Astellas CEO explained to Fierce the company's new five-year plan. A Takeda candidate beat Bristol Myers Squibb's Sotyktu in a head-to-head psoriasis trial. RA Capital is offering China capabilities to its portfolio companies through a one-year-old initiative. And more.
1. ‘Not simply saving cost’: Inside Astellas CEO’s 5-year strategy to counter Xtandi’s patent cliff
In an interview with Fierce, Astellas CEO Naoki Okamura dissected a 200 billion yen ($1.3 billion) cost-savings program in the company’s new five-year plan. The new blueprint is “not simply saving the cost or reducing the headcount,” he said, but relies heavily on internalizing core R&D capabilities, adopting new technologies and centralizing scattered functions to turn Astellas into a more flattened organization.
2. Takeda’s TYK2 inhibitor beats Bristol Myers’ Sotyktu in phase 3 psoriasis showdown
A phase 3 head-to-head trial showed Takeda’s TYK2 inhibitor zasocitinib is better than Bristol Myers Squibb’s Sotyktu at clearing the skin in patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis. Takeda reported PASI 100, or complete skin clearance, in “more than 35%” of patients on zasocitinib at week 16, which was “more than 2.5 times” the response rate for Sotyktu. The study also met all key secondary endpoints, the Japanese pharma said.
3. How RA Capital is offering its biotechs ‘Chinese clinical expertise in a box’
About a year ago, RA Capital launched Swiftbridge, a program that’s designed to support its early-stage portfolio companies to gain access to China’s clinical trial infrastructure. The initiative has since expanded to add functions that include business development and early-stage discovery project management.
4. WuXi AppTec lands on Pentagon blacklist, facing Biosecure ban
The Pentagon has added WuXi AppTec to its newly updated list of “Chinese military companies,” which it says assist the Chinese military while maintaining business ties to the U.S. Inclusion on this so-called 1260H list makes WuXi AppTec one of the “biotechnology companies of concern” to face a crackdown under the Biosecure Act. The CDMO giant said its place on the list was “clearly a mistake.”
5. Takeda takes $2.5B legal charge after pay-for-delay verdict, swings to loss for '25
Takeda has set aside about $2.5 billion in legal expenses in its fiscal 2025 earnings after a federal jury in Boston found the Japanese drugmaker liable in a class-action pay-for-delay lawsuit, even as Takeda intends to appeal. The provision led Takeda to adjust its reported income from a net profit of 192 billion yen to a loss of 152 billion yen.
Other News of Note:
6. XtalPi signs $400M anti-GPCR deal with unnamed multinational pharma (release, PDF)
7. Laekna outlicenses PI3K inhibitor to US newco Vasque Bio (release, PDF)