START-UPS
ments. The start-up could also get up to $200 million for each of five targets the duo pursues. Insitro also disclosed that it raised $100 million in its series A financing.—RYAN CROSS
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▸ J&J goes to Washington Johnson & Johnson plans to launch a 3,000 m2 JLabs start-up incubator at the Children’s National Research and Innovation Campus in Washington, DC. The facility will be open to drug, diagnostic, medical device, and other health technology start-ups. Included is a specialized zone managed with the US Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority and focused on countermeasures to chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear threats. J&J is also launching a competition that will award up to $150,000 and residency at the new JLabs when it opens in 2020. Eligible are start-ups working on pediatric oncology, surgical care, and influenza treatment advances.—MARC REISCH
DRUG DISCOVERY
▸ Gilead taps Insitro for machine learning Gilead Sciences is forming a 3-year partnership with the machine-learning and genomics start-up Insitro to discover drug targets for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis. Insitro will earn $15 million up front and up to $35 million in near-term pay-
HO
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H N
O
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ONCOLOGY
▸ Cullgen launches for protein degraders San Diego–based Cullgen is the latest start-up launching with plans to develop targeted protein degraders—small molecules that bind a disease-causing protein at one end and tag it for destruction by the cell’s protein-recycling machinery at the other end. The venture capital firms Sequoia Capital China and HighLight Capital together invested $16 million in Cullgen’s series A financing. Cullgen’s initial focus is on cancer, as well as autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.—RYAN CROSS
ANTIBIOTICS
▸ Achaogen files for bankruptcy Despite winning US Food and Drug Administration approval for a new antibiotic last year, Achaogen has filed for bankruptcy. The South San Francisco–based
Business Roundup ▸ Tronox has completed its acquisition of Cristal’s titanium dioxide business following approval by the US Federal Trade Commission. The agreed-upon sale of Cristal’s Ashtabula, Ohio, titanium dioxide plant to Ineos is expected to close on May 1.
▸ Ineos Styrolution plans to build a new plant for its StyLight styrene acrylonitrile–based composite, a structural material with an aesthetically pleasing surface finish. The company says it would like to build the plant in Germany by 2022.
▸ Sirrus has completed a $2 million expansion of capacity for methylene malonate monomers and oligomers. The facility will make 2 metric tons a month of the reactive materials, used in adhesives, coatings, and sealants. Japan’s Nippon Shokubai acquired Ohio-based Sirrus in 2017.
▸ Stahl, a producer of leather chemicals based in the Netherlands, will work with Applied DNA Sciences to evaluate molecular tagging of Stahl products used in leather manufacturing. Applied DNA’s tags can be attached to raw materials or finished goods for supply-chain traceability.
biotech firm launched the antibiotic, Zemdri (plazomicin), in July for adults with complicated urinary tract infections. However, by the end of the year the drug had brought in only $800,000 in sales. Achaogen hopes to sell off its assets, including Zemdri, by June 13.—MICHAEL MCCOY
NUCLEIC ACIDS
▸ Arrakis raises more for RNA-targeting small molecules Arrakis Therapeutics has raised $75 million in series B financing to advance its pipeline of small-molecule drugs that target RNA. The start-up has spent the past 2 years building a platform to screen compound libraries against RNA molecules that encode proteins considered undruggable. One of those proteins is a cancer-connected transcription factor called Myc. Arrakis has found molecules that may be able to prevent transcription of Myc messenger RNA, thereby lowering levels of the protein.—RYAN CROSS
▸ Zymergen, an industrial biotechnology start-up, has signed a multiyear deal with Sumitomo Chemical to develop materials for use in consumer electronics. The firms will target bioengineered optical display films, hard coatings, flexible circuits, and adhesives. ▸ Talaris Therapeutics, a cell-therapy company formerly known as Regenerex, has raised $100 million in series A financing for clinical trials of its stem cell therapies. Talaris injects its cells into patients during organ transplantation to prevent organ rejection and eliminate the need for immunosuppressants.
▸ Scout Bio, a start-up cofounded by the University of Pennsylvania’s James Wilson, has raised $20 million to develop adeno-associated virus gene therapies for cats and dogs. The firm currently has programs for chronic kidney disease, chronic pain, and atopic dermatitis. ▸ PureTech Health has struck a deal with Boehringer Ingelheim to develop immunotherapies that target the lymphatic system. PureTech brings drug-delivery technology based on research by Christopher Porter at Monash University. It will earn up to $26 million in near-term payments.
APRIL 22, 2019 | CEN.ACS.ORG | C&EN
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