Recent Funding:
Evommune (SF) Raises ~$125M in Private Placement to Advance Inflammatory Disease Pipeline
Evommune announced a $125 million private placement, selling ~4.5M shares at $27.88 per share to new and existing healthcare-focused institutional investors, with the financing expected to close in mid-February 2026. The proceeds will be used to advance its clinical-stage programs in chronic inflammatory diseases and support general corporate operations, as the company continues to build momentum in the public markets.
Recent Layoffs:
Ultragenyx (SF) Cuts 10% of Workforce After Late-Stage Trial Setbacks
Ultragenyx is laying off about 130 employees (10% of staff) as part of a restructuring after two late-stage trials of its brittle bone disease drug setrusumab failed to meet primary endpoints. The company is refocusing spending on key programs, including gene therapies UX111 (Sanfilippo syndrome A) and DTX401 (glycogen storage disease), as it aims to stay on track for profitability in 2027.
M&A, Deals, Partnerships:
Gilead Sciences (SF) Licenses Oral Cancer Drug From China-Based Genhouse in $80M Deal
Gilead paid $80 million upfront for global rights to GH31, an oral small-molecule cancer drug cleared for clinical trials in the U.S. and China, with up to $1.45 billion in potential milestone payments tied to development and commercialization. The deal strengthens Gilead’s oncology pipeline with another oral cancer therapy, continuing a broader trend of U.S. biopharma licensing innovative drug candidates from China as competition in oncology intensifies.
Other Interesting News:
Evommune (SF) Shares Surge After Strong Phase 2a Eczema Data
Evommune reported positive Phase 2a results for its IL-18 fusion protein EVO301 in moderate to severe atopic dermatitis, with patients seeing a 55% reduction in disease severity at 12 weeks, compared to 22% on placebo, hitting the trial’s main goal. The data compares favorably to leading eczema biologics, boosting investor confidence as Evommune plans a larger Phase 2b study with optimized dosing and explores expansion into other inflammatory diseases like ulcerative colitis.
Nektar Therapeutics (SF) Reports Strong 52-Week Eczema Data, Eyes Phase 3
Nektar’s immune drug rezpegaldesleukin showed sustained improvement in eczema severity and itchiness over 52 weeks in a Phase 2 trial, with no new safety concerns and durable responses on monthly or quarterly dosing. The long-term results position rezpeg as a potential second-line treatment behind Dupixent, with Nektar planning to move into Phase 3 trials and target a regulatory filing in 2029.
BridgeBio (SF) Hits Phase 3 Milestone With Oral Dwarfism Drug
BridgeBio’s oral drug infigratinib met its Phase 3 goals in children with achondroplasia, increasing annual growth by 2.1 cm/year over placebo and showing the first statistically significant improvement in body proportions versus placebo in a randomized trial. The drug was well tolerated with no serious safety issues, and BridgeBio plans to submit the data to regulators later this year, positioning infigratinib as a potential non-injectable alternative to existing treatments like BioMarin’s Voxzogo.
Moonwalk Biosciences (SF) Pivots From Epigenetic Editing to siRNA Drugs for Obesity
The Feng Zhang–founded biotech has abandoned its original epigenetic editing strategy and is now developing siRNA-based medicines, citing faster development, lower risk, and stronger industry infrastructure around siRNA therapies. Moonwalk is focusing first on obesity, using a new delivery approach that targets fat tissue directly; early animal data suggest reduced fat growth without muscle loss or appetite suppression, and the company plans to enter the clinic in 2027.
