On October 11, 2022 Xenetic Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:XBIO) ("Xenetic"), a biopharmaceutical company focused on advancing innovative immune-oncology technologies for the treatment of hard to treat cancers, reported the signing of a patent assignment from CLS Therapeutics, Inc. ("CLS") to Xenetic related to Xenetic’s previously announced collaboration with VolitionRx Limited (NYSE AMERICAN:VNRX) ("Volition"), a multi-national epigenetics company, and CLS, a biopharmaceutical company developing first-in-class therapies based on the discovery of novel therapeutic targets (Press release, Xenetic Biosciences, OCT 11, 2022, View Source [SID1234621884]). In consideration of the patent assignment, Xenetic will also issue 850,000 shares of common stock to CLS.

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Xenetic Biosciences, Inc., Tuesday, October 11, 2022, Press release picture
"Our team remains intent on driving the DNase technology platform forward with the goal of improving outcomes of existing therapeutic agents in multiple solid tumor indications for which existing therapeutic agents have not been proven to be effective. Our collaboration with Volition and CLS has provided us with research and development partners with expertise and capabilities to help drive the DNase-Armored CAR T program forward. We are excited to continue building on the progress we’ve made thus far and on taking the next steps forward in executing on our plans to advance the DNase technology," commented Jeffrey Eisenberg, Chief Executive Officer of Xenetic.

The Company’s collaboration with Volition is an early exploratory program to evaluate the potential combination of Volition’s Nu.Q technology and Xenetic’s DNase-Armored CAR T platform to develop proprietary adoptive cell therapies potentially targeting multiple types of solid cancers for which current CAR T cell therapies have shown limited or no effect. Under the terms of the collaboration agreement, Volition will fund a research program and the two parties will share proceeds from commercialization or licensing of any products arising from the collaboration.

Epigenetically modified nucleosomes are present on tumor cell surfaces and within the tumor microenvironment of multiple types of solid cancers, and thus these nucleosomes may represent generalizable tumor antigens that are not limited to a single cancer type. Volition’s Nu.Q technology can specifically recognize and target epigenetically modified nucleosomes, while Xenetic’s DNase-Armored CAR T platform is designed to enhance the function of CAR T cells within solid tumor microenvironments.

On October 11, 2022 PureTech reported that it has mutually agreed with Nektar to terminate discussions regarding a possible business combination (Press release, PureTech Health, OCT 11, 2022, View Source [SID1234621882]).

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Discussions with Nektar were announced on 7 October 2022, as required by Rule 2 of the UK City Code on Takeovers and Mergers (the "Code"), in response to media speculation. These discussions were early in nature and the required announcement created the impression that discussions were more advanced than they were. Given the early stage of the discussions and the potential for an extended period of uncertainty, these discussions were terminated.

This announcement has been made with the consent of Nektar.

Notwithstanding the termination of discussions, PureTech remains in an "offer period" until the expiration of the period set out in the announcement made on 7 October 2022 for Nektar either to announce a firm intention to make an offer for the Company in accordance with Rule 2.7 of the Code or to announce that it does not intend to make an offer, in which case such announcement will be treated as a statement to which Rule 2.8 of the Code applies.

On October 11, 2022 The Cancer Research Institute (CRI) and Israel Cancer Research Fund (ICRF ) reported that have partnered to award and co-fund, respectively, a Clinic and Laboratory Integration Program (CLIP) grant to support the promising immunotherapy research of Yifat Merbl, PhD, of the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel (Press release, Cancer Research Institute, OCT 11, 2022, View Source [SID1234621878]).

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The CLIP grant, providing $200,000 in research funding over two years, was established by CRI to fund investigators who are exploring critical topics at the intersection of laboratory and clinical research. This collaboration builds on another partnership that supported immunotherapy research conducted in Israel – The Immunotherapy Promise – between CRI, the leading funder of immunotherapy research internationally, and ICRF, North America’s largest nonprofit dedicated to supporting cancer research in Israel and the largest non-governmental funder of Israeli cancer research.

Professor Merbl’s project, "Controlling Proteasomal Degradation for Enhancing Anti-Tumor Immunity," hopes to characterize the proteasome degradation landscape in melanoma, aiming to gain insight into the mechanisms of immune evasion and lack of patient response to immunotherapy. This approach should ultimately lead to a novel system to target proteasome degradation in order to improve cancer treatment.

