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$IMMP Positive New Data from Ongoing TACTI-mel Study $MRK in Unresectable or Metastatic Melanoma : New data presented shows ORR of 61% (n=11/18)
As comparison for same indication, Relatlimab $BMY has shown an ORR of 11% (n=61)
Thanks to a differentiated mode of action, $IMMP IMP321 seems to be a game changer in LAG3 landscape (onco) $BMY $MRK $SAN $REGN $MGNX $TSRO : it's the only one APC activator currently in clin. dev.
Gene therapy biotech MeiraGTx sets terms for $75M IPO
https://www.renaissancecapital.com/IPO-Center/News/56792/Gene-therapy-biotech-MeiraGTx-sets-terms-for-$75-million-IPO
MeiraGTx Holdings, which is developing gene therapies for disorders of the eye and salivary gland, announced terms for its IPO on Tuesday.
The New York, NY-based company plans to raise $75 million by offering 5.0 million shares at a price range of $14 to $16. Insiders intend to purchase $40 million worth of shares in the offering. At the midpoint of the proposed range, MeiraGTx Holdings would command a fully diluted market value of $423 million.
MeiraGTx Holdings was founded in 2015 and plans to list on the Nasdaq under the symbol MGTX. BofA Merrill Lynch, Barclays and Evercore ISI are the joint bookrunners on the deal. It is expected to price during the week of June 4, 2018.
With $460B in borrowing capacity, will any of the Big-20 biopharmas go after one of the top-5 takeover targets?
https://endpts.com/with-460b-in-borrowing-capacity-will-any-of-the-big-20-biopharmas-go-after-one-of-the-top-5-takeover-targets/
30mg initial data will be released during the dedicated Global Webcast , May 29. Seems like Triebel is impatient to show what they have in hand...
IMMP presents LAG-3 data in melanoma
$IMMP Immutep at #Immuno18
Prelimi. results of TACTII-mel $MRK impress : n=18 , Tumor shrinkage in 50 % of these patients ; incl. 2 pts with complete disappearance of all target lesions
IMP321 is the only APC targeting LAG-3 product currently in clin. dev.
$IMMP has 33% ORR. $BMY had 11% ORR with their LAG3 asset and were very excited. Good work $IMMP. Here is link to $BMY LAG3:
$MRK should buy $IMMP and would have a better LAG3 asset than $BMY and would have access to IMMP’s robust LAG3 IP. $MRK has already licensed a preclinical LAG3 from F-star but $IMMP’s asset is much further along w/ great results.
Of all the io Co.’s w/ assets that $MRK CMO has been reported to b interested 4 combo with Pd-1 and or OV: Sting, TLR9, IL12, IDO, CTLA4, LAG3, $IMMP has one of smallest MC ~$52MM. Lots of room for upside w good data later this month.
IBM Will Marry Its New Verifier To The Blockchain, Transforming Diamonds, Olive Oil And Insurance
https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaeldelcastillo/2018/05/23/staring-into-the-eye-of-a-blockchain/
Merck's Keytruda, Roche's Tecentriq may lag chemo in some cancer patients, FDA says
http://www.fiercepharma.com/pharma/merck-s-keytruda-roche-s-tecentriq-may-be-hurting-some-patients-survival-fda
Merck and Roche’s immunotherapies are each approved solo for certain previously untreated bladder cancer patients. But for other frontline patients, the drugs may be hurting their survival chances.
The FDA warned doctors, trial investigators and the public on Friday that Merck's Keytruda and Roche's Tecentriq turned up red flags in recent trials. Early reviews from oversight committees found that in each of two studies—one testing Keytruda and the other testing Tecentriq—patients with low levels of the PD-L1 biomarker treated with the immunotherapies saw their survival chances decrease compared with those who took platinum chemotherapy.
Both Keytruda and Tecentriq are conditionally approved to treat certain bladder cancer patients who've not been treated before. They're cleared for patients with cancer that has spread locally or throughout the body—regardless of their PD-L1 status—if they're not eligible for cisplatin chemotherapy regimens.
