On May 4, 2021 Cerus Corporation (Nasdaq: CERS) reported financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2021 (Press release, Cerus, MAY 4, 2021, View Source [SID1234579071]).

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Recent developments and highlights include:

First quarter 2021 total revenue of $29.6 million, reflecting a 20% increase over the prior year period. Total revenue was composed of (in millions, except %):

Increasing 2021 annual product revenue guidance range to $110 million to $114 million (from prior guidance of $106 million to $110 million), representing an approximately 20% to 24% increase over full year 2020 reported product revenue.
Multiple blood center partners have completed validation efforts and are now manufacturing INTERCEPT Fibrinogen Complex, with inventory ready for release to hospital customers.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) published the Fiscal Year 2022 Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) Proposed Rule, which recommended that Intercept Fibrinogen Complex be eligible for incremental payment via a New Technology Add-On Payment (NTAP) when performed in the hospital inpatient setting.
Third module (CMC Data) submitted for CE Mark for INTERCEPT red blood cells. Fourth and final module (Manufacturing) submission anticipated by end of Q2:21.
Cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments of $132 million at March 31, 2021.
"On the heels of our strong 2020 performance, product revenue in the first quarter of $23.4 million exceeded our expectations," said William ‘Obi’ Greenman, Cerus’ president and chief executive officer. "As our U.S. customers continue to prepare for compliance with FDA’s guidance around the bacterial safety of platelets, demand for the INTERCEPT Blood System continues to build. The momentum we have in the U.S. market in particular gives us confidence that 2021 will be another year of strong growth for Cerus and we are increasing our full year product revenue guidance accordingly."

Revenue

Product revenue during the first quarter of 2021 was $23.4 million, compared to $18.6 million during the same period in 2020. Product revenue growth during the quarter benefited from increased demand for INTERCEPT platelet products in the U.S., led by adoption from the top five blood center networks in the country.

First quarter government contract revenue was $6.2 million, compared to $6.0 million during the same period in 2020. First quarter government contract revenue is primarily comprised of funding from the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) agreement for the development of the INTERCEPT Blood System for Red Cells. The total potential value of the current BARDA agreement is $214 million, with $72.7 million cumulatively invoiced to BARDA through March 31, 2021.

BARDA is part of the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The development of the INTERCEPT red blood cell program has been funded in whole or in part with Federal funds from the Department of Health and Human Services; Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response; Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, under Contract No. HHSO100201600009C.

Gross Margins

Gross margins on product revenue during the first quarter of 2021 were 52.5% compared to 55.3% for the first quarter of 2020. The decrease in gross margin was tied to increased sales to our U.S. customers, who typically use our single dose platelet kits, which carry a less favorable gross margin contribution compared to our double dose kits, which are used more broadly outside of the U.S.

Operating Expenses

Total operating expenses for the first quarter of 2021 were $34.9 million compared to $31.7 million for the same period of the prior year.

Selling, general, and administrative (SG&A) expenses for the first quarter of 2021 totaled $19.2 million, compared to $15.9 million for the first quarter of 2020. The year-over-year increase in SG&A expenses was tied to incremental expenses associated with the launch of our INTERCEPT Fibrinogen Complex product as well as increased non-cash stock-based compensation expense.

Research and development (R&D) expenses for the first quarter of 2021 were $15.7 million, compared to $15.8 million for the first quarter of 2020. The Company continues to expect to incur costs associated with the development and testing of a new generation of INTERCEPT devices and disposable kits as well as the clinical development and pursuit of regulatory approval for the red blood cell system, among others.

Net Loss

Net loss for the first quarter of 2021 was $17.5 million, or $0.10 per basic and diluted share, compared to a net loss of $16.5 million, or $0.10 per basic and diluted share, for the first quarter of 2020. Non-cash stock-based compensation was higher by approximately $1.6 million during the first quarter of 2021 compared to the prior year period, contributing to the slightly higher net loss.

Balance Sheet

At March 31, 2021, the Company had cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments of $131.7 million, compared to $133.6 million at December 31, 2020.

Despite continued increased investments in inventory to meet customer demand, cash used for operations during Q1 2021 was narrower at $18.0 million compared to $19.8 million used during the prior year period. Offsetting this lower use were $15 million in term loan draws and $1.4 million in incremental draws from its revolving line of credit. At March 31, 2021, the Company had approximately $54.6 million in outstanding term loan debt and $9.9 million of borrowings under its revolving loan credit agreement, compared to $39.6 million in outstanding term loan debt and $8.5 million of borrowings under its revolving loan credit agreement at December 31, 2020.

Increasing 2021 Product Revenue Guidance

The Company now expects 2021 product revenue to be in the range of $110 million to $114 million, as compared to the prior range of $106 million to $110 million. The revised guidance range represents approximately 20% to 24% growth compared to 2020 reported product revenue.

Quarterly Conference Call

The Company will host a conference call at 4:30 P.M. EDT this afternoon, during which management will discuss the Company’s financial results and provide a general business overview and outlook. To listen to the live webcast, please visit the Investor Relations page of the Cerus website at View Source Alternatively, you may access the live conference call by dialing (866) 235-9006 (U.S.) or (631) 291-4549 (international).

