| | | |   | Happy Friday. It’s Meghana! Today, we have a favorite analyst turning CFO, some true brotherly love in the form of a bespoke CRISPR therapy, and a pretty great podcast. | | | A bespoke CRISPR therapy between brothers Thanks to his big brother, 27-year-old Terry Horgan will receive a first-of-its-kind CRISPR therapy made for his specific form of muscular dystrophy. It’s the first-ever personalized CRISPR therapy, the first time gene editing is being used to try to mitigate muscular dystrophy, and the first time CRISPR is being used to change how a person’s cells interpret their genetic code, as opposed to changing the code itself. The FDA granted permission for Horgan to receive the treatment, which was conceived by his brother, Richard Horgan, three years ago when he was a graduate student at Harvard University. Richard Horgan worked with scientists at Charles River Laboratories, UMass Chan Medical School, Yale University, and other institutions to design, test, and manufacture a bespoke therapy for his younger brother. “We’re finally here,” Richard Horgan said. “We’re cautiously optimistic.” Read more. | Biden administration zeroing in on monkeypox In response to criticism that it’s dragged its feet in combatting monkeypox, the White House announced yesterday that it would provide 1.8 million more doses of the Jynneos vaccine, and 50,000 courses of the antiviral Tpoxx, to state and local governments. And the CDC will launch a pilot program that woll make 50,000 vaccine doses available at events “that do focus on populations who are overrepresented in this outbreak.” The disease is disproportionately occurring in men who have sex with men, particularly those who are Hispanic and Black. The U.S. will receive 150,000 vials of the Bavarian Nordic vaccine next month, and is working with with a contract manufacturer to get another 2.5 million vials worth of bulk vaccine into actual vials. Read more. | When it comes to drug development, we need both conventional and cutting-edge therapies Two things the world learned from the pandemic: go quickly and be ready. The biopharma industry can take advantage of the momentum gained and continue pushing the boundaries of medicine. In this three-part article series, explore the era of ‘and’, where mRNA and other novel molecules will feature prominently. And learn how we can prepare for that reality. Read the first article here. | How did autism care become a big business? Can gene therapy be profitable? And whatever happened to that $40 billion merger? We cover all that and more this week on “The Readout LOUD,” STAT’s biotech podcast. First, STAT’s Tara Bannow joins us to discuss how private equity’s mounting interest in autism care has created an untenable situation for many parents in the U.S. We also explain the implications of Bluebird Bio’s long-awaited FDA approval, a controversial treatment for ALS, and the ups and downs of Merck’s reported interest in buying Seagen. Listen here. | Geoffrey Porges shifts from analyst role to CFO Another top analyst has been recruited into a C-suite role: Geoffrey Porges, who was most recently a vice chair at SVB Securities (formerly Leerink) — will become chief financial officer at Schrödinger, Inc. The publicly traded company, which is based in New York, has used its computational platform to discover new therapies and materials over the course of some three decades. Schrödinger isn’t the first company to hire a high-profile analyst: Exact Sciences, Sema4, EQRx, and Juno Therapeutics recruited from the analyst pool as well. Porges, whose insights have helped tip the balance of the biopharmaceutical markets this way and that, called Schrödinger’s balance sheet and revenue outlook “very strong” in a release. So much so that he chose to hop aboard. | More reads - Curis gets FDA green light to restart lymphoma trial, though partial hold on leukemia study stays in place, FierceBiotech
- The abysmal Covid vaccination rate for toddlers speaks volumes, New York Times
- WHO recommends Valneva’s Covid vaccine, Reuters
| Thanks for reading! Until next week,  | | | |
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