On April 27, 2026 Kazia Therapeutics presented its corporate presentation.

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(Presentation, Kazia Therapeutics, APR 27, 2026, View Source [SID1234664793])

On April 27, 2026 Altimmune, Inc. (Nasdaq: ALT), a late clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing pemvidutide to address serious liver diseases, reported the closing of its previously announced underwritten public offering consisting of (i) 64,250,000 shares of its common stock and 64,250,000 accompanying common stock warrants to purchase shares of common stock or pre-funded warrants in lieu thereof and (ii) in lieu of common stock, to certain investors that so choose, pre-funded warrants to purchase an aggregate of up to 10,750,000 shares of its common stock and 10,750,000 accompanying common stock warrants to purchase shares of common stock or pre-funded warrants in lieu thereof, each at an exercise price of $0.001 per pre-funded warrant. The common stock and pre-funded warrants are being sold in combination with an accompanying common stock warrant to purchase one share of common stock (or pre-funded warrant in lieu thereof) issued for each share of common stock or pre-funded warrant sold. The accompanying common stock warrant is immediately exercisable from the date of issuance and will expire upon the earlier of (i) the fifth anniversary of the original issuance date and (ii) forty-five days following the Company’s public announcement of a successful data readout of its Phase 3 trial of pemvidutide in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis ("MASH"). The combined offering price of each share of common stock and accompanying common stock warrant is $3.00. The combined offering price of each pre-funded warrant and accompanying common stock warrant is $2.999.

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All of the shares, pre-funded warrants and accompanying common stock warrants in the offering were sold by Altimmune. The gross proceeds from the offering before deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and other offering expenses, were approximately $225 million.

"This financing provides the resources to initiate and execute the pemvidutide Phase 3 trial in MASH and provides cash runway through our anticipated 52-week data readout of the trial," said Jerry Durso, President and Chief Executive Officer of Altimmune. "Despite the availability of approved therapies, there remains significant unmet need for patients with MASH. We believe pemvidutide has the potential to offer a differentiated profile with meaningful benefits for patients. We are grateful for the conviction and confidence shown by these top-tier investors, as we execute on our goal to bring pemvidutide to patients with serious liver diseases and create long-term value for our shareholders."

Altimmune intends to use the net proceeds to fund its upcoming Phase 3 trial in MASH, as well as for working capital and general corporate purposes. Altimmune expects to initiate its Phase 3 trial in MASH in the second half of 2026.

Leerink Partners and Barclays acted as joint bookrunning managers for the offering. Titan Partners acted as co-bookrunning manager for the offering.

The shares of common stock, pre-funded warrants, common stock warrants and shares of common stock issuable upon the exercise of the pre-funded warrants and common stock warrants were offered by Altimmune pursuant to two effective shelf registration statements on Form S-3 that were previously filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and declared effective by the SEC on December 5, 2025 and March 13, 2025, respectively, and a related registration statement that was filed with the SEC on April 22, 2026 pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (and became automatically effective upon filing). The preliminary prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectuses relating to and describing the terms of the offering were filed with the SEC on April 22, 2026 and are available on the SEC’s website located at www.sec.gov. Electronic copies of the final prospectus supplement may be obtained, when available, by contacting Leerink Partners LLC, Syndicate Department, 53 State Street, 40th Floor, Boston, MA 02109, or by telephone at (800) 808-7525 ext. 6105, or by email at [email protected]; Barclays Capital Inc., c/o Broadridge Financial Solutions, 1155 Long Island Avenue, Edgewood, NY 11717, by telephone at (888) 603-5847, or by email at [email protected]; or by accessing the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.

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.

(Press release, Altimmune, APR 27, 2026, View Source [SID1234664810])

On April 27, 2026 Erasca, Inc. (Nasdaq: ERAS), a clinical-stage precision oncology company singularly focused on discovering, developing, and commercializing therapies for patients with RAS/MAPK pathway-driven cancers, reported positive preliminary Phase 1 dose escalation data for its potentially best-in-class, pan-RAS molecular glue ERAS-0015 in patients with RAS-mutant solid tumors.

