Biotech venture capitalists, as a group, haven’t had much to cheer about the past few years. But this is shaping up to be the year the storyline changes, thanks to the ripple effect from the biotech IPO class of 2013. The story of biotech venture capital over the past few years, as many readers know … Continue reading “Which VCs Are Poised to Profit From the Biotech IPO Boom?”
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.
iPierian Nabs $30M To Keep Alzheimer’s, Autoimmune Drugs Moving
iPierian could easily have crashed a couple years ago as just another overhyped stem cell startup. But the South San Francisco-based company has quietly kept plugging away the past couple years, and the reinvented antibody drug developer just secured a fresh $30 million in financing to take its two leading product candidates into clinical trials. … Continue reading “iPierian Nabs $30M To Keep Alzheimer’s, Autoimmune Drugs Moving”
Former Dendreon CEO and Dendreon Bull Start New Biotech Hedge Fund
Mitch Gold made a lot of money as the CEO of Dendreon (NASDAQ: [[ticker:DNDN]]), the Seattle-based cancer drug developer. David Miller made his reputation as an investment analyst with in-depth, bullish reports on the company. Now these two are going to work together on a new Seattle-based biotech hedge fund called Alpine BioVentures. Gold isn’t … Continue reading “Former Dendreon CEO and Dendreon Bull Start New Biotech Hedge Fund”
Biotech and Fantasy Football Picks for Fall 2013
There’s an old saying about surgeons. They are “sometimes wrong; never in doubt.” If only the same could be said for biotech writers. I’ve been sometimes right, sometimes wrong, and sometimes embarrassingly wrong the past couple years I’ve made predictions about biotech and fantasy football. Last year, I doubted both Adrian Peterson, the Minnesota Vikings … Continue reading “Biotech and Fantasy Football Picks for Fall 2013”
Why Good Drugs Sometimes Fail: The Bexxar Story
Quite a few biotech entrepreneurs go to work each day operating under the assumption that clinical trial data is king. If you put together a rock-solid dataset from a big clinical trial that says your experimental drug beats today’s standard of care, then you’re onto something big, or so the line of thinking goes. Everything … Continue reading “Why Good Drugs Sometimes Fail: The Bexxar Story”
Amgen Agrees to Buy Onyx for $125 Per Share, or $10.4B
[Updated: 6:15 pm PT] Amgen got what it wanted from Onyx Pharmaceuticals in the end. The Thousand Oaks, CA-based biotech giant (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AMGN]]) said today it has agreed to acquire South San Francisco-based Onyx Pharmaceuticals for $125 a share in cash, for a total value of $10.4 billion. Amgen said it is making a tender … Continue reading “Amgen Agrees to Buy Onyx for $125 Per Share, or $10.4B”
Tissue Regeneration Systems Nabs $4.6M to Improve Facial Surgeries
Tissue Regeneration Systems, a startup with offices in Kirkland, WA and Ann Arbor, MI, has raised $4.6 million to see if it can come up with a product to make life a little easier for patients who need significant bone replacement as part of complex facial and jaw surgeries. The company has picked up its … Continue reading “Tissue Regeneration Systems Nabs $4.6M to Improve Facial Surgeries”
Cellscape Hunts for Fetal Cells in Mom, Pushing Diagnostic Frontier
[Correction: 3:15 pm PT] You can learn a lot about a potential human being if you can get your hands on a few red blood cells from a developing fetus. The thing is, these cells are fragile and hard to obtain. More than 50 companies have tried and failed to create a reliable, noninvasive way … Continue reading “Cellscape Hunts for Fetal Cells in Mom, Pushing Diagnostic Frontier”
Who Should Biotech Pros Follow on Twitter? An Update for 2013
[Updated: 12:07 pm PT] Twitter is where the biotech industry comes to trade news, analysis, and gossip every day. This has been true for a couple years. The 140-character blogging platform just keeps gaining strength every day as more people join, more people figure out how they can contribute in a meaningful way, and more … Continue reading “Who Should Biotech Pros Follow on Twitter? An Update for 2013”
Hutch’s “Project Violet” Taps Crowd, Seeks $20M for Drug Discovery
Many scientists are dreaming these days about using crowdfunding to raise money for their projects, through platforms like Kickstarter. Usually the scientists seek to raise a few thousand bucks in the name of a fairly incremental advancement in our understanding of biology. Jim Olson and his team at Seattle’s Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center are … Continue reading “Hutch’s “Project Violet” Taps Crowd, Seeks $20M for Drug Discovery”
Fate Therapeutics Joins Biotech IPO Conga Line, Reaching for $69M
