NEW BRUNSWICK (dpa-AFX) - This week featured a steady stream of regulatory milestones, strategic dealmaking, and pivotal clinical trial updates, alongside missed trial goals across the biotech and pharmaceutical sectors.
Positive data readouts spanned multiple therapeutic areas, including episodic and chronic migraines, early Alzheimer's disease, Duchenne muscular dystrophy, and non-small cell lung cancer.
Let us see how the week unfolded.
Regulatory Approvals
Roche Gains CE Mark for TB Diagnostics Test
Roche (RHHBY) secured CE Mark for its Elecsys Interferon Gamma Release Assay (IGRA) TB diagnostics, offering rapid, automated detection of tuberculosis infection with results in under 24 hours. The assay demonstrated strong accuracy in global studies, achieving 91% positive and 94% negative agreement against standard methods.
RHHBY closed Thursday's trading (July 9, 2026) at $52.02, up 0.50%
JNJ Wins FDA Nod for Dual Energy Ablation
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) secured FDA approval for its Dual Energy THERMOCOOL SMARTTOUCH SF Platform, the first catheter system to combine radiofrequency and pulsed field energy in one device. Integrated with CARTO ecosystem, the platform enhances physician flexibility and workflow predictability.
JNJ closed Thursday's trading at $259.10, down 1.63%.
Vera Secures FDA Accelerated Nod
Vera Therapeutics, (VERA) won FDA accelerated approval for TRUTAKNA (atacicept-vymj) to reduce proteinuria in adults with primary IgA nephropathy, a progressive kidney disease. Interim ORIGIN 3 trial data showed a 46% proteinuria reduction, with continued approval tied to eGFR outcomes expected in Q3 2026.
VERA closed Thursday's trading at $42.45, up 0.05%
AbbVie & Genmab Secure EU Nod for TEPKINLY Combo
AbbVie (ABBV) and Genmab A/S (GMAB) secured European Commission approval for TEPKINLY (epcoritamab) plus lenalidomide and rituximab in relapsed or refractory follicular lymphoma, marking the first bispecific-based therapy authorized in Europe for this indication. Phase 3 EPCORE FL-1 data showed a 79% reduction in risk of progression or death, with 96% overall response and 74% complete response rates.
ABBV closed Thursday's trading at $249.91, down 1.12%
GMAB closed Thursday's trading at $29.78, up 0.81%
Deals
Virax Signs Multi-Country Commercial Supply Agreement with Fosun Diagnostics
Virax Biolabs Group Ltd. (VRAX) announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, Virax Biolabs (UK) Limited, has entered into an exclusive multi-country commercial supply agreement with Fosun Diagnostics for its ImmuneSelect research-use-only immune profiling product line.
The agreement covers six Southeast Asian markets, including Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore and Malaysia, supporting potential revenue opportunities and regional commercial expansion.
VRAX closed Thursday's trade at $6.36.
Vivani Medical Partners With Novo Nordisk To Evaluate Semaglutide Drug Implant NPM-139
Vivani Medical, Inc. (VANI), a biopharmaceutical company, entered into a new agreement under which Novo Nordisk A/S (NVO) will evaluate its semaglutide drug implant, NPM-139, a miniature, ultra-long-acting semaglutide implant for chronic weight management.
Vivani expects to begin a Phase 1 study of NPM-139, with Wegovy injections as an active comparator, in mid-2026.
VANI closed Thursday's trade at $1.56, down $2.50.
Vertex Pharma To Acquire Crinetics Pharma in a $10 Bln Deal; Signs LOI With Canadian Alliance For ALYFTREK In Cystic Fibrosis
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX) and Crinetics Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (CRNX) announced an agreement under which Vertex will acquire Crinetics for $85.00 per share in cash, for a total equity value of approximately $10 billion, or approximately $8.8 billion net of estimated cash acquired. The acquisition adds Crinetics' FDA-approved Acromegaly drug, PALSONIFY (paltusotine), to Vertex's pipeline, which the company believes has blockbuster potential in the indication. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2026.
In addition, earlier this week, Vertex signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) with the pan-Canadian Pharmaceutical Alliance (pCPA) for PrALYFTREK (vanzacaftor/tezacaftor/deutivacaftor), a triple-combination therapy for cystic fibrosis in patients aged 6 years and older.
With the LOI in place, Vertex will begin discussions with provinces to support the public listing of ALYFTREK, a critical step toward making the therapy available through publicly funded drug programs across Canada.
