On December 19, 2023 Syndax Pharmaceuticals, Inc. ("Syndax," the "Company" or "we") (Nasdaq: SNDX), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing an innovative pipeline of cancer therapies, reported the closing of its previously announced underwritten public offering of 12,432,431 shares of its common stock, which includes the exercise in full of the underwriters’ option to purchase 1,621,621 additional shares (Press release, Syndax, DEC 19, 2023, View Source [SID1234638687]). The public offering price of each share of common stock was $18.50. The aggregate gross proceeds to Syndax from this offering, before deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses, were approximately $230.0 million. Following the closing of the Offering, Syndax has 84,809,736 shares issued and outstanding as of December 19, 2023.

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Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC, J.P. Morgan, TD Cowen and Stifel acted as joint book-running managers for the offering. B. Riley Securities acted as manager for the offering.

The shares were offered pursuant to a "shelf" registration statement previously filed and declared effective by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). A final prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus relating to the offering were filed with the SEC and are available on the website of the SEC at www.sec.gov. Copies of the final prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus relating to the offering may be obtained from: Goldman Sachs and Co. LLC, Attention: Prospectus Department, 200 West Street, New York, NY 10282, telephone: 866-471-2526, facsimile: 212-902-9316 or by emailing Prospectus-ny@ny.email.gs.com; J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, c/o Broadridge Financial Solutions, 1155 Long Island Avenue, Edgewood, NY 11717, telephone: (866) 803-9204, or by emailing prospectuseq_fi@jpmchase.com; Cowen and Company, LLC, 599 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10022, by emailing Prospectus_ECM@cowen.com or by telephone at (833) 297-2926; or Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated, Attention: Prospectus Department, One Montgomery Street, Suite 3700, San Francisco, California 94104, by telephone at (415) 364-2720 or by emailing syndprospectus@stifel.com.

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell, or the solicitation of an offer to buy, 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.

On December 19, 2023 Zai Lab Limited (NASDAQ: ZLAB; HKEX: 9688) reported that members of the Company’s senior management team will participate in the following investor conference in January 2024 (Press release, Zai Laboratory, DEC 19, 2023, View Source [SID1234638705]):

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J.P. Morgan 42nd Annual Healthcare Conference
Presentation: Monday, January 8, 2024, 3:45 p.m. PST
Location: San Francisco

A live webcast of the presentation will be available on the Investor Relations page of Zai Lab’s website at ir.zailaboratory.com/webcasts-presentations and archived replay will be available for up to 90 days following the completion of the event.

On December 19, 2023 Syros Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: SYRS), a biopharmaceutical company committed to advancing new standards of care for the frontline treatment of hematologic malignancies, reported that it has priced an underwritten offering of 4,939,591 shares of common stock at an offering price of $4.42 per share, and, in lieu of common stock to investors who so choose, pre-funded warrants to purchase 5,242,588 shares of its common stock at an offering price of $4.419 per pre-funded warrant, which would result in total gross proceeds of approximately $45.0 million, before underwriting discounts and commissions and offering expenses payable by Syros (Press release, Syros Pharmaceuticals, DEC 19, 2023, View Source [SID1234638688]). All shares and pre-funded warrants are being offered by Syros. Closing of the offering is expected to occur on or about December 21, 2023, subject to customary closing conditions.

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The financing included new and existing investors, including Bain Capital Life Sciences, Syros co-founder and founding investor Flagship Pioneering, Adage Capital Partners LP, Invus, Samsara BioCapital, Deep Track Capital, Blue Owl Healthcare Opportunities, DAFNA Capital Management LLC, as well as a life sciences-focused investment fund.

TD Cowen and Piper Sandler & Co. are acting as joint book-running managers for the offering.

The offering is being made pursuant to a shelf registration statement that was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") on April 6, 2023 and declared effective by the SEC on April 28, 2023. The offering will be made only by means of the prospectus and prospectus supplement that form a part of the registration statement.

The final terms of the offering will be disclosed in a prospectus supplement to be filed with the SEC. Copies of the prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus relating to this offering, when available, can be obtained from Cowen and Company, LLC, 599 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10022, by telephone at (833) 297-2926, or by email at Prospectus_ECM@cowen.com or from Piper Sandler & Co., Attention: Prospectus Department, 800 Nicollet Mall, J12S03, Minneapolis, MN 55402, by telephone at 800-747-3924, or by email: prospectus@psc.com.

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, 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.

On December 19, 2023 MAIA Biotechnology, Inc., (NYSE American: MAIA) ("MAIA" or the "Company"), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing telomere-targeting immunotherapies for cancer, reported dose selection for THIO-101, a Phase 2 clinical trial evaluating its lead asset, THIO, in sequential combination with Regeneron’s anti-PD-1 cemiplimab (Libtayo) in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) (Press release, MAIA Biotechnology, DEC 19, 2023, View Source [SID1234638706]).

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During the dose-finding stage of THIO-101, patients were administered either 60mg, 180mg, or 360mg of THIO per cycle, followed by 350mg of cemiplimab (Libtayo). The selected dose, 180mg/cycle, presented better safety profile and outperformed the other doses in the key measures of efficacy for NSCLC trials. Subsequently, all future trial participants will be treated with THIO 180mg/cycle.