That's not the population in the trials the FDA's flagging. Patients in those studies were eligible for platinum-based chemo, the agency was quick to point out.
Still, regulators are asking doctors and patients to make sure they report any side effects related to either drug, and they’re recommending physicians stick to the products’ labels when it comes to prescribing.
While players in the PD-1/PD-L1 class—Keytruda in particular—seem to be racking up new approvals left and right, It’s not the first time either drug has run into problems in trials. Tecentriq, for one, ran the risk of losing its bladder cancer approval last year after flopping the study that was meant to cement its accelerated approval in second-line bladder cancer.
Keytruda, on the other hand, doesn’t have any previous bad marks in bladder cancer but has triggered safety warnings in trials for other cancer types. Last September, in the wake of trial deaths, the FDA issued a statement highlighting the risks of pairing Keytruda with dexamethasone and either Celgene’s Revlimid or Pomalyst as treatment for multiple myeloma.
Agreed. More and more companies in multiple industries are appreciating the efficiency and savings that can be derived from the use of blockchain technology in logistics and operations.
Oil Buyers Ditch Paper for Blockchain to Track Tanker Sales
https://www.bloomberg.com/amp/news/articles/2018-02-26/big-oil-buyers-ditch-paper-for-blockchain-to-track-tanker-sales
FedEx's Smith Sees Blockchain as `Next Frontier' for Logistics
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-05-14/fedex-s-smith-sees-blockchain-as-next-frontier-for-logistics
Convinced that blockchain is on the brink of transforming the package-delivery business, FedEx Corp. is testing the technology to track large, higher-value cargo.
“We’re quite confident that it has big, big implications in supply chain, transportation and logistics,” Chief Executive Officer Fred Smith said at a blockchain conference in New York on Monday. “It’s the next frontier that’s going to completely change worldwide supply chains.”
Blockchain uses computer code to record every step of a transaction and delivery in a permanent digital ledger, providing transparency. The ledger can’t be changed unless all involved agree, reducing common disputes over issues like time stamps, payments and damages.
FedEx’s interest in blockchain and the Internet of Things are part of the company’s strategy to improve customer service and fend off competition, Smith said. FedEx is working with an organization called the Blockchain in Transport Alliance that is attempting to set industry standards for using the technology in transportation.
Blockchain has the potential to lower transaction costs, speed up processes and free up working capital, according to the alliance.
FedEx is also experimenting with a small bluetooth-based, low-energy tracking sensor called Tron, Chief Information Officer Robert Carter said at the conference. The company has taken out more patents on Tron than any other technology in the company’s history. FedEx is also part of a team announced on May 9 that will test small drone flights at the Memphis International Airport.
Unless a company embraces new technologies such as blockchain, it will face “probably, at some point, extinction,” the CEO said.
Blockchain will help ‘drive this next industrial revolution,’ Wall Street bull predicts
One of Wall Street's biggest bulls sees blockchain playing a big role as an economic growth driver.
It still may be considered an emerging technology, but Federated Investors portfolio manager Steve Chiavarone is folding the electronic system, which records cryptocurrency transactions, into his stock market forecast.
"This is going to be one of five key technologies — along with automation, robotics, A.I. [artificial intelligence] and the Internet of things that drive this next industrial revolution," he said Friday on CNBC's "Trading Nation."
He's not letting the growing pains currently gripping the cryptocurrency market affect his bullish view.
Bitcoin, which has been referred to as the FANG stock of the crypto world, has been struggling to break $10,000 — just months after hitting a record price just shy of $20,000 last December.
In fact, Chiavarone sees FANG stocks, which include top tech names Facebook, Amazon, Netflix and Google [Alphabet], as ultimately reaping benefits from blockchain's processing power — as well as areas from health care to financials.
"A lot of investors went to bitcoin first because it was the first way to access blockchain," added Chiavarone. "Look, big banks are investing in this heavily. Bank of America boasted at Davos earlier this year that they're investing the most."
Chiavarone believes blockchain technology is valuable because it could potentially transform reconciliation, the action of verifying account balances in corporate America.