VRTX closed Thursday's trading at $496.50, down 0.39%
Chemomab Therapeutics, Scipher Medicine Announce Merger Agreement
Chemomab Therapeutics Ltd. (CMMB) and Scipher Medicine Corp. announced a merger agreement to combine the companies, which together will focus on advancing Nebokitug, a clinical-stage anti-CCL24 antibody, into a Phase 2 trial for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.
As per the terms of the deal, the pre-merger Chemomab equity holders are expected to own approximately 32% of the combined company, and the pre-merger Scipher equity holders are expected to own approximately 68%, with the combined company operating as Scipher Medicine Corporation.
The deal is anticipated to close in the fourth quarter of 2026.
CMMB closed Thursday's trade at $1.83, down 7.11%.
Novartis To Acquire Myricx Bio In $1.5 Bln Deal
Novartis AG (NVS) entered into an agreement to acquire Myricx Bio, a UK-based biotechnology company developing a new class of antibody-drug conjugates, or ADCs, for up to $1.5 billion to bolster its oncology pipeline.
Under the terms of the agreement, Novartis will gain Myricx's N-myristoyltransferase inhibitors (NMTi) payload platform, two lead ADC assets targeting B7-H3 and HER2, and a broader payload platform across multiple solid tumour settings.
NVS closed Thursday's trade at $154.62, down 0.35%.
Clinical Trials - Breakthroughs & Setbacks
INmune Bio Presents Positive Phase 2 Imaging Data For XPro In Early Alzheimer's Disease
INmune Bio Inc. (INMB) announced new imaging data from its Phase 2 study of XPro, A Dominant-Negative Tumor Necrosis Factor (DN-TNF) platform in patients with early Alzheimer's disease, in which advanced MRI analyses showed early treatment-related changes in white matter myelin integrity and cortical microstructure at week 24, supporting the biologic activity of selective soluble tumour necrosis factor (TNF) inhibition.
In addition, the company said the white matter myelin integrity demonstrated a statistically significant treatment difference at week 24 in the modified intent-to-treat population.
INMB closed Thursday's trade at $1.79, up 4.07%.
Ionis and AstraZeneca's CARDIO-TTRansform Trial Of Eplontersen In ATTR-CM Misses Primary Endpoint
Ionis Pharmaceuticals Inc. (IONS) and AstraZeneca PLC(AZN) announced the Phase 3 CARDIO-TTRansform trial of Eplontersen in adults with transthyretin-mediated amyloid cardiomyopathy (ATTR-CM) did not meet its primary endpoint, a composite of cardiovascular mortality and recurrent cardiovascular events through Week 140 compared with placebo.
Ionis and AstraZeneca plan to present the full dataset at the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Congress in August 2026.
IONS closed Thursday's trade at $64.27, down 23.90%.
AZN closed Thursday's trade at $178.49, down 5.70%.
Ipsen Reports Reduced Migraine Days with Dysport in Phase 3 BEOND Trial
Ipsen S.A. (IPN.PA) reported positive topline results from the Phase 3 BEOND study for Dysport, a botulinum-derived drug developed to treat episodic and chronic migraines.
According to the company, Dysport achieved statistically significant topline Phase III results, meeting primary endpoints in both episodic (E-BEOND) and chronic (C-BEOND) migraine. In addition, Dysport was well tolerated across both trials, with a safety profile consistent with its known safety profile.
IPN.PA closed Thursday's trade at 164.60 Euros, down 2.49%.
MAIA Reports Positive Part C Of Phase 2 THIO-101 Data for Ateganosine in Lung Cancer
MAIA Biotechnology Inc. (MAIA) reported encouraging efficacy data from the Part C expansion of the Phase 2 THIO-101 trial for Ateganosine, an investigational, telomere-targeting agent in treating non-small cell lung cancer.
According to the company, the Part C results demonstrated a disease control rate (DCR) of 90.5%, compared with 25%- 35% in existing chemotherapy treatments. In addition, treatment with Ateganosine followed by cemiplimab has shown an acceptable safety profile to date in a heavily pre-treated population, said MAIA.
MAIA closed Thursday's trade at $1.46, down 0.68%.
Satellos Releases Promising 6-Month Interim Data from Phase 2 DMD Study
Satellos Biosciences Inc. (MSLE) reported six-month interim data from the Phase 2 TRAILHEAD study for SAT-3247, an investigational oral, small molecule drug candidate in the treatment of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, a rare genetic disorder.
Following 6 months of treatment with 4 participants, the study found that treated participants showed a measurable decline in muscle fat fraction from 49.7% at baseline to 46%. All four participants showed an increase in TE99C, a measure of maximum effort in the upper limbs, with a mean improvement of 34%. Safety profile of SAT-3247 remained favorable and consistent with results, said Satellos.
MSLE closed Thursday's trading at $9.44, up 5.12%
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