On January 6, 2023 Mersana Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRSN), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing a pipeline of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) targeting cancers in areas of high unmet medical need, reported that on January 3, 2023, an authorized sub-committee of the Board of Directors of Mersana granted inducement awards, consisting of stock options to purchase an aggregate of 25,575 shares of its common stock and restricted stock unit awards (RSUs) to acquire an aggregate of 26,700 shares of its common stock, to five new employees whose employment commenced in December 2022 (Press release, Mersana Therapeutics, JAN 6, 2023, View Source [SID1234626000]). The awards were granted pursuant to terms and conditions fixed by the Compensation Committee and as an inducement material to each new employee entering employment with Mersana in accordance with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4).

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The option awards have an exercise price of $5.73 per share, which is equal to the closing price of Mersana’s common stock on January 3, 2023. Each option has a 10-year term and will vest over a period of four years, with 25% of the shares vesting on the one-year anniversary of the commencement of the employee’s employment and the remainder vesting in equal quarterly installments over the following three years, subject to the applicable employee’s continued service with Mersana on each such vesting date. The options are subject to the terms and conditions of Mersana’s 2022 Inducement Stock Incentive Plan and the terms and conditions of a stock option agreement covering each grant.

The RSUs will vest in four equal annual installments starting November 15, 2022, subject to the applicable employee’s continued service with Mersana on each such vesting date. The RSUs are subject to the terms and conditions of Mersana’s 2022 Inducement Stock Incentive Plan and the terms and conditions of an RSU agreement covering each grant.

On January 6, 2023 Nanology presented its corporate presentation (Presentation, NanOlogy, JAN 6, 2023, View Source;utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=nanology-general-presentation-jan-2021 [SID1234626001]).

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On January 6, 2023 IGM Biosciences presentated its corporate overview (Presentation, IGM Biosciences, JAN 6, 2023, View Source [SID1234625999]).

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On January 6, 2023 Biosortia Microbiomics, the small molecule drug discovery platform and the only company practicing microbiome mining reported that it is presenting at Biotech ShowcaseTM 2023, taking place on January 9-11 in San Francisco, CA (Press release, Biosortia Pharmaceuticals, JAN 6, 2023, View Source [SID1234625996]). This year, registered attendees can view Biosortia Microbiomics’ presentation live, and with 24/7 on-demand access, attendees can also view recorded presentations at their convenience when scheduling does not allow viewing during the main event week.

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Ross Youngs, CEO, and Founder of Biosortia Microbiomics will be presenting on January 10 at 10:00 am PT at Franciscan A (ballroom level) at the event. In his session, Ross will explore the current problems with drug costs and drug discovery and educate the audience about industrial-scale microbiome mining and how it fits into the solution.

Ross will discuss how in just the past ten years, new drug costs have increased by 300% with minimal progress in finding new cures or treatments. And although small molecules are 90% of drugs on the shelf, the most sought-after drug-like small molecules can’t be obtained by indirect methods. Ross will also share how Biosortia’s technology, which is backed by the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, ARPA-E, DARPA and NIH are proven for obtaining nature’s drug-like small molecules, which were previously inaccessible, for treatments and cures.

"The capabilities and potential impact of Biosortia’s technology on the drug discovery industry is what motivates me and my team," says Youngs. "We’ve received incredible support through funding from major organizations that allowed us to prove the effectiveness of our technology. The next step for us is to continue raising funds in order to put the technology to work and collaborate with researchers and academia to accelerate discovery in critical life science areas."

Biotech Showcase, produced by Demy-Colton and EBD Group, is an investor conference focused on driving advances in therapeutic development by providing a sophisticated networking platform for executives and investors that fosters investment and partnership opportunities. The conference takes place each year during the course of one of the industry’s largest gatherings and busiest weeks.

"We are delighted that Biosortia Microbiomics will be joining us in San Francisco and presenting at Biotech Showcase this year," said Sara Demy, CEO of Demy-Colton. "Biotech Showcase is a prime occasion for life science entrepreneurs and investors to come together to discover the potential of innovative technologies that will drive the future of drug discovery."

On January 6, 2023 Synthekine Inc., an engineered cytokine therapeutics company, reported the closing of a $100 million Series C financing led by The Column Group, with participation from both new and existing investors. Debanjan Ray, Synthekine’s chief executive officer, will present a corporate overview at the 41st Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference at 1:30 p.m. PT on Tuesday, January 10 (Press release, Synthekine, JAN 6, 2023, View Source [SID1234625992]).

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"Synthekine has made significant progress since our founding in 2019. We have advanced our alpha/beta-biased IL-2 partial agonist, STK-012, into the clinic, developed a novel cytokine approach to empower CAR-Ts and other adoptive cell therapies, matured our three distinct cytokine engineering platforms, and secured our first pharmaceutical partnership through a deal with Merck," said Ray. "We are thankful for the support from these elite healthcare investors, which enables us to pursue our bold vision of advancing novel cytokine science to benefit patients with debilitating cancers and inflammatory diseases."

Proceeds of the financing will be used to advance Synthekine’s differentiated therapeutic pipeline, led by its alpha/beta-biased IL-2 partial agonist, STK-012, which is currently in a Phase 1 clinical trial. In addition, it will support upcoming clinical studies of its orthogonal IL-2 and CD19 CAR-T combination therapy, STK-009 + SYNCAR-001, which the company anticipates to begin early this year.

Funds will also be used to progress the company’s IL-12 partial agonist program, which is currently in IND-enabling studies. IL-12 is a potent cytokine with potential for the treatment of cancer, but administration of unmodified forms of the cytokine have been limited by a narrow therapeutic window, including life-threatening toxicities in patients. Preclinical data for Synthekine’s IL-12 partial agonist program demonstrates potent anti-tumor efficacy in mouse models while avoiding induction of systemic toxicity. In addition, funds will also be used to advance toward clinical investigation its orthogonal IL-2 system with a GPC3 CAR-T therapy. Preclinical data for this program, the company’s first cell therapy program for solid tumors, were presented at AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper) 2022.