Episode 89

On this week’s Biotech Hangout, hosts Daphne Zohar, Josh Schimmer, Tim Opler, Chris Garabedian and Grace Colon discuss the latest in biotech news, including another strong week of IPOs, most notably with Kyverna Therapeutics’ IPO upsizing by 49% to $300M. On the acquisition theme, the hosts discuss Novartis’ plans to acquire MorphoSys for $2.9B and Gilead walking away from its acquisition of Tizona. The hosts also cover some obesity-related updates, including Lilly’s tirzepatide Phase 2 trial for MASH and Amgen’s Phase 1 data for weight-loss candidate, MariTide. Other data discussed this week includes Vertex’s ‘vanza triple,’ 4D Molecular Therapeutics’ interim Phase 2 data in wet AMD and J&J’s Phase 3 with Nipocalimab. Additional topics of discussion include plans by Novo Holdings (Novo Nordisk’s parent company) to buy Catalent to boost Wegovy supply, the FDA modernizing the way it tracks post-market data by using AI, and Scion Life Sciences’ debut with a new $310M fund. *This episode aired on February 9, 2024.