Sionna Therapeutics, a Waltham biotech targeting cystic fibrosis, has closed its IPO, raising about $219 million. Sionna is a clinical-stage company seeking to revolutionize the current treatment paradigm for CF by developing novel medicines that normalize the function of the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) protein. Sionna’s goal is to deliver differentiated medicines for […]

Alnylam delivered a one-two punch in March, growing its portfolio of FDA-approved RNAi therapies with the addition of Amvuttra (vutrisiran) for transthyretin amyloid cardiomyopathy (ATTR-CM) and Qfitlia (fitusiran) for hemophilia. Qfitlia (fitusiran) is the sixth Alnylam-discovered RNAi therapeutic approved in the U.S., and the first and only therapeutic to lower antithrombin (AT), a protein that inhibits blood clotting, and […]

Biogen has announced plans for its new global headquarters at Kendall Common, located at 75 Broadway in Cambridge, as part of a multi-year real estate consolidation plan in Massachusetts. The move centralizes Biogen’s presence in Kendall Square, integrating Biogen’s R&D and technical operations teams alongside its global and North American commercial organizations into a co-located […]

bluebird bio has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by private-equity firms Carlyle Group and SK Capital Partners in collaboration with a team of highly experienced biotech executives in a deal worth up to $96 million. David Meek, former CEO of Mirati Therapeutics and Ipsen, is expected to become CEO of bluebird upon closing. Carlyle and SK Capital will […]

Stoke Therapeutics has entered into a collaboration with Biogen on the development and commercialization of zorevunersen, a potential first-in-class treatment for a form of epilepsy known as Dravet syndrome. Zorevunersen is an investigational antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) that targets the SCN1A gene, the underlying cause of most cases of Dravet syndrome. Upon closing of the transaction, Stoke will […]

In late January, Sage Therapeutics announced that its Board of Directors had unanimously rejected the unsolicited, nonbinding proposal it received from Biogen after concluding that the proposal significantly undervalues Sage and is not in the best interest of its shareholders. (Biogen had offered to acquire all outstanding shares of Sage for $7.22 per share.) In addition, the Board […]

 Vertex Pharmaceuticals has announced that the FDA has approved Journavx (suzetrigine) for the treatment of adults with moderate-to-severe acute pain, like the kind that follows surgery, accident or injury. Journavx is an effective, well-tolerated medicine without evidence of addictive potential. “Today’s approval is a historic milestone for the 80 million people in America who are prescribed […]

Cambridge-based Anthos Therapeutics and its parent company, private investment platform Blackstone Life Sciences, have entered into an agreement with Novartis to acquire Anthos for up to $3.1 billion. Anthos was founded by Blackstone Life Sciences and Novartis in 2019 with the exclusive global rights from Novartis to develop, manufacture, and commercialize abelacimab, a novel factor XI inhibitor […]

In a sign of a biotech rebound, Massachusetts-headquartered biopharma companies received $7.89 billion in venture capital (VC) funding, marking the first year-over-year increase since the pandemic, according to a newly released year-end report from biopharma member organization MassBio. For the first time ever, the report also found that private biopharma companies based in Boston collected more venture […]