MERCK KGAA

MilliporeSigma and Washington University in St. Louis have signed a memorandum of understanding to expand their nearly century-long collaboration, focusing on joint research initiatives and technology development.

Simtra BioPharma Solutions has completed construction of a new 1,800 square meter production facility at its Halle, Germany campus, expanding total production area to nearly 12,000 square meters.

The BRACELET-1 trial demonstrated that pelareorep combined with paclitaxel achieved a 31% objective response rate and 12.1-month median progression-free survival in HR+ HER2- metastatic breast cancer patients.

Simtra BioPharma Solutions and MilliporeSigma have established a five-year strategic alliance to create a turnkey offering for antibody-drug conjugate manufacturing and bioconjugation services.

Biocytogen Pharmaceuticals has received a Japan Patent Office invention patent for its RenMab fully human antibody mouse platform technology, marking a significant milestone in global intellectual property expansion.

Merck KGaA's antibody-drug conjugate precemtabart tocentecan demonstrated safety and tolerability in a Phase Ib trial for metastatic colorectal cancer patients.

Pimicotinib demonstrated a statistically significant 54.0% objective response rate versus 3.2% for placebo in the global Phase 3 MANEUVER trial for tenosynovial giant cell tumor.

Spanish biopharmaceutical company aptaTargets has transferred ApTOLL, a first-in-class TLR4 antagonist for acute ischemic stroke, to Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany in an October 2024 agreement.

• Merck KGaA has decided to progress its experimental lupus treatment to Phase III clinical trials despite reporting mixed efficacy data from earlier studies. • The advancement comes amid significant developments in the lupus treatment landscape, including UCB and Biogen's successful Phase III results for dapirolizumab pegol announced in September 2024. • The lupus therapeutic area has seen recent setbacks as well, with Kezar Life Sciences discontinuing its lupus nephritis program in October 2024 following four patient deaths in their Phase IIb PALIZADE study.

Imec has developed a highly miniaturized ingestible sensor measuring just 2.1cm in length and 0.75cm in diameter, three times smaller than existing capsule endoscopies, capable of monitoring gut health for up to a week.