MorphoSys To Present At the 40th Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference

On January 10, 2022 MorphoSys AG (FSE: MOR; NASDAQ: MOR), reported that Jean-Paul Kress, M.D., Chief Executive Officer of MorphoSys, will present at the 40th Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference on Wednesday January 12, 2022 at 5:15 p.m. EST (Press release, MorphoSys, JAN 10, 2022, View Source [SID1234598490]).

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Early/Late Stage Pipeline Development - Target Scouting - Clinical Biomarkers - Indication Selection & Expansion - BD&L Contacts - Conference Reports - Combinatorial Drug Settings - Companion Diagnostics - Drug Repositioning - First-in-class Analysis - Competitive Analysis - Deals & Licensing

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Live audio of the presentation can be accessed from the Investors section under Conferences, Webcast & Presentations on MorphoSys’ website, www.morphosys.com. The presentation as well as a replay of the webcast will also be available on MorphoSys’ website.

MorphoSys To Present At the 40th Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference

On January 10, 2022 MorphoSys AG (FSE: MOR; NASDAQ: MOR), reported that Jean-Paul Kress, M.D., Chief Executive Officer of MorphoSys, will present at the 40th Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference on Wednesday January 12, 2022 at 5:15 p.m. EST (Press release, MorphoSys, JAN 10, 2022, View Source [SID1234598489]).

Schedule your 30 min Free 1stOncology Demo!
Discover why more than 1,500 members use 1stOncology™ to excel in:

Early/Late Stage Pipeline Development - Target Scouting - Clinical Biomarkers - Indication Selection & Expansion - BD&L Contacts - Conference Reports - Combinatorial Drug Settings - Companion Diagnostics - Drug Repositioning - First-in-class Analysis - Competitive Analysis - Deals & Licensing

                  Schedule Your 30 min Free Demo!

Live audio of the presentation can be accessed from the Investors section under Conferences, Webcast & Presentations on MorphoSys’ website, www.morphosys.com. The presentation as well as a replay of the webcast will also be available on MorphoSys’ website.

2021 Year End Report

On January 10, 2022 Each quarter, Locust Walk reported that deal team members compile key statistics and trends on strategic transactions and financings (Press release, Locust Walk Partners, JAN 10, 2022, View Source;utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=2021-year-end-report [SID1234598488]). Our 2021 Year End Report applies the latest data to analyze current activities in the life sciences deal landscape. ​

In this report you can find an overview and analysis of the following across the biopharma market in the US, Europe, and Asia (Japan and China):​

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Key performance indicators for the life science market​​
IPO and private financing activity and performance​​
Deal activity for strategic partnership and M&A​
A look ahead and our predictions of the future

United States

Biotech indices continued to decline in Q4 2021 (-5.4% NBI, -2.7% BTK), compared to the 9.4% gains of the benchmark S&P 500 this quarter
The US biopharma IPO momentum cooled off significantly in Q4 2021, with both deal volumes and aggregate value falling to levels not seen since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Similarly, the US biopharma Follow-On market fell to its lowest deal volume and aggregate value levels in over 3 years
Public biopharma market valuations continue to fall across major therapeutic areas, continuing the trend that began in Q2 2021
Biopharma companies from the IPO Classes of 2019, 2020, and 2021, on average, all underperformed the major biotech indices this quarter, though the class of 2021 underperformed by the least
The healthcare SPAC IPO market bounced back strongly across both the biotech and general healthcare sectors with deal volume and average deal value of biotech SPAC IPOs increasing substantially compared to the previous quarter
As public markets continue to cool off, private financing activity has once again begun to heat up, particularly for early-stage rounds
Strong deal flow among licensing deals suggests sustained interest in strategic transactions with average deal size near that of 2020, a record year
The dramatic decrease in M&A activity in 2021, spending down 37% compared to 2020, may suggest large pharma is gearing up for a 2022 shopping spree, particularly for the likes of Pfizer and J&J, who should be flush with cash coming off the success of the COVID-19 vaccine
Europe

Although the private investment rampage into EU biopharma seemed to fall off in Q3, the Q4 has, yet again, recovered the impressive numbers of Q1 and Q2 2021: Q3 could have been just a mirage, a small break on the otherwise sustained growth that began in Q1 2020 and that we expect to continue in 2022 due to the new massive VC funds that have been announced in 2021
Public financings ramped up significantly in both volume and value during this quarter, thereby recovering from the last drop observed in Q3. There were seven IPOs and four secondary offerings, of which three and two respectively exceeding the $100 mark
European M&A activity stays consistent in terms of deal volume, but total deal value is small compared to the first quarters of the year. Multiple big announced acquisitions could close in the first half of 2022, which would boost the numbers of these quarters
Q4 EU biopharma licensing agreements experienced a slowdown accounting for $5.3B in aggregate value, a 35% decrease compared to Q3. The deal activity in this quarter was again driven by a strong focus on oncology through five significant deals
Japan

With licensing deal volume in 2021 in line with previous years and a +43% YoY increase in aggregate deal size, deal activity appears strong, but this was mainly driven by Takeda who had 11 deals (with value announced), most of which are research-stage. Unless Takeda has a repeat performance, other companies need to accelerate their efforts to raise deal activity in Japan in 2022
Venture financing in Japan had an amazing year as volume and total financing value (29 and $303M, respectively) was vastly up from the previous high in 2020 (24 deals and $159M)
In 2022, we expect the venture financing momentum to continue, as we expect more investment in the sector as biotech continues to attract attention as the threat of COVID continues
Japanese companies have been laggards in contributing to finding COVID treatments, although there are several programs in developing vaccines and therapeutics underway. 2022 will be an important year for the industry to show that Japanese companies can bring innovative products to the table, and if they can do so, may be a catalyst for the capital markets
China

