Recipharm acquires Arranta Bio, a CDMO leader in advanced therapy medicinal products (ATMPs), to expand its biologics offering in the US

On February 18, 2022 Recipharm, a leading global contract development and manufacturing organisation (CDMO), reported the acquisition of Arranta Bio, a prominent advanced therapy CDMO (Press release, Recipharm, FEB 18, 2022, View Source [SID1234608312]). Under the stewardship of Mark Bamforth and backed by Ampersand Capital Partners, the company has established a strong service portfolio as a leader in delivering microbiome therapeutic products and mRNA clinical production capabilities.

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The acquisition forms a cornerstone of Recipharm’s strategy to provide innovative drug developers in the Biologics market with scientifically differentiated contract development and manufacturing services for ATMPs and builds on the capabilities acquired through the recently announced GenIbet transaction and the acquisition of Vibalogics, also announced today.

Arranta Bio has established a strong microbiome platform with fermentation and purification expertise for naturally-derived and engineered bacteria consortia, complemented by services in analytics, proprietary media and cryopreservative formulations. These services maximize yields and enhance viability for live biotherapeutic products that clients are testing in the clinic against a range of infectious, inflammatory, neurological and oncological diseases.

In addition, Arranta Bio is progressing the supply of end-to-end mRNA capabilities across drug substance and drug product under one roof, providing its customers with substantial time savings in product manufacturing and a hedge against supply chain challenges.

The acquisition of Arranta establishes a robust US presence for Recipharm. It provides the company with a further platform from which to build its capabilities in new biologics modalities, leveraging Arranta’s expertise in advanced therapies to bring a high degree of diversification across multiple technologies and modalities.

Marc Funk, Chief Executive Officer at Recipharm, said: "We welcome Arranta and its team of experts who boast a strong reputation in the CDMO industry. Arranta is a leading player in its field that we are proud of bringing under the Recipharm umbrella and continue to build in line with our vision of supporting biotechs by providing process development, manufacturing expertise and bold solutions to take their programs from lab to patient.

This acquisition is another important step for us in growing our biologics business and developing a strong presence into the US. We look forward to working closely with the Arranta team, building links across the wider Recipharm organisation to make this business a huge success."

Mark Bamforth, CEO at Arranta, added: "I am convinced that Recipharm will be a great home for Arranta and our talented team and that together we can fulfil our joint vision of building the leading ATMP CDMO. We share Recipharm’s vision of focusing on ATMP customers with novel manufacturing solutions and we see a clear opportunity to accelerate to global scale in this new context."

The acquisition is expected to be completed around the end of March 2022, subject to customary regulatory filings.

Centerview Partners UK LLP acted as exclusive financial adviser, and Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as counsel to Recipharm on the transaction. Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC acted as exclusive financial adviser and Goodwin Procter LLP served as counsel to Arranta Bio.

Minomic at the ASCO GU Symposium 2022

On February 18, 2022 Minomic reported that it will be at the ASCO (Free ASCO Whitepaper) GU Symposium, San Francisco, where Dr Neal Shore, principal investigator, is presenting a poster on our study "MiCheck Prostate Blood Test for Aggressive Prostate Cancer Designed for the Clinical Lab Setting" (Press release, Minomic, FEB 18, 2022, View Source [SID1234608310]).

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Our poster will be displayed on Thursday Feb 17 at 11.30am Megan Henken will be there live and Doug Campbell and Brad Walsh will be joining online.

Blue Water Vaccines Announces Pricing of approximate $20M Initial Public Offering

On February 17, 2022 Blue Water Vaccines, Inc. ("BWV" or "Blue Water Vaccines" or the "Company"), a biopharmaceutical company developing vaccines, reported the pricing of its initial public offering of 2,222,222 shares of its common stock at a public offering price of $9.00 per share (Press release, Onconetix, FEB 17, 2022, View Source [SID1234641103]). The shares are expected to begin trading on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the ticker symbol "BWV" on February 18, 2022.

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The aggregate gross proceeds to BWV from the initial public offering are expected to be approximately $20 million prior to deducting underwriting discounts, commissions, and other estimated offering expenses. The offering is expected to close on February 23, 2022, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions.

Boustead Securities, LLC is acting as the sole book-running manager for the offering.

The Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") declared effective a registration statement on Form S-1 relating to these securities on February 11, 2022. A final prospectus relating to this offering will be filed with the SEC. The offering is being made only by means of a prospectus, copies of which, when available, may be obtained from; Boustead Securities, LLC, Attention: Prospectus Department, 6 Venture, Suite 325, Irvine, CA 92618, or by telephone at 949-502-4408, or by email at [email protected]. Investors may also obtain these documents at no cost by visiting the SEC’s website at View Source

Before you invest, you should read the prospectus and other documents the Company has filed or will file with the SEC for more complete information about the Company and the offering.

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy these securities, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction.

Georgetown University at Washington DC has signed a contract with ISK to run a clinical trial with patients with mtKRAS tumors

On February 17, 2022 The prestigious medical center Georgetown University at Washington DC reported that has sign a contract with ISK to run a clinical trial with patients with mtKRAS pancreas and colon cancers (Press release, Immune System Key, FEB 17, 2022, View Source [SID1234609538]).

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Psilocybin For Cancer Related Distress: Enveric To Launch Clinical Trial In Partnership With University of Calgary [via Benzinga]

On February 17, 2022 Enveric Biosciences (NASDAQ: ENVB)("Enveric" or the "Company), a cutting-edge neuroscience company developing next-generation, psychedelic-inspired mental health medicines, reported that it is working with the University of Calgary’s Hotchkiss Brain Institute ("HBI"), a leading neurosciences center of excellence, at the Cumming School of Medicine in Calgary, Canada that is dedicated to advancing brain and mental health research and education, to establish a groundbreaking clinical trial of EVM-101 for the treatment of Cancer Related Distress ("CRD") (Press release, Enveric Biosciences, FEB 17, 2022, View Source [SID1234608852]).

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Approximately 50% of cancer patients report clinical levels of psychological distress having depressed mood, anxiety, demoralization, stress-induced clinical manifestations, and reduced quality of life1. Up to 40% of cancer patients meet the criteria for a mood disorder requiring treatment2. CRD is a significant unmet medical need with no current regulatory approval of pharmacotherapies and an urgent need to optimize the current standard of care for patients with cancer.3

A clinical trial, expected to launch later this year, of EVM-101, a first-generation psychedelic treatment, for CRD will be led by HBI researcher, Dr. Valerie Taylor, Head of the Department of Psychiatry, in Calgary, Canada.

"We are excited to collaborate with Enveric to study next-generation medicines that we hope will help people cope with the mental health challenges of a cancer diagnosis. This work will allow us to mobilize our combined resources to research options for cancer patients living with CRD," says Dr. Valerie Taylor.

The EVM-101 study will directly assess the core features of CRD that are most affected and amenable to improvement following a psilocybin-based treatment.

"With the rising rates of cancer and its associated psychological ailments that have been underestimated and underdiagnosed until recently, we are working hard to develop new treatments that help cancer patients suffering from CRD" said Dr. Bob Dagher, Enveric’s Chief Medical Officer. "Our collaboration with the research team at the University of Calgary’s Hotchkiss Brain Institute and IMPACT Clinical Trial Accelerator will help us to demonstrate the potential benefits of these novel treatments and get them to market as quickly as possible."

A regulatory submission to Health Canada is expected to soon be finalized. Patient enrollment in the clinical trial is expected to begin late in 2022 or early in 2023. The study design will employ proprietary psychiatry and psychotherapy-focused treatments for cancer patients with CRD. Patients will receive a single oral dose of EVM-101 in a supportive environment with psychotherapy to improve outcomes.

Enveric is committed to discovering and developing more effective treatments for cancer patients living with psychological distress and is currently working on three classes of new medicines: EVM-101, a first-generation oral psilocybin; EVM-201, a second-generation pro-drug; and EVM-301, a third-generation psychedelic-inspired and optimized new molecule.

References:

Mehnert, A., Hartung, T. J., Friedrich, M., Vehling, S., Brahler, E., Harter, M., et al. (2018). One in two cancer patients is significantly distressed: prevalence and indicators of distress. Psychooncology 27, 75–82. Doi: 10.1002/pon.4464
Holland et al. (2013). Distress Management. J Natl Compr Cancer Network 2013 Feb 1;11(2):190-209. doi: 10.6004/jnccn.2013.0027
Peters, L., Brederecke, J., Franzke, A., Zwaan, M., Zimmermann, T. (2020). Psychological Distress in a Sample of Inpatients with Mixed Cancer—A Cross-Sectional Study of Routine Clinical Data. Front Psychol. 2020 Nov 30; 11:591771. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.591771