Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals Co., Ltd.

GSK is further delving into the cardiometabolic space — and deepening its relationship with China biotechs — in a $1 billion biobucks deal with an siRNA startup. The UK pharma is teaming with Suzhou-based SiranBio, the little-known drug developer said Wednesday. GSK is picking up rights to SA030, an siRNA in Phase 1 for obesity, for $55 million upfront, a GSK spokesperson confirmed. The large drugmaker will gain the exclusive rights outside of China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan. It marks the latest siRNA licensing move in China, and it extends GSK’s dealmaking streak in the hottest country for pharma asset shopping. GSK has done deals with Hengrui , Hansoh and Chimagen in the last couple of years. SiranBio’s investigational medicine goes after activin receptor-like kinase 7, or ALK7. It’s the same target as one of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals’ obesity drugs, called ARO-ALK7 , that aims to slash fat stored by adipocytes. GSK appears to be positioning SA030 for broad testing, but SiranBio has been describing its ambitions for the investigational drug as a next-generation obesity treatment. The UK pharma does “not have plans to develop this program for the sole purpose of weight loss,” a GSK spokesperson said in an emailed statement to Endpoints. It intends to test the candidate in cardiometabolic disease patients with “chronic conditions that affect the lung, liver and kidney,” the spokesperson added. Kaivan Khavandi, GSK’s R&D leader for respiratory, immunology and inflammation, said in the press release that SA030 “builds on our emerging pipeline targeting inflammation, fibrosis and vascular drivers of disease.” “Cardiometabolic disease is the leading cause of death in ~50% of patients with chronic kidney and liver diseases & where targeting ALK7 could reduce abdominal fat (visceral adipose tissue, VAT) while preserving lean mass,” GSK’s SVP of business development Chris Sheldon wrote in a Wednesday LinkedIn post about the SiranBio pact. That could lead to “improved insulin sensitivity, blood lipid profile and reduced fat cell-driven inflammation.” Sheldon noted lowering VAT in people with chronic inflammatory diseases could improve survival more so than “managing the underlying disease alone.” Obesity hasn’t been a focus for GSK to date. CSO Tony Wood told Endpoints News in August 2024 that obesity wasn’t necessarily on the drugmaker’s R&D radar. “I have enough opportunity in front of me with what I have in the portfolio already,” Wood said at the time. “And I’m judging that future opportunity through a lens of what the world will look like after the GLP-1s have the effect they have on body weight as a comorbid factor.” On its website, though, SiranBio lists the ALK7 program as indicated for obesity. It said the investigational medicine should “achieve selective fat reduction without compromising muscle mass.” Muscle preservation has become a leading focus of next-generation obesity drugs, following the success of the blockbuster GLP-1 shots and pills. SA030 entered Phase 1 in Australia this year, Siran said in February. The trial is testing the injectable in people with overweight or obesity and is expected to have primary data completion in August. SiranBio said it would continue leading the Phase 1, after which point GSK will take over. Obesity drugs continue to be one of the most sought-after areas, and more pharmaceutical companies have entered the space since Wood’s 2024 comments, including AbbVie’s first foray into the field through Gubra. GSK also has a new CEO in place, meaning there could be an eventual evolution in R&D plans at the pharma. In the press release on Wednesday, Siran noted its drug has a “distinct” mechanism from GLP-1 agonists and SGLT2 inhibitors, which could lead to combination attempts with SA030 for lowering “remaining cardiometabolic risk not fully addressed by current therapies.” Earlier this year, GSK also bought pulmonary hypertension biotech 35Pharma and noted that the company’s drug could have “broad metabolic benefits” such as preservation of lean mass and better insulin sensitivity.

