The 27 Lead Drug Molecules Acquired from Biotechs in 2021

Here’s a quick recap of the top business news from October, including major deals, acquisitions, funding rounds, and strategic partnerships. If you missed any updates, here’s your chance to catch up on the most significant developments in the industry.

Companies inked notable high-profile transactions in March 2024, including AbbVie's purchase of Landos Biopharma for $137.5M, AstraZeneca's $2.4B acquisition of Fusion Pharmaceuticals, and its subsequent deal to buy Amolyt for up to $1.05B. The FDA approved the first treatment for MASH. In parallel, expectations are high for the approval of Xcovery's ALK inhibitor, ensartinib. Praxis made headlines with PRAX-628, a next-generation oral NaV modulator, which showed anti-seizure efficacy in a Ph. IIa trial. Read below for more details on these and other drug discovery news stories from March 2024

In June, we saw several FDA approvals for treatments targeting primary biliary cholangitis and COPD. The industry witnessed multibillion- and multimillion-dollar deals across various therapeutic areas. Advances were made in obesity therapeutics, with novel targets and clinical readouts for GLP-1 agonists and NLRP3 inhibitors. Alkermes and Takeda reported results for OX2R agonists in narcolepsy, while an antimalarial drug showed promise in PCOS. Despite these advancements, there were clinical trial failures for key molecules. Here's a recap of the most notable news highlights from June 2024!

In April 2024, there were promising examples of drug repurposing, significant clinical and regulatory milestones for therapies aimed at rare and pediatric diseases, the initiation of a rolling NDA submission for suzetrigine, substantial billion-dollar acquisitions, and positive trial results were reported for both a D1/D5 receptor agonist and a PARP1 inhibitor. However, the industry also had setbacks as demonstrated by the failed clinical trials for an MNK inhibitor and an NMDA receptor modulator. In case you missed anything, here’s a recap of the most notable news highlights from April 2024!

The discovery that individuals with null mutations in the NaV1.7 exhibited pain insensitivity sparked interest in targeting NaV1.7 to potentially treat pain. Despite the potential of selectively inhibiting sodium channels like NaV1.7, NaV1.8, and NaV1.9 for pain management, developing selective inhibitors suitable for clinical use has proven challenging. This article complements our coverage of VX-548, NaV1.8 as a critical target in pain management, and our NaV1.8 compound roundup and provides a reminder of noteworthy preclinical and clinical NaV1.7 small molecule inhibitors as of April 2024.