"It has an ability to replace reconciliation, which is expensive and requires back office and time and paperwork with more instantaneous verification," he said.
"What that means is companies can have more efficient supply chains. They can cut their back and middle office costs," Chiavarone said. "And, that will allow business to flow more efficiently and it'll allow costs to be cut and net savings to be passed along."
https://apple.news/AU-EL62eQRhOrVzJZ06wksA
Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger understand cryptocurrencies perfectly and they realize their life’s work is in jeopardy if Bitcoin succeeds.
Before you roll your eyes, remember that six of Berkshire Hathaway’s ten largest holdings are in legacy financial companies. They own:
• 9.5% of Wells Fargo
• 6.7% of Bank of America
• 17.8% of American Express
• 5.3% of US Bancorp
• 13.1% of Moody’s Corporation
• 6.1% of Bank of NY Mellon Corp
These guys aren’t dumb. They know exactly what is at stake. They want their opinions to come off in a nonchalant way. This is a calculated defense tactic though. They even brought their buddy Bill Gates on CNBC to say he would short Bitcoin if there was a way to do it.
Some of Gates’ famous technology predictions:
“640KB of memory ought to be enough for anybody” in 1981
“I believe OS/2 is destined to be the most important operating system, and possibly program, of all time.” in 1987
“I see little commercial potential for the internet for the next 10 years” in 1994
My intent is to not mock Gates for his predictions. He has accomplished a lot professionally and philanthropically, and I respect him a lot for that.
However, just because someone has been very successful in one element of business and life does not mean we should base our judgement entirely on what they say about something new. This is also true for bitcoin skeptics who quote Warren Buffett, someone who has avoided investing in major technology shifts for most of his investing career, having claimed himself that does not invest in what he does not understand. Yet, when it comes to bitcoin, he is not hesitant to publicly dismiss the technology as useless. I actually don’t think he doesn’t understand, he probably does, the threat that bitcoin poses to his billions in bank stocks.
Tyler Winklevoss responds to Gates’ comment:
Dear @BillGates there is an easy way to short bitcoin. You can short #XBT, the @CBOE Bitcoin (USD) Futures contract, and put your money where your mouth is! cc @CNBC @WarrenBuffett https://t.co/4JIhF5vWsZ
— Tyler Winklevoss (@tyler) May 7, 2018
Bitcoin Sees Wall Street Warm to Trading Virtual Currency
https://nyti.ms/2FUgbHX
Some of the biggest names on Wall Street are warming up to Bitcoin, a virtual currency that for nearly a decade has been consigned to the unregulated fringes of the financial world.
The parent company of the New York Stock Exchange has been working on an online trading platform that would allow large investors to buy and hold Bitcoin, according to emails and documents viewed by The New York Times and four people briefed on the effort who asked to remain anonymous because the plans were still confidential.
The news of the virtual exchange, which has not been reported before, came after Goldman Sachs went public with its intention to open a Bitcoin trading unit — most likely the first of its kind at a Wall Street bank.
The moves by Goldman and Intercontinental Exchange, or ICE, the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange, mark a dramatic shift toward the mainstream for a digital token that has been known primarily for its underworld associations and status as a high-risk, speculative investment.
...
New Lab-Cultured Meat Company Uses 3D Technology to Grow Slaughter-Free Steaks
http://www.onegreenplanet.org/news/new-lab-cultured-meat-company-uses-technology-grow-slaughter-free-steaks/
Speaking of banks, the below is slightly off-topic, but:
Goldman Sachs to Open a Bitcoin Trading Operation
https://nyti.ms/2FClUSI
The influx of institutional capital should drive Bitcoin higher than ever this year.