While immunotherapy first emerged as a form of FDA-approved cancer treatment in the late 1980s, it is only within the past decade that this class of therapy has begun to deliver significant survival benefit to more cancer patients, bringing it to the forefront of public attention. New immunotherapeutic approaches have been shown in clinical trials to effectively treat patients with bladder, head and neck, kidney, and lung cancers as well as leukemia, lymphoma, and melanoma, with clinical trials under way for more than 25 other types of cancer.

"The Cancer Research Institute and Israel Cancer Research Fund have teamed up again to bring philanthropic support of immunology research to scientists in Israel who are working to harness the immune system’s power to fight all types of cancer, and this latest joint initiative furthers our shared goal of finding effective answers to cancer to save more lives and cure as many cancer patients as possible," said Jill O’Donnell-Tormey, PhD, CEO and director of scientific affairs at the Cancer Research Institute.

Commenting on the partnership, David Abramson, president of ICRF said, "We know how crucial immunotherapy is in the area of cancer research and our unique partnership with the Cancer Research Institute has the potential to yield breakthrough discoveries in the field. It is our hope that many more Israeli scientists will benefit from our collaboration with CRI."

On October 11, 2022 BridgeBio Pharma, Inc., (Nasdaq: BBIO) (BridgeBio), a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on genetic diseases and cancers, reported that the first patient with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has been dosed in its Phase 1/2 clinical trial of BBP-398, an investigational SHP2 inhibitor, with Amgen Inc.’s (Amgen) LUMAKRAS (sotorasib), the first and only currently approved targeted treatment for patients with KRAS G12C-mutated locally advanced or metastatic NSCLC, in advanced solid tumors with the KRAS G12C mutation (Press release, BridgeBio, OCT 11, 2022, View Source [SID1234621877]).

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Approximately 30,000 people are diagnosed with KRAS G12C-mutated NSCLC in the US each year and the KRAS G12C mutation is one of the most frequent oncogenic mutations in the US and Europe. By combining SHP2 inhibition with KRAS G12C inhibition in patients with the KRAS G12C mutation, there is potential to prevent oncogenesis and overactive cellular proliferation.

"The survival rate following a diagnosis of NSCLC with a KRAS mutation is extremely poor. We are hopeful that by launching this clinical trial with Amgen, we may be able to fill the current gap in unmet medical need for these cancer patients," said Frank McCormick, Ph.D., chairman of oncology at BridgeBio. "We are grateful the FDA has granted our program Fast Track designation and are hopeful it will allow us to address the needs of these patients more quickly following diagnosis."

The Phase 1/2 study will include a dose escalation period followed by dose expansion and optimization, and is designed to evaluate the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics and preliminary efficacy of BBP-398 in combination with LUMAKRAS. The dose escalation period will enroll patients with all solid tumors with a KRAS G12C mutation and participants will be eligible regardless of previous exposure to a KRAS G12C inhibitor. The dose expansion period will enroll patients with NSCLC with a KRAS G12C mutation who have not previously been exposed to a KRAS G12C inhibitor. Initial data is expected by the end of 2024.

Additionally, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted Fast Track designation for the investigation of BBP-398 in combination with LUMAKRAS for adult patients with previously treated, KRAS G12C-mutated, metastatic NSCLC. The FDA’s Fast Track designation is designed to drive the development and expedite the review process for medicines under investigation for serious conditions with unmet medical needs.

"To date, preclinical data for SHP2 inhibition has shown promise in unlocking possible combination strategies to treat patients suffering from a range of cancers, including NSCLC. By combining SHP2 inhibition with KRAS G12C inhibition, there is potential for this therapeutic arsenal to be impactful for patients since it could prevent overactive cellular proliferation and oncogenesis. I am extremely pleased to see that work from our group and others has now reached the clinic, where we will be able to study the benefit it could have for cancer patients with KRAS G12C mutations," said Benjamin G. Neel, M.D., Ph.D., Co-founder of Navire Pharma Inc. (Navire), a BridgeBio company, and Director of the L/I Perlmutter Cancer Center at NYU Langone and Professor of Medicine at NYU Grossman SoM.1

"People with metastatic NSCLC with a KRAS mutation often do not respond well to standard chemotherapy and immunotherapy options. They might have a worse prognosis than patients without a KRAS mutation and it is essential to deliver better therapeutic options to people with this difficult-to-treat cancer. I am hopeful that by partnering with BridgeBio on this study we may be able to provide substantial relief for patients with a serious unmet need," said Rohit Joshi, M.D., Director for Cancer Research SA (CRSA) and Associate Professor at the University of Adelaide.

