Placing research in the hands of a large pharmaceutical company is a goal of many biotech companies. IFM Therapeutics has now done it three times and its latest deal is the second time Novartis is the acquirer.
Novo Nordisk is acquiring global rights to a Ventus Therapeutics drug candidate with potential applications in cardiometabolic disorders such as NASH and chronic kidney disease. The small molecule blocks a protein that has become an attractive target for big pharmaceutical companies, such as Roche and Novartis.
The future looks bright for the integrated specialty pharmacy model – for health systems, providers, and most importantly, for patients.
Ventus Therapeutics’ lead programs address pathways associated with inflammation. Led by CEO Marcelo Bigal, the biotech discovers its drugs using computational analysis to understand the structure of proteins and find small molecules that can hit these "undruggable" targets.
RA Capital led Ventus Therapeutics' Series B financing, which the startup will use to develop its pipeline of medicines for “undruggable” disease targets. CEO Marcelo Bigal said the cash also gives Ventus the flexibility to consider an IPO.