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The preliminary data are from Erasca’s ongoing AURORAS-1 Phase 1 dose escalation trial in the U.S. and the ongoing JYP0015M101 Phase 1 dose escalation trial in China sponsored by Joyo Pharmatech Co., Ltd. (Joyo), both evaluating ERAS-0015 in patients with RAS-mutant solid tumors.

"We are thrilled with the robust efficacy results demonstrated so far by our pan-RAS inhibitor ERAS-0015 in patients with lung and pancreatic cancer," said Jonathan E. Lim, M.D., Erasca’s chairman, CEO, and co-founder. "The magnitude of clinical benefit seen during dose escalation is particularly striking and compares favorably with other pan-RAS, pan-KRAS, or KRAS-mutant selective inhibitors. This efficacy is accompanied by generally well-tolerated safety results, primarily characterized by manageable, low-grade adverse events. Notably, preliminary data support ERAS-0015 may be combined with standard-of-care doses of panitumumab, positioning it as a potential backbone therapy for future combination regimens. Together, we believe these findings support the best-in-class potential of ERAS-0015, and we look forward to continued progress in our Phase 1 monotherapy dose expansion cohorts and combination dose escalation cohorts."

Highlights of Phase 1 Preliminary Results

Pharmacokinetics (PK):
Well-behaved PK, with dose-dependent increase in PK exposure up to the maximum administered dose (MAD) of 40 mg once daily (QD) and no exposure plateau observed
Pharmacologically active dose (PAD) range of 16-32 mg QD defined based on mean steady-state average exposures that exceeded target exposure threshold (based on the insensitive xenograft model)
Pharmacodynamics (PD):
Substantial reductions in KRAS G12X circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) were observed at the PAD doses (16-32 mg QD), with 100% of patients (14/14) showing at least 75% reduction in KRAS G12X variant allele fraction, including 5 out of 14 patients showing 100% reduction
Efficacy: Robust monotherapy overall response rates (ORR) in patients with KRAS G12X non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and with KRAS G12X pancreatic cancer (PDAC), in each case as of the relevant data cutoff (DCO)1,2:
NSCLC
At PADs of 16-32 mg QD, 62% uORR8wk (N=37) in second line or greater (2L+) KRAS G12X NSCLC, which exceeded comparator by 24 percentage points3,4
At PADs of 16-32 mg QD, 75% uORR8wk (N=16) in post-ICI/platinum (2/3L) KRAS G12X NSCLC, which exceeded comparator by 37 percentage points3,4
At recommended doses for expansion (RDEs) of 24-32 mg QD, 64% uORR8wk (N=25) in 2L+ KRAS G12X NSCLC3
PDAC
At PADs of 16-32 mg QD, 40% uORR14wk (N=20) in 2L KRAS G12X PDAC, which exceeded comparator by 11 percentage points5,6
At RDEs of 24-32 mg QD, 42% uORR14wk (N=12) in 2L KRAS G12X PDAC, which exceeded comparator by 13 percentage points5,6
At RDE of 32 mg QD, 50% uORR14wk (N=2) in 2L KRAS G12X PDAC, which exceeded comparator by 15 percentage points5,7
Multiple ongoing responses: Nearly all responding patients—including all unconfirmed responders—remain on treatment as of the DCO:
NSCLC
23 out of 24 responding patients remain on treatment, including all responders treated at 24-32 mg QD RDEs
PDAC
20 out of 23 responding patients remain on treatment, including all responders treated at 24-32 mg QD RDEs
Safety and Tolerability: Generally well-tolerated with mostly low-grade adverse events (AEs), no dose-limiting toxicities (DLTs), low rate of dose interruptions or reductions due to treatment-related adverse events (TRAEs), and no discontinuations due to TRAEs
Monotherapy RDE: Based on the totality of the preliminary Phase 1 dose escalation data, 24 mg and 32 mg QD were selected as the go-forward monotherapy RDEs
Combinability: ERAS-0015 showed promising clinical potential to combine with panitumumab (anti-EGFR monoclonal antibody)
No DLTs observed through the 31Mar2026 DCO (N=3) with 1 unconfirmed partial response (uPR) in 1 efficacy-evaluable patient with metastatic colorectal cancer (CRC)
1 AURORAS-1 data cutoff (DCO) 4Apr2026; JYP0015M101 data cutoff (DCO) 27Feb2026
2 Pooled data from the Company’s Phase 1 trial (US trial, or AURORAS-1) and Joyo’s Phase 1 trial (China (CN) trial, or JYP0015M101) of ERAS-0015
3 The uORR8wk is the ORR (confirmed and unconfirmed responses) for patients who received first dose of ERAS-0015 at least 8 weeks prior to data cutoff date (US trial) or at least one post-dose tumor assessment (CN trial)
4 Comparator as used in this press release, RMC-6236. Punekar et al. Journal of Thoracic Oncology 2025; data cutoff (DCO) 30Sep2024
5 The uORR14wk is the ORR (confirmed and unconfirmed responses) for patients who received first dose of ERAS-0015 (US, CN) at least 14 weeks prior to data cutoff date
6 Wolpin et al. EORTC-NCI-AACR (Free EORTC-NCI-AACR Whitepaper) (ENA) 2024; DCO 23Jul2024
7 Revolution Medicines Press Release (10Sep2025); data cutoff (DCO) 30Jun2025