San Diego-based Fate Therapeutics, the company that made a big splash a few years ago when it rounded up some big-name scientists with aspirations to do big things with stem cells, is the latest biotech startup to fix its gaze on IPO riches. The company filed an initial public offering prospectus today with the Securities … Continue reading “Fate Therapeutics Joins Biotech IPO Conga Line, Reaching for $69M”
Gates Foundation Lures Biotech VC to Work on Global Health Startups
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has people with big Rolodexes that extend into high levels of government, philanthropy, public health, and Big Pharma. Now the organization has hired someone to open doors to biotech entrepreneurs and venture capitalists. Bob More, a former partner with Frazier Healthcare Ventures and Domain Associates, recently joined the Gates … Continue reading “Gates Foundation Lures Biotech VC to Work on Global Health Startups”
Six Reasons Why Giving Scientists Big Bonuses Won’t Fix Pharma R&D
Scientists in the biotech and pharmaceutical industry are an underappreciated bunch. They make decent salaries, but nowhere near the big bucks that go to their bosses. Even when an industry scientist discovers a new drug that helps people and makes billions, he or she almost never gets publicly recognized. They live mostly anonymous middle class … Continue reading “Six Reasons Why Giving Scientists Big Bonuses Won’t Fix Pharma R&D”
Dendreon Says Sales Will Decline in 2013, Shares Fall
Seattle-based Dendreon set a modest goal this year. It wanted to see annual sales of its prostate cancer drug increase. The company didn’t say it wanted a 30 percent increase or a 20 percent increase—just an increase. Today, it said it’s likely to fall short of that relatively mild ambition. Dendreon (NASDAQ: [[ticker:DNDN]]) said today … Continue reading “Dendreon Says Sales Will Decline in 2013, Shares Fall”
VLST, After Nine Years and $50M, Sells Assets and Winds Down
VLST, a Seattle biotech company that raised about $50 million in its nine-year history, has wound down all its operations and sold off its remaining assets, Xconomy has learned. The names of the buyers, and the price they paid for VLST’s components, aren’t being disclosed, said VLST’s former CEO Marty Simonetti. One buyer has scooped … Continue reading “VLST, After Nine Years and $50M, Sells Assets and Winds Down”
Medicines Buys ProFibrix, Led by Former Zymonite, for $90M
[Updated: 4:55 pm PT] ProFibrix, the Netherlands-based biotech company with a Seattle drug development office, has agreed to be acquired by The Medicines Company for $240 million after passing the final stage of clinical trials with a new treatment for surgical bleeding. Parsippany, NJ-based The Medicines Co. (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MDCO]]) said today it has agreed to … Continue reading “Medicines Buys ProFibrix, Led by Former Zymonite, for $90M”
Celgene Emerges as Biotech’s Shrewdest, Nimblest Dealmaker
Celgene is best known for taking a notoriously dangerous compound, thalidomide, and turning a derivative into a hugely successful cancer drug. But what fewer people may realize is that it is fast building the biotech industry’s best network of partnerships with innovators. This feels odd to say, even though Celgene (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CELG]]) has been a … Continue reading “Celgene Emerges as Biotech’s Shrewdest, Nimblest Dealmaker”
Omeros Seeks FDA Green Light For Eye Surgery Drug
Omeros will be 20 years old as a company next year, and it hopes to celebrate that milestone by getting the go-ahead to start selling its first new drug. Seattle-based Omeros (NASDAQ: [[ticker:OMER]]) said today it has filed an application to the FDA for clearance to start selling OMS302, an experimental drug to help people … Continue reading “Omeros Seeks FDA Green Light For Eye Surgery Drug”
Theraclone Merges With PharmAthene, Plans to Stay in Seattle
[Updated: 11:40 am] Theraclone Sciences is likely headed for the public markets, but not through the IPO route. Seattle-based Theraclone, the developer of targeted antibody drugs, said today it has agreed to a merger with Annapolis, MD-based PharmAthene (NYSE MKT: [[ticker:PIP]]). The combined company will be headquartered in Seattle and led by CEO Cliff Stocks, while PharmAthene … Continue reading “Theraclone Merges With PharmAthene, Plans to Stay in Seattle”
Cubist Adds Antibiotic Punch, Buys Trius and Optimer for $1.24B
Cubist Pharmaceuticals wants to become more than another biotech company with a nice little franchise built around a single drug. So today it opened up the checkbook, shelled out more than $1.24 billion, and acquired a couple more drugs that will make it a much more formidable player in the antibiotics world. Lexington, MA-based Cubist … Continue reading “Cubist Adds Antibiotic Punch, Buys Trius and Optimer for $1.24B”
