Genzyme, the maker of a common drug for treating the disease. South San Francisco-based Veracyte said today that it has formed a global co-promotion deal with … Continue reading “Genzyme, Veracyte Strike Deal to Market Thyroid Cancer Diagnostic”
Millennium, Looking to Fend Off Onyx, Awaits FDA Word on New Velcade
The drug that made Millennium into a biotech power is on the verge of getting a subtle but meaningful upgrade, just in time to help the company fend off a serious new competing therapy from South San Francisco-based Onyx Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ONXX]]). Cambridge, MA-based Millennium, the cancer drug unit of Takeda Pharmaceuticals, is awaiting word … Continue reading “Millennium, Looking to Fend Off Onyx, Awaits FDA Word on New Velcade”
Clarus Ventures Adjusts to Unpredictable Biotech World
[[Correction: 11:20 am ET]] It’s never been easy to make a buck in biotech venture capital, but there used to be more predictability and logic to it, according to Clarus Ventures’ Nick Galakatos. You’d invest a few million, or tens of millions, and push a new drug or device toward some scientific validation in a … Continue reading “Clarus Ventures Adjusts to Unpredictable Biotech World”
Alnylam Cuts One-Third of Workforce, To Save Cash for RNAi Clinical Plans
Cambridge, MA-based Alnylam Pharmaceuticals is getting rid of about one-third of its workforce, as it looks to save cash for clinical trials that it hopes will prove the value of its RNA interference drug technology. Alnylam (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ALNY]]) said today it’s cutting 33 percent of its staff, as it looks to concentrate its cash reserves … Continue reading “Alnylam Cuts One-Third of Workforce, To Save Cash for RNAi Clinical Plans”
Join Kevin Starr, Corey Goodman, Carl Weissman & More in Seattle April 3
Biotech companies once dreamed of building soup-to-nuts operations that put everything under one corporate flag. You’d have research, development, marketing, manufacturing all together in one big team of bright people taking big risks. Think first-generation companies like Amgen, Genentech, Genzyme. The days of starting companies like that are mostly in the past, thanks in part … Continue reading “Join Kevin Starr, Corey Goodman, Carl Weissman & More in Seattle April 3”
Frazier Healthcare Aims for First Biotech VC Fund After Financial Crisis
Alan Frazier has been on record for a long time saying that the traditional biotech venture model is broken, and in severe need of updating. He’s been working on a new strategy for the past seven years or so, but the approach is facing its biggest test ever as Frazier prepares to raise his first … Continue reading “Frazier Healthcare Aims for First Biotech VC Fund After Financial Crisis”
Cadence Biomedical Snags First $1M to Help Disabled People Walk
One of the co-founders of HealthTech Capital, Don Ross, offered Brian Glaister a blunt assessment last summer when the young entrepreneur came pitching a new device to help disabled people walk. Ross responded that his wife, Donna Jang, is a stroke survivor who struggles to walk more than a couple minutes at a time. She … Continue reading “Cadence Biomedical Snags First $1M to Help Disabled People Walk”
J&J Opens San Diego Biotech Startup Center, Says ‘No Strings Attached’
Johnson & Johnson’s West Coast research leader, Diego Miralles, has met with a lot of biotech entrepreneurs who are curious about what J&J is doing to foster more startups at its facility in San Diego. At some point, a skeptical question usually comes up. “What’s the catch?” Miralles says he’s sometimes asked. He insists there … Continue reading “J&J Opens San Diego Biotech Startup Center, Says ‘No Strings Attached’”