💊 Health Futures #40

Happy Monday 👋

This week, KeyBioscience and Eli Lilly extended their collaboration on the development of dual amylin calcitonin receptor agonists, leading to the development of new treatments for obesity and osteoarthritis. Meanwhile, in digital health, Open Medical and AKI Healthcare signed a Memorandum of Understanding in UAE and Oman aiming to leverage their expertise in digital health technologies and AKI's deep understanding of the regional healthcare landscape. Sanofi discontinued a phase 2 trial of a RIPK1 inhibitor for the treatment of multiple sclerosis. The drug failed to meet its primary and secondary endpoints in the trial, marking another setback for the RIPK1 program. In health funding, Lunbeck agreed to acquire Longboard Pharmaceuticals for $2.6B, expanding its pipeline with a potential blockbuster epilepsy drug.

🎯 Targeted Chronic Disease Management

💊 KeyBioscience extended its collaboration with Eli Lilly. Aiming the development of dual amylin calcitonin receptor agonists. Both companies will conduct a Phase II study of a new molecule for the treatment of obesity and osteoarthritis.

🔬 GSK announced its positive results from two Phase 3 trials testing a drug for chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps. The drug showed promise in reducing nasal polyp growth and easing nasal obstruction.

📋 The UK government and NHS signed a collaboration agreement with Eli Lilly.  The agreement includes a $316M investment in the UK life sciences industry and weight loss medication. 

🌐 AI in Health

💻 Microsoft expanded its healthcare AI capabilities in Microsoft Cloud. This partnership aims to improve data analysis and unlock insights. The launch includes new healthcare AI models in Azure AI Studio, developed in collaboration with entities such as Providence and Paige.ai.

🩺 Open Medical signed a MOU with AKI Healthcare. The agreement initiates collaboration on introducing innovative digital healthcare solutions in the UAE and Oman, aiming to leverage Open Medical's expertise in digital health technologies and AKI's deep understanding of the regional healthcare landscape.

🩹 GE HealthCare's collaboration with Blackford aims to integrate AI into radiology workflows. To improve diagnostic accuracy and optimize resource allocation within healthcare settings.

🧬 Biotechnology

🔬 SK Pharmteco entered into a multi-year agreement with AaviGen. To manufacture a gene therapy for heart failure. AaviGen selected SK Pharmteco due to its expertise in developing and manufacturing gene therapies.

🧪 Sanofi discontinued a phase 2 trial of a RIPK1 inhibitor for treating multiple sclerosis. The failure of RIPK1 inhibitors raised questions about the potential of RIPK1 inhibitors as treatments for inflammatory diseases.

🧫 Hanmi Pharmaceutical entered into a research collaboration and financing agreement with MEDiC Life Sciences. MEDiC will leverage its functional genomics platform MCAT to identify biomarkers that will inform the clinical development of Hanmi's therapeutic assets.

💰 Deals of the Week

🏥 Lunbeck agreed to acquire Longboard Pharmaceuticals for $2.6B. The acquisition will add a potential blockbuster drug for epilepsy to Lundbeck's pipeline.

🩻 Hologic acquired Gynesonics for approximately $350M. This acquisition will potentially expand Hologic's offerings in women's health.

💊 Akeso Biopharma raised $250M through a share placement. The financing will be used to accelerate the global clinical development of Akeso's innovative drugs.

💉 Suki secured $70M in Series D funding. The company is aiming to use the funds to invest in commercial initiatives, accelerate product development, and expand its leadership group.

🤖 Qure.ai completed a $65M series D funding round. The funds will be allocated to accelerate the company's growth in the U.S. market, invest more in AI models, and facilitate the acquisition of related medical technology companies.

Thank you for reading. Have a great week ahead!
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