A replay will be available on Cerus’ website, or by dialing (855) 859-2056 (U.S.) or (404) 537-3406 (international) and entering conference ID number 8668508. The replay will be available approximately three hours after the call through May 18, 2021.

On May 4, 2021 Certara, Inc. (Nasdaq: CERT), the global leader in biosimulation, reported the launch of its Secondary Intelligence software, the first and only software that quantitatively predicts the risk of adverse effects and safety issues derived from secondary pharmacology that may impede the clinical development of a drug (Press release, Certara, MAY 4, 2021, View Source [SID1234579070]).

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Safety issues account for approximately one quarter of candidate attrition in drug development projects. They can arise from either intended or unintended drug-receptor interactions, also known as primary or secondary pharmacology, respectively. Secondary pharmacological profiling is increasingly applied by drug developers and assessed by regulators to evaluate the potential of off-target effects of novel drugs. To address secondary pharmacology, researchers typically screen their small molecule compounds against a broad panel of off-target receptors. The challenge is interpreting the readouts to understand which receptor interactions will contribute to potential adverse effects in clinical development and post-marketing.

"While drug developers and regulators rely on secondary pharmacology analyses to support critical development decisions, the current process is inefficient, inconsistent, and often imprecise," said William F. Feehery, Ph.D., CEO of Certara. "With our Secondary Intelligence software, drug developers will be able to make faster, more confident go/no go portfolio decisions earlier in the drug discovery and development process which will help to increase the likelihood of success in clinical trials."

Certara’s Secondary Intelligence software is the only software that curates and visualizes secondary pharmacology analyses to evaluate safety liabilities against multiple receptors. It ranks the likelihood of off-target interaction during clinical use to make critical decisions on which compounds to progress or modify.

"We have unlocked the potential of secondary pharmacology data to provide automated intelligence so that safety pharmacologists and toxicologists can more confidently and consistently predict the off-target safety risks associated with their compounds faster and earlier," said Will Redfern, Ph.D., Vice President, Quantitative Systems Toxicology & Safety at Certara. "Secondary Intelligence allows drug developers to de-risk their programs with evidence-based secondary pharmacology insights, which could save significant time, cost, and resources further down the line."

To learn more about the Secondary Intelligence software and consulting services, please visit: View Source

On May 4, 2021 Cartesian Therapeutics, a fully integrated, clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company pioneering RNA cell therapy in and beyond oncology, reported a $2 million competitive R&D award from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to support its clinical development for Descartes-30, the first RNA cell therapy for respiratory diseases (Press release, Cartesian Therapeutics, MAY 4, 2021, View Source [SID1234579069]).

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This is the fourth Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant awarded to Cartesian to support its clinical-stage investigational therapies developed with the company’s proprietary RNA Armory combination therapy platform. Cartesian previously won research grants from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) for Descartes-11 in multiple myeloma ($2.3 million) and from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) for Descartes-08 in generalized myasthenia gravis ($2 million).

"We appreciate NIH’s recognition of the RNA Armory’s potential to treat a wide array of human disease," said Murat Kalayoglu, M.D., Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer at Cartesian Therapeutics. "RNA cell therapy is a new class of therapy, combining the safety of conventional (nanoparticle-delivered) RNA therapeutics with the potency of conventional (DNA-engineered) cell therapies. This new funding from NHLBI will accelerate our effort to bring RNA cell therapy to respiratory and critical care disease as we continue to demonstrate that cell therapy can expand beyond oncology."

"The overarching vision behind our RNA Armory platform is to RNA-engineer any cell to express any desired combination of secreted and membrane-bound proteins," said Michael Singer, M.D., Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer at Cartesian Therapeutics. "The cell – which we can target to any tissue of choice – allows us to deliver a multimodal biologic drug factory directly to the site of disease."

Descartes-30 is an off-the-shelf mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) therapy engineered to secrete two DNases that degrade neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs), which are key drivers of several respiratory, autoimmune and cardiovascular diseases. The MSC acts both as a protein factory, by producing therapeutic DNases for an extended period, and as a vehicle to deliver those therapeutics directly to the lungs, where NETs accumulate. Future clinical candidates aim to engineer three or more therapeutic and targeting proteins within a cell.

On May 4, 2021 BioNTech SE (Nasdaq: BNTX, "BioNTech" or "the Company") reported that it will announce its financial results for the first quarter 2021 on Monday, May 10th, 2021. BioNTech invites investors and the general public to join a conference call and webcast with investment analysts on the same day at 8.00 a.m. EDT (2.00 p.m. CEST) to report its financial results and provide a corporate update for the first quarter 2021 (Press release, BioNTech, MAY 4, 2021, View Source [SID1234579068]).

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The slide presentation and audio of the webcast will be available via this link.

To participate in the conference call, please dial the following numbers ten minutes prior to the start and provide the Conference ID:

Participants may also access the slides and the webcast of the conference call via the "Events & Presentations" page of the Investor Relations section of the Company’s website at View Source A replay of the webcast will be available shortly after the conclusion of the call and archived on the Company’s website for 30 days following the call.