"All THIO dose levels tested exceeded the disease control rate (DCR) thresholds in Stage 1 of the THIO-101 Phase 2 trial. We observed disease control in the first 8 to 9 patients with a post baseline scan in each arm, beating our goal of disease control in 8 out of 19 patients per arm. Among the three studied doses, the 180mg dose showed stronger DCR and preliminary response rates compared to other doses," said Vlad Vitoc, M.D., MAIA’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.

"These results are particularly impressive in this pool of patients who were heavily pre-treated and resistant to prior treatments with immune checkpoint inhibitors, a group that does not yet have standard of care treatment. We are highly encouraged by the unprecedented clinical data generated thus far in our Phase 2 trial, and as we move forward, we plan to pursue accelerated approval for THIO in the U.S. for the treatment of patients with advanced NSCLC. We believe THIO’s DCRs and ORRs in second line treatment suggest the drug’s potential to define the standard of care for this NSCLC patient population."

THIO is the only direct telomere targeting agent currently undergoing clinical development in the field of cancer drug discovery and treatment.

About THIO

THIO (6-thio-dG or 6-thio-2’-deoxyguanosine) is a first-in-class investigational telomere-targeting agent currently in clinical development to evaluate its activity in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC). Telomeres, along with the enzyme telomerase, play a fundamental role in the survival of cancer cells and their resistance to current therapies. The modified nucleotide 6-thio-2’-deoxyguanosine (THIO) induces telomerase-dependent telomeric DNA modification, DNA damage responses, and selective cancer cell death. THIO-damaged telomeric fragments accumulate in cytosolic micronuclei and activates both innate (cGAS/STING) and adaptive (T-cell) immune responses. The sequential treatment with THIO followed by PD-(L)1 inhibitors resulted in profound and persistent tumor regression in advanced, in vivo cancer models by induction of cancer type–specific immune memory. THIO is presently developed as a second or later line of treatment for NSCLC for patients that have progressed beyond the standard-of-care regimen of existing checkpoint inhibitors.

About THIO-101, a Phase 2 Clinical Trial

THIO-101 is a multicenter, open-label, dose finding Phase 2 clinical trial. It is the first trial designed to evaluate THIO’s anti-tumor activity when followed by PD-(L)1 inhibition. The trial is testing the hypothesis that low doses of THIO administered prior to cemiplimab (Libtayo) will enhance and prolong immune response in patients with advanced NSCLC who previously did not respond or developed resistance and progressed after first-line treatment regimen containing another checkpoint inhibitor. The trial design has two primary objectives: (1) to evaluate the safety and tolerability of THIO administered as an anticancer compound and a priming immune activator (2) to assess the clinical efficacy of THIO using Overall Response Rate (ORR) as the primary clinical endpoint. Treatment with cemiplimab (Libtayo) followed by THIO has been generally well-tolerated to date in a heavily pre-treated population. For more information on this Phase II trial, please visit ClinicalTrials.gov using the identifier NCT05208944.

On December 19, 2023 XOMA Corporation (Nasdaq: XOMA), the biotech royalty aggregator, reported that it has entered into a non-dilutive, non-recourse, royalty-backed loan for up to $140 million of capital with certain funds managed by the credit platform of Blue Owl Capital Inc. (NYSE: OWL) (Press release, Xoma, DEC 19, 2023, View Source [SID1234638689]).

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"The Blue Owl financing provides us with significant non-dilutive capital to drive shareholder value through stock repurchases and additional royalty and milestone acquisitions," stated Brad Sitko, Chief Investment Officer of XOMA. "This capital infusion comes at an opportune time given the existing state of the biotech funding market, providing us with an opportunity to accelerate the growth of our royalty and milestones portfolio, which currently consists of two marketed products, two programs in or near registration, five assets in Phase 3 development, and over 60 assets in earlier stages of development."

"Blue Owl’s Life Science efforts are focused on credit, royalty, and equity investments in innovative healthcare and life sciences companies and products. We recognize the value embedded in XOMA’s differentiated royalty and milestone aggregation business strategy. Our long-established relationship with XOMA’s management team gives us confidence that they can continue building a balanced portfolio of current and future royalty-generating assets. This financing establishes a long-term partnership with XOMA, as we help broaden their access to capital for royalty and milestone monetization opportunities," said Sandip Agarwala, Managing Director at Blue Owl Capital.

Terms of the Agreement

XOMA has drawn down $130 million in principal from Blue Owl and has the option to draw another $10 million should the royalties received from VABYSMO (faricimab) sales on or prior to March 15, 2026, exceed a predetermined amount. XOMA is obligated to make semi-annual interest payments at a fixed rate of 9.875% per year until the royalty-backed loan is repaid, at which time VABYSMO royalty payments will revert back to XOMA. The loan is repayable over a 15-year period, although XOMA may repay it in full at any time during that period, subject to the terms of the loan. Additionally, XOMA has issued to Blue

Owl warrants to purchase an aggregate of up to 120,000 shares of XOMA’s common stock in three equal tranches with strike prices of $35.00, $42.50, and $50.00 per share, respectively, resulting in implied premiums of 122%, 170%, and 217% to the price of XOMA’s common stock at closing, respectively.

Advisors

Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP served as XOMA’s legal advisor while Blue Owl was advised by Cooley LLP.