Pharma Fails Credibility Test, Misses Opportunity, on Transparency
Some of the biggest scandals in the pharmaceutical industry (think Vioxx and Avandia) have been about drug safety, and how much of the clinical trial data on prescription drugs—especially the negative stuff—is kept hidden. Not surprisingly, some scientists, physicians, regulators, and patients have joined forces to push for all clinical-trial results, positive or negative, to … Continue reading “Pharma Fails Credibility Test, Misses Opportunity, on Transparency”
Audentes, Loaded With $30M, Pursues Gene Therapy for Rare Diseases
Five years ago, hardly anybody would invest in a startup focused on gene therapies for ultra-rare diseases. But gene therapy has been on the comeback trail, and a San Francisco startup called Audentes Therapeutics has corralled $30 million to see if it can overcome some of the obstacles that have tripped up others in this … Continue reading “Audentes, Loaded With $30M, Pursues Gene Therapy for Rare Diseases”
Vertex Sees Liver Toxicity With Emerging Hep C Drug, Faces FDA Hold
Vertex Pharmaceuticals suffered a meaningful setback today in its bid to remain a long-term player in the treatment of hepatitis C. The Cambridge, MA-based biotech company (NASDAQ: [[ticker:VRTX]]) said today that the FDA has stopped the company from giving certain doses of its VX-135 drug candidate for hepatitis C in a mid-stage U.S. study, after … Continue reading “Vertex Sees Liver Toxicity With Emerging Hep C Drug, Faces FDA Hold”
The Biotech IPO Phenomenon of 2013: Enjoy It While It Lasts
The year is only half over, but one of the biggest biotech stories of 2013 is going to be the resurgence of the biotech IPO market. It’s a good news/bad news story, depending on where you stand, and how far you look out into the future. First, the good. The IPO surge is a vote … Continue reading “The Biotech IPO Phenomenon of 2013: Enjoy It While It Lasts”
OncoMed Pharmaceuticals Soars in IPO Debut
The stock market can’t seem to get enough of biotech IPOs these days, and OncoMed Pharmaceuticals is the latest company to cash in. Redwood City, CA-based OncoMed Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:OMED]]) sold 4.8 million shares to IPO investors last night at $17 apiece, for a total fundraising haul of $81 million. But once the company first … Continue reading “OncoMed Pharmaceuticals Soars in IPO Debut”
SMC Bio Looks to Heal Bones With Carbohydrates, Not Stem Cells
The secret to regenerative medicine doesn’t really lie in a lab dish with stem cells, or some engineered protein that stimulates tissue growth, at least to the folks at one Bay Area biotech startup. The big regenerative medicine opportunity at SMC Biotechnology comes from an unlikely source—carbohydrates from pig intestines. SMC Bio, a little Redwood … Continue reading “SMC Bio Looks to Heal Bones With Carbohydrates, Not Stem Cells”
Ceterix Comes Out With Tool to Repair, Not Remove, Knee Cartilage
The cushy crescents of cartilage in the middle of your knee joint—if you’re lucky to still have them—are called the menisci. They go bad for a lot of runners and athletes, as well as plenty of sedentary people as they get older. Now a Bay Area medical device startup has come out with a tool … Continue reading “Ceterix Comes Out With Tool to Repair, Not Remove, Knee Cartilage”
Why I Won’t Cheer If Onyx Pharma Is Sold for Megabucks
Sometime in the coming weeks, South San Francisco-based Onyx Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ONXX]]) will probably be acquired by some big drugmaker for more than $10 billion. Shareholders will count their profits. Analysts will applaud. Financial media will speculate about whether this deal will spark more acquisitions in the biotech industry. But I won’t be cheering. I’ll … Continue reading “Why I Won’t Cheer If Onyx Pharma Is Sold for Megabucks”
LSINW Roundup: Alder, Omeros, Adaptive and Women to Watch
The weather is great in Seattle, the tourists are here. It must be time to invite folks in for a biotech conference. The local biotech community came together yesterday at the Washington State Convention Center for its biggest annual gathering, Life Science Innovation Northwest. Steve Burrill came and gave his usual healthcare world overview talk … Continue reading “LSINW Roundup: Alder, Omeros, Adaptive and Women to Watch”
Nine Observations on Leadership From North America’s Highest Peak
