August 8, 2019 - Fierce Biotech
Bayer is set to pay $240 million upfront to
buy
the remaining stake in its cell therapy joint venture, BlueRock Therapeutics. The deal will give Bayer control of an induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) pipeline led by a late-preclinical Parkinson’s disease candidate. Bayer held a 40% stake in BlueRock through its role in its creation and has now returned for the rest of the company. In addition to the $225 million upfront, Bayer has committed up to $360 million in development milestones. Once Bayer’s existing stake is factored in, the German company calculates the deal values BlueRock at up to $1 billion.
August 7, 2019 - Fierce Pharma
PTC Therapeutics is aiming for its first gene therapy launch and amping up its pipeline, and it needed more manufacturing capacity to make it all happen. It found that—and lab space, too—in a facility Bristol-Myers Squibb was looking to unload. PTC inked a
lo
ng-term lease
with Bristol-Meyers, gaining about 185,000 square feet of space that includes a state-of-the-art biologics production facility as well as supporting research and operations buildings.
August 6, 2019 - Fierce Pharma
An enduring medical aesthetics franchise, led by wrinkle-fighter Botox, is one of the key reasons AbbVie is shelling out $63 billion for Allergan. That drug has again pulled off a sales jump, though a slower growth rate suggests a tough game ahead. Botox as a cosmetic product
racked up
$252.4 million in second-quarter sales in the U.S. and $175.8 million elsewhere, representing year-over-year increases of 6.7% and 10.7%, respectively. And Botox as a therapeutic for migraine, muscle spasms and other indications also added a 3.6% expansion in worldwide sales, to $545.8 million.
August 6, 2019 - BioPharma-Reporter
Alvotech and Cipla agree to jointly commercialize another biosimilar to AbbVie's Humira, ahead of filing with the US FDA and the EMA.
August 6, 2019 - BioPharma Dive
Generic drugmaker Mallinckrodt will put on hold plans to split the company into two separate businesses, reversing course due to "increasing uncertainties" stemming from litigation over the company's role in the opioid overdose epidemic. The company said separating out the specialty generics business remained its intention and noted it would "actively consider" a range of options to achieve that goal.