Key Upcoming and Completed Milestones
The Company initiated ERAS-0015 monotherapy expansion and combination dose escalation cohorts in the US (in Q2 2026 and Q1 2026, respectively), both ahead of previous guidance.

Upcoming milestones include:

AURORAS-1: Phase 1 trial for ERAS-0015 (pan-RAS molecular glue) in patients with RAS-mutant solid tumors
Monotherapy expansion data and combination dose escalation data narrowed to an expected date of H1 2027
BOREALIS-1: Phase 1 trial for ERAS-4001 (pan-KRAS inhibitor) in patients with KRAS-mutant solid tumors
Preliminary Phase 1 monotherapy data expected in the second half of 2026
Initiation of monotherapy expansion cohorts and combination dose escalation cohorts planned for 2027
Conference Call and Webcast Information
Erasca will hold a conference call and webcast Monday, April 27, 2026, at 4:30 pm ET. The webcast link for the conference call is here. The dial-in number is 1-877-407-3982 (U.S./Canada) or 1-201-493-6780 (international) or click the Call me Link. The live webcast and replay may be accessed by visiting Erasca’s website at Erasca.com/events.

About ERAS-0015
ERAS-0015 is an investigational, oral, highly potent pan-RAS molecular glue designed to inhibit RAS signaling with a potential best-in-class profile. Erasca is evaluating ERAS-0015 in the AURORAS-1 Phase 1 trial in patients with RAS-mutant solid tumors. Early dose escalation data in AURORAS-1 demonstrated favorable safety and tolerability results, well-behaved, linear PK, and confirmed and unconfirmed partial responses in multiple patients across multiple tumor types with different RAS mutations, including confirmed and unconfirmed partial responses at doses as low as 8 mg once daily (QD). ERAS-0015 is also designed to prevent resistance against mutant-selective inhibitors through inhibition of RAS wildtype variants. In addition, ERAS-0015 has demonstrated favorable absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion (ADME) and pharmacokinetic (PK) properties in multiple animal species.

About ERAS-4001
ERAS-4001 is an investigational, oral, highly potent, and selective pan-KRAS inhibitor with a potential first-in-class and best-in-class profile. Erasca is evaluating ERAS-4001 in the BOREALIS-1 Phase 1 trial in patients with KRAS-mutant solid tumors. ERAS-4001 demonstrated favorable preclinical in vitro potency against KRAS G12X mutations as well as KRAS wildtype amplifications, which may limit treatment resistance mediated through KRAS wildtype activation. No activity was observed for ERAS-4001 against HRAS or NRAS wildtype proteins in preclinical studies, which may enable a better therapeutic window compared to pan-RAS inhibitors. ERAS-4001 showed potent activity against both GTP-bound (active state) and GDP-bound (inactive state) KRAS with single digit nanomolar IC50s. In vivo, ERAS-4001 induced tumor regression in multiple KRAS-mutant models. In preclinical studies, ERAS-4001 showed encouraging ADME and PK properties.