Cheap Hydrogen Fuel Was A Failed Promise. But Its Time May Have Arrived
https://www.universal-sci.com/headlines/2018/5/1/cheap-hydrogen-fuel-was-a-failed-promise-but-its-time-may-have-arrived
Hydrogen fuel cells were supposed to be the next big thing. Their promise peaked during the gas crisis of the 1970s as a clean energy source to power cars and electric plants, hydrogen fuel never truly took off. It was simply too expensive to make the stuff. As a result, hydrogen fuel has been mostly limited to labs, where engineers keep trying to use it to make better vehicles (a handful of vehicles and backup generatorsare hydrogen-powered, but they’re not exactly widespread).
But now we may have a way to drive that cost down. And that could finally make hydrogen fuel a viable, widespread source of clean energy.
Ammonia, a hydrogen-rich molecule, has recently surfaced as a source of the molecular hydrogen needed to generate electricity. Now, researchers have figured out how to extract that fuel and generate power without creating usual pollutants that come from using ammonia.
A quick chemistry lesson: Reacting hydrogen with oxygen gives rise to electricity. Its byproduct is only water, not those nasty greenhouse gases that come from burning oil or coal. But that hydrogen still needs to come from somewhere. A prime candidate: ammonia, an easy-to-store molecule made of three hydrogen atoms stuck to one atom of nitrogen.
Ammonia never took off in the past because ammonia only combusts at super high temperatures, making its hydrogen inaccessible in the normal world. Plus, chemical reactions created a byproduct of nitrogen oxides, an air pollutant that can lead to lung infections. So it didn’t make sense to use ammonia as fuel for hydrogen-powered vehicles — it would take so much more energy to get the hydrogen out that it wouldn’t be worth powering your car (though fossil fuels also emit nitrogen oxides when they burn).
In a recent breakthrough, researchers found that introducing a new chemical — a crystal containing copper, silicon, and other metals — both made ammonia combust at lower temperatures (so the fuel was more efficient) and eliminated nitrogen oxide pollution. The only byproduct: di-nitrogen, the harmless gas that makes up most of Earth’s atmosphere.
In effect, they researchers figured out how to use ammonia as a cheap, clean source of hydrogen that could be pretty darn useful. As of 2016, transportation made up over a quarter of American greenhouse gas emissions, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. One of the biggest potential uses for hydrogen power is emission-free vehicles. That’s the goal of much of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s hydrogen power research, perhaps because cutting greenhouse gas emissions from our cars, buses, and trucks would make a huge dent in our overall emissions.
The next step: scaling up. This is early research, done in a lab. For this research to turn into actually usable fuel (and technology that uses it), researchers will have to test it in more applicable settings, and make sure the chemical reaction can produce a meaningful amount of hydrogen. Once that happens, it may only be a matter of time till, at long last, hydrogen takes its long-awaited place as a source of clean energy.
BMW, GM, Ford and Renault launch blockchain research group for automotive industry
https://techcrunch.com/2018/05/02/the-mobility-open-blockchain-initiative-bmw-gm-ford-renault/
Still early days but blockchain is here to stay.
As Biogen turns 40, biotech worries the glory days may be over
https://www.statnews.com/2018/05/02/biogen-turns-40/
No paywall
Merck’s Dangerous Keytruda Success
https://www.bloomberg.com/amp/gadfly/articles/2018-05-01/merck-earnings-keytruda-success-can-be-dangerous
“—The drugmaker needs to work harder to untie its fortunes from the cancer drug.”
[OT]A Goldman Trading Desk That Once Had 500 People Is Down to Three
https://www.bloomberg.com/amp/news/articles/2018-04-30/goldman-trading-desk-that-once-had-500-people-is-down-to-three
Many Wall Street traders are concerned about being replaced by machines in the future, but at one Goldman Sachs Group Inc. unit it’s already happened.
“Equity trading: 15-20 years ago we had 500 people making markets in stocks. Today we have three,” Goldman Sachs President David Solomon said Monday at the Milken Institute Global Conference in Beverly Hills, California.
Solomon said the introduction of more technology into the trading business has made it more efficient for clients, while also introducing new risks. For Goldman Sachs, it has changed the mix of its workforce, as the bank has 9,000 engineers on staff and more employees are focused on regulation.