In-licensing deals continue to be strong in China, with volume on par with previous years while deal sizes are becoming larger
71% of deals in 2021 had upfront value over $5M compared to 37% in 2020
9 deals with upfront payment of $30M or more; up by 3 from 2020
Like previous years, oncology deals continue to be the main focus
Venture financing for biotech companies continue to exceed previous levels: while the number of financing deals was slightly higher (163 in 2021 vs 161 in 2020) the aggregate deal value was $10.3B (+19% YoY)
As we predicted early last year, the number of IPOs declined in 2021, dropping from 28 in 2020 to 14 in 2021
We think do not think this is a sign of a decline, but rather, a reaction to the aberrantly active 2020. For 2022, we expect number of IPOs to be slightly above 2021 levels as we do not see interest in the Chinese market to slow down

Allogene Therapeutics Announces Removal of FDA Clinical Hold Across All AlloCAR T™ Clinical Trials

On January 10, 2022 Allogene Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: ALLO), a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering the development of allogeneic CAR T (AlloCAR T) products for cancer, reported that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has removed the clinical hold on all of the Company’s AlloCAR T clinical trials (Press release, Allogene, JAN 10, 2022, View Source [SID1234598487]). Allogene previously announced on October 7, 2021 that the FDA had placed a hold on all five of the Company’s AlloCAR T clinical trials based on a report of a chromosomal abnormality detected post-AlloCAR T administration in a single patient treated with ALLO-501A in the ALPHA2 study.

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Investigations concluded that the chromosomal abnormality was unrelated to TALEN gene editing or Allogene’s manufacturing process and had no clinical significance. The abnormality was not detected in any manufactured AlloCAR T product or in any other patient treated with the same ALLO-501A lot. The abnormality occurred in the patient after the cell product was administered. It involved regions of the T cell receptor and immunoglobulin genes known to undergo rearrangement as part of the T cell or B cell maturation process.

Allogene will be working with clinical trial investigators to resume study activities across AlloCAR T development programs as quickly as possible. Pending final discussions with the FDA, the Company also plans to initiate its pivotal Phase 2 trial of ALLO-501A in relapsed/refractory Large B Cell Lymphoma (LBCL) mid-year 2022.

"We are thankful for the partnership between our teams at Allogene, our clinical trial investigators who remain steadfast in their support of our investigational therapies, and the FDA which expeditiously completed its review of our Complete Response Letter," said Rafael Amado, M.D., Executive Vice President of Research and Development and Chief Medical Officer. "Allogeneic CAR T therapy is a rapidly developing field that continues to evolve both in scope and impact, and the findings from our investigation will help advance innovation in the fields of gene editing and cell and gene therapy. As the leading developer of allogeneic cell products, we look forward to resuming our clinical trials as we work to fulfill our commitment to bring patients the first allogeneic CAR T product."

Conference Call and Webcast Details
Allogene will host a live conference call and webcast today at 8:30 a.m. Pacific Time / 11:30 a.m. Eastern Time to provide a business update. To access the live conference call by telephone, please dial 1 (866) 940-5062 (U.S.) or 1 (409) 216-0618 (International). The conference ID number for the live call is 8598466. The webcast will be made available on the Company’s website at www.allogene.com under the Investors tab in the News and Events section. Following the live audio webcast, a replay will be available on the Company’s website for approximately 30 days.

Moderna and Carisma Establish Collaboration to Develop in vivo Engineered Chimeric Antigen Receptor Monocytes (CAR-M) for Oncology

On January 10, 2022 Moderna Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA), a biotechnology company pioneering messenger RNA (mRNA) therapeutics and vaccines, and Carisma Therapeutics Inc., a biopharmaceutical pioneer in engineered macrophage-based therapeutics, reported that the two companies have entered into a strategic collaboration agreement to discover, develop and commercialize in vivo engineered chimeric antigen receptor monocyte (CAR-M) therapeutics for the treatment of cancer (Press release, Moderna Therapeutics, JAN 10, 2022, View Source [SID1234598486]).

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"We are excited to begin this collaboration with Carisma to further expand our oncology pipeline with a differentiated in vivo cell-therapy approach," said Stephen Hoge, President of Moderna. "This exemplifies our strategy to partner with companies with deep biological expertise while leveraging Moderna’s core mRNA and LNP capabilities to further expand the reach of Moderna’s technology."

"Moderna’s deep expertise in mRNA and LNP technologies opens up a potentially game-changing opportunity for engineered macrophages," said Steven Kelly, President and Chief Executive Officer of Carisma. "In vivo delivery directly to monocytes and macrophages enables an off-the-shelf therapeutic approach that uses the patients’ own cells to provide a truly personalized treatment. By combining Carisma’s expertise in engineered macrophage biology and Moderna’s pioneering in vivo mRNA delivery technologies, we are excited about the potential of this novel therapeutic approach for treating cancer. We are thrilled to be working with Moderna."

About the Collaboration

Under the terms of the agreement, Carisma will receive a $45 million up-front cash payment and an investment by Moderna in the form of a $35 million convertible note. Carisma will receive research funding and is eligible to receive development, regulatory, and commercial milestone payments, plus royalties on net sales of any products that are commercialized under the agreement. Carisma will be responsible for the discovery and optimization of development candidates while Moderna will lead the clinical development and commercialization of therapeutics resulting from the agreement. Moderna has the option to nominate up to twelve targets for development and commercialization.