The Daily Biotech Pulse: Inovio's Partner Scales Back R&D Collaboration, Genmab Seeks Nasdaq Listing, Bayer Gets Breakthrough Therapy Designation

Here's a roundup of top developments in the biotech space over the last 24 hours.

Scaling The Peaks

(Biotech stocks hitting 52-week highs on May 28)

• Adverum Biotechnologies Inc ADVM
• Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals Inc ARWR
• Eidos Therapeutics Inc EIDX
• Fate Therapeutics Inc FATE
• Insulet Corporation PODD
• Milestone Pharmaceuticals Inc MIST

Down In The Dumps

(Biotech stocks hitting 52-week lows on May 28)

• Abeona Therapeutics Inc ABEO
• Adamis Pharmaceuticals Corp ADMP
• Akebia Therapeutics Inc AKBA
• Alkermes Plc ALKS
• Allena Pharmaceuticals Inc ALNA
• ANCHIANO THERAP/S ADR ANCN
• Aptinyx Inc APTX
• Aquestive Therapeutics Inc AQST
• Arbutus Biopharma Corp ABUS
• Bellicum Pharmaceuticals Inc BLCM
• Cidara Therapeutics Inc CDTX
• Endo International PLC ENDP
• Harvard Bioscience, Inc. HBIO
• Heat Biologics Inc HTBX
• Kezar Life Sciences Inc KZR(reacted to negative safety and efficacy data for KZR-616)
• Melinta Therapeutics Inc MLNT
• Mylan NV MYL (reacted to generic drug lawsuit)
• Myriad Genetics, Inc. MYGN
• Opko Health Inc. OPK
• Seres Therapeutics Inc MCRB
• Spring Bank Pharmaceuticals Inc SBPH
• Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd TEVA (reacted to generic drug lawsuit)
• Theravance Biopharma Inc TBPH

Stock In Focus

Inovio Says AstraZeneca Subsidiary Discontinues Most R&D Collaborations

Inovio Pharmaceuticals Inc INO said in a filing with the SEC it has received notification from AstraZeneca plc AZN's MedImmune unit that it intends to discontinue activities with respect to the research collaboration programs, other than MEDI0457.

The two parties will continue to pursue the development of MEDI0457 and AstraZeneca continues to evaluate MEDI0457 in combination with its PD-L1 checkpoint inhibitor durvalumab in multiple Phase 2 trials in patients with cancers associated with HPV.

Inovio's stock fell 16.56 percent to $2.62 in after-hours trading.

Bayer Gets Breakthrough Therapy Designation For Blood Cancer Drug

Bayer AG BAYRY said the FDA has granted Breakthrough Therapy Designation for Aliqopa for the treatment of adult patients with relapsed marginal zone lymphoma, or MZL, who have had at least two prior therapies.

MZL is an indolent form of non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma, accounting for 10 percent of all non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma in the U.S., Bayer said in the release.

Genmab Files For Listing ADSs On Nasdaq

GENMAB A/S/S ADR GMXAY, a biotech company listed on the Nasdaq Copenhagen, has filed a registration statement on Form F-1 with the SEC for a proposed listing of its ADSs on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol GMAB.

Ziopharm Strikes Cell Therapy Collaboration For Cancer

ZIOPHARM Oncology Inc. ZIOP announced an exclusive licensing agreement with the National Cancer Institute, or NCI, for intellectual property for the development and commercialization of cell therapies for cancer. The NCI is an institute of the National Institute of Health, or NIH.

The agreement provides for Ziopharm getting rights to two groups of technologies for use with its Sleeping Beauty platform, and the company will in turn will pay the NIH an upfront payment and certain clinical, regulatory, and sales milestone payments, as well as royalties on net sales of products covered by the license.

The stock rallied 6.62 percent to $4.51 in after-hours trading.

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