People are always striving to develop their leadership skills, or to find a leader worth following. But sometimes the trick is recognizing when you’re in the presence of strong leadership, and learning from it. Your normal BioBeat will return to this space next week, but lately I’ve been fixated on absorbing leadership lessons for business … Continue reading “Nine Observations on Leadership From North America’s Highest Peak”
The Denali Expedition: A Photo Essay
I’ve been dreaming about Denali since I started climbing mountains a decade ago with two best friends. This is the year we made it happen. As many Xconomy readers know, I just returned from a successful three-week expedition to climb Alaska’s Denali, the highest peak in North America. Many saw me grow a beard to … Continue reading “The Denali Expedition: A Photo Essay”
While I Was Away on Denali: NanoString, Mirabilis, Seattle Genetics
This week, I flew home after a three-week expedition to summit the highest peak in North America—Alaska’s Denali (Mt. McKinley). Three weeks is a long time in the news business. So here’s a roundup of Seattle biotech highlights that I missed, many of which were covered by colleagues who held down the fort. —Jens Quistgaard … Continue reading “While I Was Away on Denali: NanoString, Mirabilis, Seattle Genetics”
Profiles in Long-Termism: Sarepta Therapeutics CEO Chris Garabedian
Biotech is a long-term business, in a world that places more value on short-term thinking. Pharma companies often cut long-term R&D budgets, or do disastrous mega-mergers, mainly to juice their profits for a quarter or two. But sometimes people come along who are willing and able to buck the trends. They have a strategy for … Continue reading “Profiles in Long-Termism: Sarepta Therapeutics CEO Chris Garabedian”
UW Spinout Cardiac Insight Wins FDA OK for Heartbeat Monitor
[Updated: 3:55 pm PT] Medical device startups often need to live on shoestring budgets as a lot of venture capital has dried up in the wake of the Great Recession, but Bellevue, WA-based Cardiac Insight has proven that you can sometimes come up with innovative new devices for less than $2 million. The company, a … Continue reading “UW Spinout Cardiac Insight Wins FDA OK for Heartbeat Monitor”
Cellana Cuts Algae Biofuel Deal with Finland Oil Giant
Algae biofuel was hot, then cold. Now it looks to be warming up again—kinda, sorta, maybe. San Diego-based Cellana is the latest example of an aspiring algae biofuel company that has been given a chance to turn things around, after the hype of the past few years died down. The company (previously known as HR … Continue reading “Cellana Cuts Algae Biofuel Deal with Finland Oil Giant”
CytomX Snags $25M From Pfizer to Make Souped-Up Antibodies
Pfizer was tripped up a couple years ago, when safety concerns emerged around the first drug ever approved that could combine the targeting ability of an antibody with a toxin to give it more tumor-killing kick. But the New York-based pharma giant still sees potential in the field of souped-up antibody drugs, and it’s seeking … Continue reading “CytomX Snags $25M From Pfizer to Make Souped-Up Antibodies”
Mobisante Grabs $4.2M for Mobile Ultrasound Tools
[Updated 5:42 pm PT] Redmond, WA-based Mobisante has pulled in some new cash to support its dream of making ultrasound technology available on low-cost, lightweight smartphones and tablets. Mobisante has raked in $4.2 million of equity financing out of a deal that could ultimately be worth as much as $5.3 million, according to a filing … Continue reading “Mobisante Grabs $4.2M for Mobile Ultrasound Tools”
Second Genome Gets J&J Deal, $6.5M, to Explore Bugs of the Gut
Scientists have been blown away by things they’ve learned the past couple years about the trillions of bacterial friends and enemies that we human beings live with every day. Now we’re seeing pharmaceutical companies showing more interest in finding new ways to exploit the growing base of knowledge. San Bruno, CA-based Second Genome, a startup … Continue reading “Second Genome Gets J&J Deal, $6.5M, to Explore Bugs of the Gut”
ASCO Wrap-Up: Cancer News from the East, South, & Rockies
The herds who attended the American Society of Clinical Oncology have now gone home after a frenzied few days of absorbing what’s new in cancer R&D. Yesterday, I wrapped up some of the big news from cancer drugmakers on the West Coast, and now I’m attempting to hit the highlights of companies from the other … Continue reading “ASCO Wrap-Up: Cancer News from the East, South, & Rockies”
Protagonist Pulls in $14M, Led by J&J, For Peptide Pills
Not many companies know how to make peptide molecules that can be packaged in a pill, but Menlo Park, CA-based Protagonist Therapeutics just got a vote of confidence that it can pull off that nifty little trick. The company is announcing today it has raised $14 million in a Series B venture financing that was … Continue reading “Protagonist Pulls in $14M, Led by J&J, For Peptide Pills”