(Press release, Erasca, APR 27, 2026, View Source [SID1234664825])

On April 27, 2026 Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (Nasdaq: LGND) and XOMA Royalty Corporation ("XOMA Royalty") (Nasdaq: XOMA), both biotechnology royalty aggregators, reported that the companies have entered into a definitive agreement under which Ligand will acquire XOMA Royalty for $39.00 per share of common stock in cash, for a total equity value of approximately $739 million. XOMA Royalty stockholders are expected to separately receive one non-transferable Contingent Value Right ("CVR") per share entitling the holder to receive a portion of 75% of the net proceeds that may result from certain pending litigation at XOMA Royalty. The cash purchase price at close represents an approximately 14% premium to XOMA Royalty’s 30 trading day volume weighted average price as of April 24, 2026, the last trading day prior to announcement of the transaction.

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"The acquisition of XOMA Royalty presents a compelling opportunity for us to strengthen and diversify our portfolio across all stages of clinical development and accelerate our long-term profitable growth. This acquisition will add seven marketed products and nearly double our portfolio of Phase 2 and 3 assets, which we believe will create significant value for our stockholders, all through a single transaction," said Todd Davis, CEO of Ligand. "The XOMA Royalty team has built a robust portfolio of complementary biopharmaceutical assets, and this acquisition will enable us to further grow and diversify in areas such as ophthalmology, oncology, CNS and rare diseases. With XOMA Royalty, we believe we will now be in an even stronger position to leverage our expertise and capital base to support broader patient access and advance late-stage clinical programs in a way that enhances patient outcomes and improves lives.

With this agreement, Ligand adds over 120 commercial, clinical, and preclinical stage assets to its broad and growing royalty portfolio highlighted by Roche’s VABYSMO (faricimab-svoa), Day One Pharmaceuticals’ OJEMDA (tovorafenib), Zevra Therapeutics’ MIPLYFFA (arimoclomol), and 14 programs in late-stage development, highlighted by Takeda’s mezagitamab and certain assets from Takeda’s externalized asset portfolio, including osavampator, volixibat and OHB-607. The addition of the XOMA Royalty portfolio is expected to increase Ligand’s long-term growth profile.

"After evaluating a broad range of strategic and financing alternatives, we believe combining our diverse portfolio with a company that shares our commitment to helping the biopharmaceutical industry thrive represents the most compelling outcome for XOMA Royalty’s stockholders," said Owen Hughes, CEO of XOMA Royalty. "The structure delivers to our stockholders both the intrinsic value of XOMA’s portfolio today and the optionality associated with our ongoing litigation with Janssen Biotech (now Johnson & Johnson Innovative Medicine) via the CVR. Since 2023, we significantly scaled our portfolio with the addition of multiple assets and two platform technologies, enabling numerous upcoming regulatory and clinical catalysts beginning in 2026 and continuing over the next several years. We believe coupling Ligand’s business development capabilities, portfolio management expertise plus the inherent financial synergies from this transaction position the combined company to maximize long-term value across the combined portfolio."

Transaction Terms

Under the terms of the merger agreement, Ligand will acquire all the outstanding shares of common stock of XOMA Royalty for $39.00 per share in cash. The cash consideration for the transaction is expected to be funded with Ligand’s existing cash on hand and borrowings under Ligand’s existing credit facility. XOMA Royalty’s Series X Convertible Preferred Stock is expected to be converted into shares of common stock at its stated fixed price prior to closing, whereas the outstanding shares of Series A Preferred Stock and Series B Preferred Stock are expected to be redeemed. XOMA Royalty stockholders also will receive one CVR per share. The CVRs are intended to provide XOMA Royalty stockholders with the opportunity to receive certain net proceeds, if any are recovered, from certain ongoing litigation with regard to XOMA Royalty’s dispute with Janssen Biotech regarding the commercialization of TREMFYA.

Timing and Approvals

The transaction has been unanimously approved by the Ligand and XOMA Royalty Boards of Directors. Entities affiliated with BVF Partners, which own approximately 21% of the outstanding shares of XOMA Royalty common stock and approximately 44% assuming the conversion of their Series X Convertible Preferred Stock, have agreed to convert such shares into shares of XOMA Royalty common stock prior to closing and have entered into a voting agreement in support of the transaction. In addition, XOMA Royalty’s directors and officers have also entered into voting agreements in support of the transaction. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2026, subject to customary closing conditions, approval by XOMA Royalty stockholders and the receipt of certain regulatory approvals.