With a $165 million cash tailwind, Windward Bio is advancing its TSLP challengers to Amgen and AstraZeneca\'s Tezspire.\n Windward Bio is in full sail with a $165 million crossover financing to push its long-acting anti-TSLP antibody into phase 3, betting that a twice-yearly dosing schedule will be a key differentiator in an increasingly crowded respiratory market. The upsized round was led by OrbiMed and drew several other heavy hitters, including RA Capital Management, Janus Henderson Investors and Sanofi Ventures as new investors, plus existing backers like Novo Holdings.The cash infusion is meant to accelerate the development of the company’s lead candidate, a twice-yearly anti-TSLP agent dubbed WIN378, which is currently nearing an initial readout from a phase 2 dose-ranging portion of the phase 2/3 Polaris trial in asthma. The company now expects to launch the first phase 3 study in the fourth quarter of 2026, with another phase 2 in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease scheduled to start before the end of June. With the new funds, Windward also aims to push its long-acting TSLPxIL-13 bispecific candidate, WIN027, into “multiple proof-of-concept studies across respiratory and dermatology indications” starting in the coming fourth quarter, the Swiss biotech said in a May 4 release.Windward’s ascent has been rapid, emerging in January 2025 with a $200 million series A and former Roche veteran Luca Santarelli, M.D., as CEO. Before founding Windward, Santarelli had successfully steered the buyouts of VectivBio and Therachon, which he cofounded, by Ironwood Pharmaceuticals and Pfizer, respectively.“This financing further strengthens our balance sheet and allows us to advance our programs of next-generation therapies for patients living with serious respiratory and dermatological diseases.” Santarelli, who also serves as Windward’s board chair, said in a May 4 statement. A “NewCo” built on drug candidates licensed from Chinese biotechs, Windward got ex-China rights to WIN387 from Kelun-Biotech and Harbour BioMed and to WIN027 from Qyuns Therapeutics.By targeting TSLP, Windward is entering a high-stakes arena. Full name thymic stromal lymphopoietin, TSLP has become a hot target in immunology, acting as an upstream master switch for the inflammatory cascade.Amgen and AstraZeneca broke into the field in 2021 with the FDA’s approval for Tezspire, a once-monthly subcutaneous injection, for the add-on maintenance treatment of severe asthma.One of Windward’s closest rivals is Upstream Bio, which is developing verekitug. Recently released phase 2 data suggested a 12-week regimen of verekitug achieved Tezspire-like efficacy in asthma, although a 24-week dose—which would be a more direct competitor to Windward’s WIN378—fell short of expectations. About a month ago, Sanofi’s TSLPxIL-13 bispecific nanobody candidate, lunsekimig, hit goals in a pair of midstage studies for moderate-to-severe asthma and chronic rhinosinusitis but failed on the primary endpoint of a phase 2b atopic dermatitis study.GSK entered the arena in 2024 through its $1 billion upfront deal to acquire Aiolos Bio, which got its long-acting anti-TSLP antibody from China’s Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals. Other companies, such as Teva and Blackstone-backed Uniquity Bio, are also in the mix with their own anti-TSLP candidates.

Merck's PD-1xVEGF data reveal, Zai Lab's DLL3 update, and a record biotech IPO made our news this week. Merck & Co. unveiled the much-anticipated first look at its PD-1xVEGF bispecific data. China's Zai Lab is looking to go global. With a pipeline licensed from Hengrui Pharma, Kaleira Therapeutics pulled off a record IPO. And more.1. AACR: Merck unveils PD-1xVEGF bispecific data in NSCLC, remains tight-lipped on phase 3 plansMerck & Co. released the first clinical data from its PD-1xVEGF bispecific, licensed from LaNova Medicines, now part of Sino Biopharm. The drug, given at 20 mg/kg once every three weeks, induced an unconfirmed overall response rate of 55% among 11 first-line patients with PD-L1-positive non-small cell lung cancer. The early data suggest the drug has similar efficacy compared with its peers and potentially a slightly better safety profile.2. AACR: Endeavoring to go global, Zai Lab offers reality check on China’s biotech ascentBuilt on a licensing-for-China model, Zai Lab is looking to become a multinational biopharma anchored on novel drugs such its DLL3 antibody-drug conjugate zocilurtatug pelitecan. However, because of limited cash returns on investment in China, licensing deals with Big Pharma will remain the key source of capital for Chinese startups for some time, Josh Smiley, Zai’s president and chief operating officer, told Fierce.3. Kailera CEO 'knew we were in a good spot' before obesity biotech's record-breaking $625M IPOBuilt on a portfolio of GLP-1 drugs licensed from Hengrui Pharma, Kailera Therapeutics has staged a record-breaking $625 million IPO. It was a fast path to the public market after the company emerged in 2024 with $400 million in a series A round. “[Y]ou can tap the pulse of the investment community—and I think we knew we were in a good spot,” Kailera CEO Ron Renaud told Fierce.4. AACR: FDA vet Pazdur bemoans state of agency, warns of political influence and ‘sense of anxiety’Speaking about China at the industry partnering event at AACR’s annual meeting, the FDA’s former top drug regulator, Richard Pazdur, M.D, brought up the agency’s Project Orbis, which brings together global authorities so drug applications can be reviewed simultaneously. He would like to see China and other Asian countries brought into such multiregional collaborations.5. Tortugas comes out of its shell with $106M to fund 4 phase 2-stage neuro drugs licensed from AsiaA neurology-focused startup led by a pair of Sage Therapeutics veterans has emerged with $106 million. The company, Tortugas Neuroscience, boasts a pipeline with a schizophrenia candidate and a GABA receptor-positive allosteric modulator licensed from China’s Hansoh Pharmaceutical, plus GAT-1 inhibitor and a PDE9 inhibitor licensed from Eisai. Other News of Note:6. Samsung Biologics posts massive revenue growth as labor union rally sets stage for strike7. Biogen inks $850M biobucks deal with TJ Biopharma for China rights to late-stage immune antibody