ASCO Wrap-Up: Cancer News from the West Coast
Anybody with a more than passing interest in cancer has been transfixed the last few days by the news coming out of Chicago. The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) annual meeting has been especially newsy this year, chock full of important clinical trial news—some good, some bad, and some that you’d have to give … Continue reading “ASCO Wrap-Up: Cancer News from the West Coast”
The Biotech IPO Scorecard: Who’s Up, Who’s Down in 2013
Remember Plexxikon? The Berkeley, CA-based company had a lot of talent for structural biology-based drug design, an impressive new treatment for melanoma, and a strong management team. Two years ago, nobody on Wall Street cared one whit. Plexxikon flirted with the idea of going public, found little interest, and sold itself off to Japan-based Daiichi … Continue reading “The Biotech IPO Scorecard: Who’s Up, Who’s Down in 2013”
Merck Joins Bristol, Genentech in Great Cancer Immunotherapy Race
Merck wasn’t the first company to develop targeted antibody drugs 15 years ago, and wasn’t first to show immunotherapy could work against cancer a couple years ago. But the giant drugmaker has put itself in the small group of companies bringing forward a wave of new treatments that stimulate the immune system to fight cancer … Continue reading “Merck Joins Bristol, Genentech in Great Cancer Immunotherapy Race”
Plexxikon Leadership Duo, Peter Hirth and Kathy Glaub, Exit Daiichi
Peter Hirth and Kathy Glaub, the executive duo who led Berkeley, CA-based Plexxikon on its quest to develop an important new treatment for melanoma, worked together for more than a decade, and they are heading out the door together. Japan-based Daiichi Sankyo, the company that acquired Plexxikon for $805 million upfront a little more than … Continue reading “Plexxikon Leadership Duo, Peter Hirth and Kathy Glaub, Exit Daiichi”
Oncothyreon Nabs $10M, Pays $10M, For Array Biopharma Cancer Drug
[Updated: 6:35 am PT 5/31] Seattle-based Oncothyreon disappointed a lot of people last year who were betting that it had found a promising new immunotherapy for patients with lung cancer. But even when that drug failed in December, the company still had plenty of cash left, and it is using some of the money to obtain … Continue reading “Oncothyreon Nabs $10M, Pays $10M, For Array Biopharma Cancer Drug”
Cadence Biomedical Nets $1M, Loads of Press, for Walk-Assist Device
Brian Glaister has had the kind of run over the past few weeks that entrepreneurs dream of. After years of toiling in obscurity, working just to develop a decent prototype, his startup, Seattle-based Cadence Biomedical, has suddenly grown into a media darling. It was featured in a pretty lengthy write-up in The Seattle Times. The … Continue reading “Cadence Biomedical Nets $1M, Loads of Press, for Walk-Assist Device”
Mirador Biomedical Study: Spend $35 on Our Device & Save $116
Seattle-based Mirador Biomedical is trying to sell hospitals a little digital device for about $35 apiece, in hopes of preventing a rare and disastrous thing from happening to patients. Now the company has gathered some data that it hopes will prove it’s worth the money. Mirador’s device is a digital pressure sensor that’s supposed to … Continue reading “Mirador Biomedical Study: Spend $35 on Our Device & Save $116”
Ekos, Maker of Ultrasound Blood Clot Dissolver, Bought for $180M
Ekos has been around a long time in the business of making ultrasound devices to improve the treatment of cardiovascular disease. Now it’s getting some rewards for that investment of time and money. The Bothell, WA-based company agreed to be acquired by U.K.-based BTG for $180 million upfront, and another potential $40 million in payouts … Continue reading “Ekos, Maker of Ultrasound Blood Clot Dissolver, Bought for $180M”
Cardeas Pharma Snags $34M For Antibiotic Against Hospital Infections
Seattle-based Cardeas Pharma just raised a lot more cash to fight a big problem that hospitals wrestle with every day, and which they’d rather not say much about publicly. Cardeas, the startup led by prolific drug developer Bruce Montgomery, has raised the healthy sum of $34 million in its Series B venture financing, Xconomy has … Continue reading “Cardeas Pharma Snags $34M For Antibiotic Against Hospital Infections”
Kineta, Scouring the World for Cash, Finds Oil Money
Seattle-based Kineta has found some more support for its drug development work from an unlikely source—a group of oil traders. The company said today it has raised an undisclosed amount of cash from Hydra, a group made up of 13 recently retired oil traders with Glencore Ltd. Although the amount is secret, Kineta now says … Continue reading “Kineta, Scouring the World for Cash, Finds Oil Money”