In May 2022, BridgeBio entered into an exclusive license agreement with Bristol Myers Squibb to develop and commercialize BBP-398 in oncology worldwide, except for in mainland China and other Asian markets. These territories are part of BridgeBio’s separate strategic collaboration with LianBio announced in 2020. The 2022 agreement with Bristol Myers Squibb expands upon the earlier agreement between the companies signed in 2021 to investigate the combination of BBP-398 with OPDIVO (nivolumab) in patients with advanced solid tumors with KRAS mutations.

BridgeBio has a non-exclusive clinical collaboration with Amgen to evaluate the combination of BBP-398 with LUMAKRAS in patients with advanced solid tumors with the KRAS G12C mutation.

BBP-398, as a monotherapy or in combination with other targeted therapies, could potentially be a promising therapy for patients with the KRAS G12C mutation. Initial Phase 1 data from the ongoing BBP-398 trial is expected in 2023.

OPDIVO (nivolumab) is a trademark of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company.

About BBP-398
BBP-398 is a SHP2 inhibitor that is being developed for difficult-to-treat cancers and was founded through a collaboration with The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center’s Therapeutics Discovery division. SHP2 is a protein-tyrosine phosphatase that links growth factor, cytokine and integrin signaling with the downstream RAS/ERK MAPK pathway to regulate cellular proliferation and survival. In May 2022, BridgeBio entered an exclusive license with Bristol Myers Squibb to develop and commercialize BBP-398, a potentially best-in-class SHP2 inhibitor. Additionally, BridgeBio has a strategic collaboration with LianBio for clinical development and commercialization of BBP-398 in combination with various agents in solid tumors such as non-small cell lung cancer, colorectal and pancreatic cancer, in mainland China and other Asian markets and clinical collaborations; with Bristol Myers Squibb for combination with OPDIVO (nivolumab) in patients with advanced solid tumors with KRAS mutations; and with Amgen for combination with LUMAKRAS (sotorasib), Amgen’s KRAS G12C inhibitor, in patients with advanced solid tumors with KRAS G12C mutations.

On October 11, 2022 Biodesix, Inc. (NASDAQ: BDSX), a leading data-driven diagnostic solutions company with a focus in lung disease, reported that the Company expects to report third quarter 2022 total revenue to be in the range of $10.6 million to $11.2 million, representing growth of 62% to 71% over the third quarter 2021 (Press release, Biodesix, OCT 11, 2022, View Source [SID1234621876]). The strength in the third quarter 2022 total revenue reflects continued growth in the Company’s core lung diagnostic testing. The financial results included in this release pertaining to the third quarter 2022 are preliminary, subject to completion of internal procedures and review.

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Third Quarter 2022 Financial Highlights

For the three-month period ended September 30, 2022, as compared to the same period of 2021 (where applicable):

Total quarterly revenue estimated to be in the range of $10.6 million to $11.2 million, an increase of $4.1 million to $4.7 million, or 62% to 71%;
Total quarterly lung diagnostic testing revenue estimated to be in the range of $8.9 million to $9.2 million, an increase of $4.4 million to $4.7 million, or 96% to 103%;
Total quarterly COVID diagnostic testing revenue estimated to be in the range of $1.1 million to $1.3 million, an increase of $0.6 million to $0.8 million, or 117% to 157%;
Total quarterly biopharma services revenue estimated to be in the range of $0.6 million to $0.7 million, a decrease of $0.8 million to $0.9 million, or 53% to 60%;
Cash and cash equivalents of $15.2 million as of September 30, 2022.
"We had another strong quarter that builds upon recent momentum and again was highlighted by record revenue and volume growth from our core lung diagnostic testing business," stated Scott Hutton, Chief Executive Officer. "Our lung diagnostic portfolio consists of five Medicare-covered tests to help physicians quickly and confidently decipher the risk of malignancy of a lung nodule and then help guide treatment decisions if a patient has been diagnosed with lung cancer. While we are pleased with our COVID testing results for the quarter, we do not expect any significant continued revenue generation from this testing given the previously disclosed expiration of our contract with the State of Colorado. We continue to be pleased with the interest and ongoing discussions around our BioPharma services although the revenue represents the continued delay in clinical study enrollment and sample shipping logistics impacting timelines for existing and new agreements. At Biodesix we have worked hard to build one of the most comprehensive suites of precision diagnostic tests to support clinical decision-making across the lung cancer continuum and are very pleased with the increased adoption of our tests by physicians to help improve patient care."

The Company expects to be at the high end of the range of its previously disclosed total revenue guidance for 2022 of $37.5 million and $39.5 million. We expect the fourth quarter 2022 to maintain continued growth in our core lung diagnostic business while COVID revenue is expected to decline to an immaterial amount based on current trends in COVID testing.