| | | |   | Good morning, all. We're out with our latest STAT report, "The need for speed and safety: A primer on the FDA's drug approval pathways." Learn more here. | | | Agios’ next ‘evolution’ means cutting up to 10% of its staff Agios is restructuring its business to save about $50 million a year, the company said yesterday, a move that will mean laying off up to 10% of its workforce and curtailing some research.
In an "evolution of its research organization," Agios is moving away from early-stage science, planning to cut up to 50 jobs focused on “exploratory research,” according to a statement released after market close. As of last year, Agios employed about 500 people.
The news comes about 18 months after Agios sold its portfolio of cancer medicines to the French drugmaker Servier for about $1.8 billion, shifting its focus to drugs for inherited diseases. | Seagen CEO resigns after domestic assault charge Clay Siegall, co-founder and CEO of Seagen, has resigned in the wake of his arrest on charges of domestic assault, the company said yesterday.
Siegall, 61, was arrested April 23 after police said he repeatedly shoved his wife to the ground during a late-night dispute, resulting in bruises and abrasions. He has been on a leave of absence since May 5, according to Seagen, which is conducting an investigation into his conduct. Siegall told police he did not assault his wife.
Seagen said in its statement that the investigation is ongoing and that Siegall’s resignation is not related to its findings.
Read more. | BIO International Convention 2022 Biotech brought the world back from the brink. Now we can get together to celebrate, build on your accomplishments, and make the impossible possible. Endless opportunities to share, partner, and learn. Join us in person, June 13-16 in San Diego for the BIO International Convention 2022. | Private equity keeps buying into biotech VC Private equity giant Apollo Global Management is spending $1 billion to buy a minority stake in the biotech venture firm Sofinnova Partners, the latest deal in what is becoming a trend.
As STAT’s Allison DeAngelis reports, Sofinnova is the third major biopharma VC to make a private equity deal in the last seven months.
In November, LSP, a European life sciences VC, was acquired by EQT AB for $450 million. And last month, the storied biotech VC Abingworth said it would be acquired by Carlyle Group for an undisclosed sum.
Read more. | Biotech hedge funds are deep in the red The seemingly endless decline of biotech stocks has been punishing for the sector’s brand-name investors, and April was the cruelest month yet.
According to Institutional Investor, last month pushed the likes of RA Capital, EcoR1, Casdin Capital, and Avoro Capital into deep losses for 2022. Casdin lost 28% of its value in April and is now down 53% on the year, while EcoR1, among the few funds to post a profit in 2021, is down 28% this year, the magazine reported.
The question now is whether all that red tape will create an existential threat for biotech’s highest-profile hedge funds. So far, investors haven’t scrambled to pull their money out, managers told Institutional Investor, but another year of negative returns could turn up the pressure. | More reads - Scientists are finally learning how to design proteins from scratch. Drug development may never be the same. Endpoints News
- What happens when the government stops buying Covid-19 vaccines? STAT
- Moderna says it wasn’t aware of investigation into its new CFO. Wall Street Journal
- FDA rejects antidepressant seen as possible Covid-19 treatment. STAT
- The FDA is expected to soon authorize Pfizer-BioNTech’s booster for 5- to 11-year-olds. New York Times
| Thanks for reading! Until tomorrow,  | | | |
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