Financial Guidance Update

The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2026 and to be immediately accretive to Ligand earnings per share. Ligand is increasing its 2026 revenue guidance to be in the range of $270 million to $310 million (previously $245 million to $285 million) and is raising adjusted earnings per diluted share1 guidance to $8.50 to $9.50 (previously $8.00 to $9.00). Royalties are now expected to range from $225 million to $250 million (previously $200 million to $225 million). Guidance for sales of Captisol ($35 million to $40 million) and contract revenue ($10 million to $20 million) are unchanged. In addition, Ligand expects the transaction to be accretive by $1.50 per share to adjusted EPS in 2027.2

Investor Call

Ligand will host a conference call and webcast today beginning at 8:00 a.m. Eastern time (5:00 a.m. Pacific time) to discuss today’s announcement. To participate via telephone, please dial (800) 715-9871 (North America toll-free number) using the conference ID 8692804. International participants outside of Canada may use the toll number (646) 307-1963 and use the same conference ID. To participate via live or replay webcast, a link is available at www.ligand.com.

Advisors

Stifel is serving as lead financial advisor and Citi is serving as financial advisor, Paul Hastings LLP is serving as legal advisor and Collected Strategies is serving as strategic communications advisor to Ligand. Leerink Partners is serving as lead financial advisor and H.C. Wainwright & Co. is serving as financial advisor, and Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP is serving as legal advisor to XOMA Royalty.

(Press release, Ligand, APR 27, 2026, View Source [SID1234664794])

On April 27, 2026 Siren Biotechnology reported the publication of its first peer-reviewed manuscript in Molecular Therapy Oncology, alongside upcoming presentations at the American Society of Gene and Cell Therapy (ASGCT) (Free ASGCT Whitepaper) 2026 Annual Meeting.

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The publication reports preclinical data supporting Siren’s Universal AAV Immuno-Gene Therapy platform and its application to high-grade glioma, a setting with significant unmet need and limited therapeutic options.

Publication Highlights Platform Potential and Translational Depth

The study demonstrates that localized delivery of AAV-encoded cytokines enables sustained intratumoral expression and drives robust anti-tumor activity across multiple preclinical models of high-grade glioma, including human organoids and orthotopic in vivo systems.

Across these studies, treatment was associated with tumor regression and prolonged survival, alongside evidence of tumor-localized immune activation and transcriptional reprogramming.

The study includes extensive in vivo validation across multiple orthogonal glioma models, representing one of the most comprehensive preclinical datasets reported to date for AAV-based approaches in oncology.

The publication also establishes a foundation for the continued clinical development of Siren’s platform in high-grade glioma.

"This paper represents the most complete view to date of how our platform performs across systems that matter for translation," said Nicole K. Paulk, PhD, Founder and CEO of Siren Biotechnology. "We were deliberate about building a dataset that goes beyond a single model or readout, and instead shows reproducible consistency across orthogonal approaches. That level of rigor is important as we continue advancing into the clinic."

Access the full open-access manuscript here.

Upcoming ASGCT (Free ASGCT Whitepaper) 2026 Presentations

Siren Biotechnology will present new data spanning preclinical and CMC advances at the ASGCT (Free ASGCT Whitepaper) 2026 Annual Meeting in Boston, MA.

MRI-Guided Convection-Enhanced Delivery of an AAV-hIFNβ Vector Achieves Targeted Brain Retention and Durable Transgene Expression in a Large-Animal Model

Wednesday, May 13, 2026, 5:00 – 6:30 pm EST, Poster Hall, Abstract #2241

End-to-End Device Compatibility and In-Use Stability Assessment of an AAV Gene Therapy Delivered by Convection-Enhanced Delivery

Friday, May 15, 2026, 8:15 – 8:30 am EST, MCEC Room 162AB

"Together, these presentations extend the platform story into delivery, manufacturability, and real-world use considerations," added Dr. Paulk. "We’re excited to share data that we believe helps define what effective AAV-based therapies in oncology can look like."

This research was additionally made possible by funding from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), a state of California Agency that funds regenerative medicine, stem cell, gene therapy research, and clinical trials (Grant number: TRAN1-15325).

(Press release, Siren Biotechnology, APR 27, 2026, View Source [SID1234664826])