Related: Robots Are Coming for These Wall Street Jobs
https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2017-wall-street-robots/
Goldman has “an enormous investment in machine learning and, based on history, how markets will function,” Solomon said. It makes speed “much more important than capital.”
$BMY gives up on its own IDOi from $800M Flexus acquisition
Two Ph3 trials just terminated
https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03417037
https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03386838
$INCY $NLNK
$BMY gives up on its own IDOi from $800M Flexus acquisition
— Andy Biotech (@AndyBiotech) April 30, 2018
Two Ph3 trials just terminated https://t.co/9v6ez8oO3Ehttps://t.co/Fl9ueM0sDb$INCY $NLNK
EBIO—Anyone have any thoughts on their bladder cancer combo with AZN? Interim p3 data this month at a plenary session at the AUA and then full data in June. TIA.
Pharma dealmaking is starting to heat up — here's who likely to get acquired
http://www.businessinsider.com/next-pharmaceutical-companies-to-get-acquired-2018-4
Looks like we got proof of this accumulation — Nexthera files 13G for 5.1% stake. Thanks for sharing the info guys!
DMD—Daiichi Sankyo concedes an early setback on Duchenne MD drug, but doubles down on development -https://endpts.com/daiichi-sankyo-concedes-an-early-setback-on-duchenne-md-drug-but-doubles-down-on-development/
Curious to know how these data compare to SRPT’s. Anyone have any thoughts? TIA
https://submissions.mirasmart.com/Verify/AAN2018/submission/temp/rad56E01.pdf
Also SRPT drug is only effective in about 13% of DMD mutations whereas CATB is not limited by mutation type from what I understand. Given SRPT’s FDA approval on not so convincing data in 2016, CATB might have a strong value proposition here IMO.
2018 set to be big for Duchenne muscular dystrophy deals, reveals GlobalData
https://www.epmmagazine.com/analysis/2018-set-to-be-big-for-duchenne-muscular-dystrophy/
Worldwide Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy Treatment Market to Reach US$ 10,664.5 Mn by 2026 – Persistence Market Research
https://t.co/TMnTLXiv97?amp=1
CATB +21% AH on MRI data from DMD extension study
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180425006371/en/Catabasis-Pharmaceuticals-Presents-New-Edasalonexent-Data-Showing
[OT]Barriers to entering the pharmaceutical industry are too high even for Amazon: Billionaire investor
https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2018/04/23/pharmaceuticals-industry-barriers-are-too-high-for-amazon-investor.html
The Future Of Energy Isn't Fossil Fuels Or Renewables, It's Nuclear Fusion
http://www.forbes.com/sites/startswithabang/2017/04/12/the-future-of-energy-isnt-fossil-fuels-or-renewables-its-nuclear-fusion/#5153ca323bee
IBM And Major Banks Blockchain Partnership Reports First Live Pilot Transactions
https://cointelegraph.com/news/ibm-and-major-banks-blockchain-partnership-reports-first-live-pilot-transactions
IBM’s partnership with international banks to develop a Blockchain trade finance platform called Batavia has resulted in the platform’s first live pilot transactions, according to a press release published today, April 19.
IBM, the Bank of Montreal (BMO), CaixaBank, Commerzbank, Erste Group, and the United Bank of Switzerland (UBS) began work on the initiative last fall. Batavia works by tracking events in a product’s supply chain, while key events can prompt the execution of smart contracts that close trade agreements.
According to the announcement, the initial transactions involved sending cars from Germany to Spain and furniture production textiles from Austria to Spain.
Niko Giesber of Commerzbank said that the “joint successful live transaction demonstrates the potential of such a platform”:
“Trade data and smart payment, which is automatically triggered by the transport data, form an important basis for risk management and financing instruments and add value to every supply chain.”
Giesber adds that Batavia may look to partner with other fintech and financial institutions as they move forward with “building out of a product-ready solution.”
Earlier this week, India’s ICICI Bank put more than 250 corporate customers on its Blockchain platform, designed for domestic and international trade finance transactions.
