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Hi there, everybody. Damian right here with what’s my closing version of The Readout on my final day at STAT. I’ve had a beautiful time masking biotech right here these final eight years, and that’s in no small half a testomony to the intelligent and engaged readers of this very publication. Meghana Keshavan isn’t going wherever, and beginning quickly you’ll be studying a brand new voice in your inbox. Thanks for studying, and have an ideal weekend.
The necessity-to-know this morning
- European regulators discover no proof of a hyperlink between new weight problems medicines and suicidal ideas.
Is biotech getting stale?
How would you spend $13 billion in money? And bear in mind Dendreon?
We cowl all that and extra this week on “The Readout LOUD,” STAT’s biotech podcast. We focus on a multibillion-dollar deal from Vertex Prescription drugs with sweeping implications and a prolonged backstory. We additionally clarify why gasoline costs are weighing on biotech, and make a shock announcement.
Pay attention right here.
Moderna’s African plans have come to a halt
Moderna has paused an formidable plan to take a position about $200 million in a Kenya manufacturing web site that may produce mRNA vaccines for the entire African continent, citing inadequate demand.
The information, first reported by the Financial Times, follows a high-profile 2023 agreement between Moderna and the Kenyan authorities to assemble a facility that may produce as much as 500 million doses of vaccines annually. Moderna by no means bought a plot for the proposed facility, in line with the FT, and the corporate said in a statement that pausing the method would “higher align its infrastructure investments with the evolving healthcare wants and vaccine demand in Africa.” Moderna stated the dearth of demand for vaccine doses in Africa has led to greater than $1 billion in losses and write-downs.
The halted undertaking is one other instance of how issues haven’t fairly turned out as Moderna hoped within the years since its early-pandemic peak. The corporate has misplaced about 50% of its worth for the reason that finish of 2022, as demand for doses of its Covid-19 vaccine quickly declined.
What concerning the firm Vertex didn’t purchase?
Vertex Prescription drugs’ determination to pay $4.9 billion for Alpine Immune Sciences forged a highlight on the extreme kidney illness IgA nephropathy — and, by extension, an organization known as Vera Therapeutics.
Vera has the same remedy for a similar illness, a weekly drug known as atacicept, that’s a few yr forward of Alpine’s, with Section 3 information anticipated subsequent yr. Novartis and Otsuka have competing medicines in improvement, however Vera is the one different impartial biotech agency within the house.
That implies somebody would possibly need to purchase it, and Vera’s share value is up about 30% since yesterday.
Pascal Soriot acquired his elevate
Compensation has been a contentious subject for AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot, who will get paid greater than every other public firm chief within the U.Okay. however lower than most of his pharmaceutical friends within the U.S.
That’s going to alter. AstraZeneca’s shareholders approved a policy that may elevate his most attainable pay by about 13% to $24 million. That can put him roughly consistent with what the CEOs of Eli Lilly and Johnson & Johnson made in complete compensation final yr. That’s regardless of the suggestions of ISS and Glass Lewis, the 2 most influential shareholder advisory companies.
The give attention to Soriot’s pay bundle, which practically acquired voted down in 2021, factors to a stark cultural distinction between the U.Okay. and the U.S., the place pharmaceutical paychecks make headlines however not often draw the ire of shareholders. AstraZeneca has practically tripled in worth since Soriot acquired the job, outpacing all however just a few of his opponents, most of whom earn more money.
Extra reads
- The within story of Enhertu’s pan-tumor approval, STAT
- Drugmakers race to seek out different suppliers as U.S. cracks down on Chinese language biotech, Financial Times
- When a most cancers drug fails, oncologists typically fly blind. A precision approach would possibly mild the way in which, STAT