On May 4, 2021 BioLineRx Ltd. (NASDAQ: BLRX) (TASE: BLRX), a late clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on oncology, reported positive top-line results from the Company’s GENESIS Phase 3 trial evaluating its lead clinical candidate, Motixafortide, in combination with granulocyte colony stimulating factor (G-CSF, the standard of care in this indication), for hematopoietic stem-cell mobilization for autologous bone marrow transplantation in multiple myeloma patients (Press release, BioLineRx, MAY 4, 2021, View Source [SID1234579067]).

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An analysis of data on all 122 enrolled patients (the intent to treat, or ITT, population) found highly statistically significant evidence across all primary and secondary endpoints favoring Motixafortide in addition to G-CSF, as compared to placebo plus G-CSF. In addition, the combination was found to be safe and well tolerated.

The primary endpoint of the study demonstrated a 4.9-fold increase (70.0% vs 14.3%; difference 54.6%; 95% CI 39.7-69.5%; p<0.0001) in the proportion of patients in the treatment arm, as compared to the control arm mobilizing ≥ 6 million CD34+ cells/kg in up to two apheresis sessions, and after only one administration of Motixafortide. This translates to an odds-ratio of 12.9.

The study also achieved its main secondary endpoint, demonstrating a 14.1-fold increase (67.5% vs 4.8%; difference 61.7%; 95% CI 49.5-73.8%; p<0.0001) in the proportion of patients in the treatment arm, as compared to the control arm, who mobilized ≥ 6 million CD34+ cells/kg in just one apheresis session. This translates to an odds-ratio of 56.0.

Other important data from the study include median number of CD34+ cells collected on the first day of apheresis (8.5 million in the treatment arm vs 1.5 million in the control arm) – a 5.6-fold increase. The addition of Motixafortide to G-CSF also allowed 88.3% of patients to undergo transplantation after only one apheresis session, compared to 10.8% in the G-CSF arm – an 8.2-fold increase. Engraftment endpoints, including the number of days needed for engraftment, success of engraftment and the durability of engraftment 100 days post-transplant, further support the study’s success.

"The results of the GENESIS study are extremely impressive, and all the more so when considering that almost 90% of the patients in the treatment arm proceeded to transplantation after only one apheresis session," stated John DiPersio, MD, Washington University School of Medicine, and lead investigator of the study. "This is a great achievement in alleviating the burden for the patients and reducing hospital resources. I believe these results make the combination of Motixafortide and G-CSF a very attractive candidate for use in all patients with multiple myeloma undergoing autologous stem-cell transplantation."

"These strikingly positive data significantly exceeded our expectations, and are truly transformational for our company," stated Philip Serlin, Chief Executive Officer of BioLineRx. "The statistical significance across all primary and secondary endpoints was consistent across twelve different sensitivity analyses. These results support our goal of becoming the standard of care for autologous bone-marrow transplantation, providing a strong clinical and pharmaco-economic advantage for its use, on top of G-CSF, in all transplant procedures.

"We are working aggressively to gain regulatory approval for Motixafortide in this transplant setting for multiple myeloma patients – with plans to make an NDA submission in the first half of next year – and we are also pressing forward to unlock the full potential of this therapy in this and other stem-cell mobilization indications. I would like to express our sincere thanks to the patients and investigators who participated in the study and enabled its great success," Mr. Serlin concluded.

Conference Call and Webcast Information
BioLineRx will hold a conference call today, Tuesday, May 4, 2021 at 10:00 a.m. EDT. To access the conference call, please dial +1-866-860-9642 from the US or +972-3-918-0644 internationally. The call will also be available via webcast and can be accessed through the Investor Relations page of BioLineRx’s website. Please allow extra time prior to the call to visit the site and download any necessary software to listen to the live broadcast.

A replay of the conference call will be available for a limited time approximately two hours after completion of the live conference call on the Investor Relations page of BioLineRx’s website. A dial-in replay of the call will be available until May 6, 2021; please dial +1-888-295-2634 from the US or +972-3-925-5904 internationally.

About the GENESIS Trial
The GENESIS trial (NCT03246529) was initiated in December 2017. GENESIS was a randomized, placebo-controlled, multicenter study, evaluating the safety, tolerability and efficacy of Motixafortide and G-CSF, compared to placebo and G-CSF, for the mobilization of hematopoietic stem-cells for autologous transplantation in multiple myeloma patients. The primary objective of the study was to demonstrate that only one dose of Motixafortide on top of G-CSF is superior to G-CSF alone in the ability to mobilize ≥ 6 million CD34+ cells in up to two apheresis sessions. Additional objectives included time to engraftment of neutrophils and platelets and durability of engraftment, as well as other efficacy and safety parameters. Local laboratories and a central laboratory were used to determine CD34+ cell yields. For regulatory purposes, efficacy endpoints were calculated using the percentage of CD34+ cells determined by the central laboratory. The local laboratory values were used for all clinical decisions, including the number of apheresis days and the decision to proceed to transplantation.