Vicore Pharma Holding AB

Agomab Therapeutics is benefiting from Sanofi’s push to become an immunology powerhouse. The Antwerp-based biotech said Friday that the French drug giant and Invus are new investors in its $89 million Series D that arrived one year after its $100 million Series C . Pfizer and Boehringer Ingelheim have also backed Agomab. The company wasn’t seeking additional money. “The $100 million is still in the bank,” Agomab CEO Tim Knotnerus said in an interview. But after receiving inbound interest from Sanofi, the biotech’s execs discussed it with the board and then did a “very selective reach-out” to other investors. It took only a month to close the round, the CEO said. The new financing will fund an ongoing Phase 2a of Agomab’s lead therapy — an oral small molecule for a subset of Crohn’s disease patients — and another oral drug candidate already in Phase 1 for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. It also plans to take a MET agonistic antibody into human studies in the first half of next year for liver cirrhosis. Agomab anticipates interim data for the first 40 of 90 patients from the Phase 2a of AGMB-129 in early 2025. Investigators are testing the gut-restricted ALK5 inhibitor in patients with fibrostenosing Crohn’s disease, which impacts about half the people with the inflammatory bowel disease. It has the FDA fast track tag. “Can we indeed avoid the known cardio toxicity that is associated with ALK5?” Knotnerus said. “We believe we can because of the way our compound has been designed, so that we have high local exposure of our ALK5 asset in the gastrointestinal tract and very low systemic exposure.” In the first half of next year, the biotech also expects to have the first batch of healthy volunteer data from the Phase 1 trial in IPF for its ALK5 inhibitor that is lung-restricted, according to Knotnerus. IPF leads to difficulties with breathing and impairs multiple other functions, eventually leading to death for many patients within about five years. Boehringer and Roche each market medicines for IPF, and both were approved by the FDA 10 years ago. Many drug developers are following up with next-generation medicines. Amid a broader restructuring of its business, Sanofi has continued to bet on oncology and I&I. In recent months, it invested in several companies developing IPF medicines like Vicore Pharma and Graviton Bioscience . The company also earmarked up to $1.5 billion for the anti-TL1A race in a partnership with Teva . Agomab broke cover in 2019 with a $23 million Series A. It snagged a $74 million Series B in 2021 and bought Spanish startup Origo Biopharma later that year. The 60-employee startup also now has an office in Cambridge, MA. It added former Seagen leader David Epstein to its board this summer, and Pierre Kemula — who headed finance at CureVac when it went public — is set to start as CFO on Nov. 1.

Plus, news about Vicore: Scholar Rock seeks $275M in stock sale: After announcing the success of a pivotal clinical trial for its muscle-targeted spinal muscular atrophy treatment, Scholar Rock’s shares $SRRK skyrocketed over 300% on Monday. The biotech is now seeking $275 million via a public offering. It plans to put the money towards funding the commercialization of its SMA therapy apitegromab, among other uses. — Lei Lei Wu Vincerx reprioritizes its pipeline: The Palo Alto, CA-based biotech said it will partner off its advanced solid tumor candidate, VIP236, and instead focus resources on continued development of VIP943 for acute myeloid leukemia. Vincerx is also looking for a partner for its diffuse large B cell lymphoma asset, called enitociclib. The company has a cash runway through early next year. Its stock $VINC was down about 19% on Tuesday morning. — Ayisha Sharma Vicore raises SEK 100M in share sale: The biotech issued more than 11 million new shares for SEK 9 apiece, securing the equivalent of $9.6 million. The proceeds are expected to help the drugmaker fund an expanded Phase 2b test of its idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis drug candidate, buloxibutid, and get ready for registrational development. — Ayisha Sharma

Plus, news about IN8bio, Sanofi, Vicore Pharma, Cartherics, Zephyrm Bioscience, Tharimmune and Intract Pharma: Biohaven’s $250M offering: The move comes after Biohaven announced Monday that it started a pivotal Phase 2 study of its oral TRPM3 antagonist for migraines. The company also expects to grant the underwriters another $37.5 million of common shares. — Katherine Lewin Activist firm grows stake in Galapagos: EcoR1 crossed the 10% ownership threshold tied to voting securities, according to a disclosure on Monday . EcoR1 believes the Dutch biotech is “deeply undervalued” and previously said it would speak to the board and management about a “variety of topics” including board composition. — Max Bayer IN8bio’s $12.4M raise: The New York gamma-delta T cell therapy biotech priced the private placement a few weeks after announcing plans to prioritize its pipeline and halve its workforce. — Kyle LaHucik Sanofi invests $10M in Vicore Pharma: The Stockholm-based company is beginning a Phase 2b trial investigating its drug, buloxibutid, in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis who are either untreated or receiving the current standard of care. — Katherine Lewin Cartherics raises about $10 million: The money is set to go toward a clinical trial next year for the Melbourne-based company’s preclinical lead cell therapy for ovarian cancer, dubbed CTH-401. According to Cartherics, CTH-401 is the only natural killer cell therapy currently under development that includes a CAR that targets the adenocarcinoma specific antigen called TAG-72. — Katherine Lewin Zephyrm Bioscience files for IPO in Hong Kong: The seven-year-old startup wants to go public on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange to fund its pipeline of pluripotent stem cell therapies. Its lead therapy is expected to enter Phase 3 next year for two indications: acute exacerbation of interstitial lung disease, and acute graft versus host disease. — Kyle LaHucik Tharimmune, Intract Pharma to merge: The clinical-stage I&I biotech wants to combine with Intract, which makes a delivery system for oral biologics. The merger is slated to close in the first quarter of 2025, and Intract shareholders will own 49% of the combined company. — Kyle LaHucik