Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation gives $85M; Omeicos raises; Sanofi signs deal; Lilly grabs

Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation gives USD 85 Million to stop delayed, erroneous diagnostics

The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation is putting up money for improving diagnostics. The Foundation focuses on a plethora of areas, including those outside of healthcare, such as environmental conservation. It has an annual budget of around USD 300 million when founded. The USD 85 million was reserved for its latest healthcare investment that is focused on diagnostics.

Omeicos raises USD 19 million to run phase 2 atrial fibrillation trial

Omeicos Therapeutics based in Germany and focused on developing therapeutics that can be broadly deployed in inflammatory, cardiovascular, ophthalmology and other disease indications, has raised USD 19 million to develop an atrial fibrillation candidate. The Forbion-led series C round sets Omeicos up to run a phase 2 trial of its small molecule analogue of a natural omega-3 fatty acid metabolite. Omeicos pondered over small molecule analogues of the metabolites that could prevent and treat cardiovascular diseases.

Sanofi signs research deal with Denali for neurological, inflammatory diseases

Sanofi and Denali Therapeutics inked a deal that is in collaboration to develop and potentially commercialize a set of small molecule compounds that will target a range of neurodegenerative and inflammatory diseases. Sanofi remunerates the South San Francisco, California-based biotech USD 125 million upfront and has lined up more than USD 1 billion in potential milestone payments. In exchange, the French pharma garnered a pair of clinical-stage receptor-interacting serine/threonine-protein kinase 1 (RIPK1) inhibitors, small molecules that target the signalling protein RIPK1 in the TNF receptor pathway.

Eli Lilly grabs the regulatory fast pass for the bargain price

Siga Technologies, a pharmaceutical company based in New York City, has sold a priority review voucher to Eli Lilly for a lump sum of USD 80 million. Siga takes up the voucher as an incentive from the Food and Drug Administration for securing approval of TPOXX, an oral smallpox treatment, through its medical countermeasures voucher program. The vouchers are given to companies that have garnered product approval for certain rare tropical or pediatric diseases, emerging infectious diseases, or for treatments aimed at counteracting chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear threats.