News

ASHBURN, Va., May 20, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Quoin Pharmaceuticals Ltd. (NASDAQ: QNRX) (the “Company” or “Quoin”), a late clinical stage, specialty pharmaceutical company focused on rare and orphan diseases, today announces that it has been granted Orphan Drug Designation in Europe by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for its lead product QRX003 in Netherton Syndrome.

Orphan Drug Designation in Europe affords the Company incentive benefits including scientific advice on study protocols, various fee reductions and access to EU grants. If approved, QRX003 will be granted 10 years of market exclusivity in Europe for the treatment of Netherton Syndrome.

ROCKVILLE, Md., May 19, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — REGENXBIO Inc. (Nasdaq: RGNX) today announced the closure of a non-dilutive, limited recourse royalty bond agreement of up to $250 million with Healthcare Royalty (HCRx). This agreement monetizes select anticipated royalties and milestones, and provides both immediate and expected future, non-dilutive capital.  REGENXBIO received $150 million at closing, extending the Company’s expected cash runway into early 2027.

GAITHERSBURG, Md., May 19, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Altimmune, Inc. (Nasdaq: ALT), a late clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel peptide-based therapeutics for liver and cardiometabolic diseases, today announced that it has enrolled the first subject in the RECLAIM Phase 2 trial evaluating the efficacy and safety of pemvidutide in subjects with Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD). Pemvidutide is a novel, investigational GLP-1/glucagon dual receptor agonist under development for the treatment of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), obesity, AUD and alcohol liver disease (ALD). IMPACT, a Phase 2b trial of pemvidutide in MASH, is expected to read out topline data in the second quarter of 2025, and a Phase 2 trial of pemvidutide in ALD is expected to initiate enrollment in the third quarter of 2025.

GERMANTOWN, Md., May 15, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Senseonics Holdings, Inc. (NYSE American: SENS), a medical technology company focused on the development and manufacturing of long-term, implantable continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) systems for people with diabetes, today announced that it has commenced an underwritten public offering, subject to market and other conditions, to issue and sell shares of its common stock. In connection with the proposed offering, Senseonics also expects to grant the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 15% of the total number of shares of common stock offered in the public offering. All of the shares of common stock to be sold in the proposed offering will be offered by Senseonics.

By Phil Liles: The University of Virginia has named Mark Esser as the first chief scientific officer of the upcoming Paul and Diane Manning Institute of Biotechnology.

Esser will work with scientists to accelerate the development of new medicines and treatments for illnesses like cancer and Alzheimer’s.

Morning Edition Host Phil Liles spoke with Esser about his desire to turn a corner on incurable diseases, which he noted, requires significant federal funding. That funding is now uncertain as President Donald Trump halts $1.8 billion dollars in grants from the National Institutes of Health.

ROCKVILLE, Md., May 13, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — REGENXBIO Inc. (Nasdaq: RGNX) today announced the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted for review the Biologics License Application (BLA) seeking accelerated approval for clemidsogene lanparvovec (RGX-121) for the treatment of Mucopolysaccharidosis II (MPS II), also known as Hunter syndrome.

The FDA granted the BLA Priority Review with a Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) target action date of November 9, 2025.

GAITHERSBURG, Md., May 13, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Altimmune, Inc. (Nasdaq: ALT), a late clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel peptide-based therapeutics for liver and cardiometabolic diseases, today announced that it has entered into an agreement with Hercules Capital, Inc. (NYSE: HTGC), a leader in debt financing for life science companies, for up to $100 million in a credit facility, with a $15 million tranche funded at closing. Additional tranches will become available upon achievement of certain clinical and financial milestones aligned with the Company’s pemvidutide development plans and financing needs.

GAITHERSBURG, Md., May 13, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Remedy Plan Therapeutics (Remedy Plan), a privately-held, clinical-stage pharmaceutical company developing novel, hyperbolic NAMPT inhibitors, today announced the company has raised over $18 million in an oversubscribed insider financing round. The round includes participation from Schooner Capital and Alexandria Venture Investments. This brings the company’s total funding to date to $55 million.

The financing will accelerate the advancement of the company’s first-in-class NAMPT inhibitor, RPT1G, into a Phase 1/2 clinical study in patients with AML or high-risk MDS. This builds on the momentum of an ongoing first-in-human study in healthy adults (NCT06667765), which will conclude later this month. The investment will also support the continued development of Remedy Plan’s pipeline of NAMPT inhibitors with applications across solid tumors, autoimmune diseases, and obesity.

Awardees receive funding to accelerate research and development of stem cell therapies

COLUMBIA, Md., (May 13, 2025) — The Maryland Stem Cell Research Commission (“Commission”) announced awarding over $18 million in grants aimed at accelerating cutting-edge stem cell and regenerative medicine research across Maryland.

This funding supports 52 investigators from top Maryland based research institutions and companies working on almost 50 different medical conditions and diseases including sickle cell anemia, diabetes, cancers and chronic pain to diseases directed to heart, bone, blood, digestive and neurological conditions. This year’s grant recipients feature innovative companies such as Seraxis Inc., Britecyte Inc., SereNeuro Therapeutics Inc. and Diagnostic Biochips, Inc. They are joined by academic researchers from Johns Hopkins University, University of Maryland, Baltimore, University of Maryland, College Park, University of Maryland, Baltimore County and the Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences/Henry Jackson Foundation. The University of Maryland, Eastern Shore is newly represented among this year’s funded institutions, strengthening statewide support for regenerative medicine research.