Insurance Giant Allianz Is Testing a Token to Move Money Internally
https://www.coindesk.com/insurance-giant-allianz-testing-token-move-money-internally/
Insurance giant Allianz has been testing an internal token to move money around between its global affiliates without having to deal with currency conversions and other costs and inefficiencies.
Development of the so-called "Allianz token" is being helped along by blockchain startup Adjoint, which created a proprietary blockchain for the project, CoinDesk has learned.
...
Volk said an Allianz token would be "very helpful to get rid of FX constraints and other stuff we have to optimize, especially if you talk to certain currencies which we do not accept at our headquarters and have to be reconverted."
He said it would make sense to rely less on the banking system, as this would result in numerous savings on commissions and could be used by Allianz all over the world (the Fortune 500 company has operations in 100 countries).
...
"It's essentially about the legal way of moving money from one side of the world to the other," Cabello said. "Because of regulation and governance, etc., you need to move it from one entity to the next to the next - and that takes time."
And that goes beyond the two or three days for a bank transfer to go through, he said. "It takes time to get every entity to book it, bind it; everybody at their own desk; it takes a lot of effort."
The problem is widespread, Cabello added. "Every single major industry and every major company has issues getting money from one side of the world to the other."
According to Volk, the corporate team at Allianz counted the emails one entity fielded regarding the transfer of a certain amount of money and it came to over 2,000.
Clients regularly ask where their money is, which is another reason Allianz thought of an internal token, Cabello said. "It's what we have been playing with for the past few months."
Cabello stressed that the token, while running on a blockchain, was nothing to do with cryptocurrency.
IBM's blockchain effort is taking off:
1. IBM & major banks just did first live trade
2. IBM & Salon Media fighting ad fraud
3. IBM & Marsh creating proof of insurance
4. IBM & Philly port operator using trade platform
5. IBM offering loans to small business in Africa
Onwards!
IBM's blockchain effort is taking off:
— Pomp 🌪 (@APompliano) April 19, 2018
1. IBM & major banks just did first live trade
2. IBM & Salon Media fighting ad fraud
3. IBM & Marsh creating proof of insurance
4. IBM & Philly port operator using trade platform
5. IBM offering loans to small business in Africa
Onwards!
The use of blockchain could generate an additional $1 trillion in global trade—World Economic Forum
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-04-18/drowning-in-a-sea-of-paper-world-s-biggest-ships-seek-a-way-out
CATB closes +13% from yesterday’s AH low upon the layoff news.
The line in bold from yesterday’s PR stood out to me:
Edasalonexent is being developed as a potential disease-modifying therapy for all patients affected by DMD, regardless of their underlying mutation. In the Phase 2 MoveDMD trial and open-label extension, edasalonexent has demonstrated consistent and sustained slowing of disease progression in boys with DMD through more than a year of treatment compared to the off-treatment control period. No evidence of side effects or safety issues common with the current DMD standard of care have been observed after more than 37 patient-years of exposure to edasalonexent. Catabasis is preparing for a single global Phase 3 trial to evaluate the efficacy and safety of edasalonexent for registration purposes, dependent on raising capital.
Any thoughts on CATB in general Dew? They had decent p2 data and their DMD drug is said to be able to target 86% of DMD mutations vs much lower % for SRPT. They also have a collaboration with SRPT. Wondering if they are trimming staff for a sale. They are low on cash but haven’t raised for some time.
A massive, 'semi-infinite' trove of rare-earth metals has been found in Japan
https://apple.news/Ar0UW5y_hSdW5hjVClj0R9A
—Researchers have found hundreds of years' worth of rare-earth materials underneath Japanese waters — enough to supply to the world on a "semi-infinite basis," according to a study published in Nature Publishing Group's Scientific Reports.
—Rare-earth metals are crucial in the making of high-tech products such as electric vehicles and batteries, and most of the world has relied on China for almost all of its needs
VTVT -78% (eom)
SAGE +11% on withdrawal from JPM meeting due to “scheduling conflict”
JPM confirming $SAGE cancelled conf due to sched conflict
— zach (@zbiotech) April 10, 2018