Aelis Farma SA

Plus, news about Anthos, Ascendis, Royalty Pharma, Semnur, Sonoma, Atara, Feldan, Indivior, Aelis Farma and Acepodia: Vaxcyte launches $1B offering: The raise comes fresh off the company’s pneumococcal vaccine data that sent its stock $PCVX soaring on Tuesday. Vaxcyte selected VAX-31 to advance to a Phase 3 trial in mid-2025 over another vaccine, VAX-24. It can tack on an additional $150 million if all the options are exercised. — Max Gelman Genentech to lay off 93 staffers: In another round of layoffs, Roche’s Genentech is cutting 93 roles at its South San Francisco site starting in October, according to a Californian WARN notice. The site houses over 40 buildings and includes scientific research, manufacturing and other business functions. Genentech said earlier this year that it has plans to cut around 400 workers and restructure its portfolio . — Anna Brown Anthos Therapeutics suggests patients can stay on experimental anticoagulant before surgery: The company on Tuesday shared additional data from a clinical study of its once-monthly factor XI antibody treatment in people with atrial fibrillation, suggesting they do not need to interrupt treatment with abelacimab before elective procedures. In the study, people on the control arm received Xarelto and were allowed to stop taking it 24 to 48 hours prior to their procedure. Seven of 852 patients (0.8%) in the abelacimab arm had major procedure-related bleeds, compared to 6 of 428 (1.4%) in the Xarelto arm. — Lei Lei Wu Ascendis snags $150M in new Royalty Pharma deal: Less than a month after snagging FDA approval for Yorvipath, Ascendis is selling off US royalties of the hypoparathyroidism drug. In exchange for paying $150 million upfront, Royalty Pharma gets 3% royalties on new US sales. The length of the payments is contingent on how quickly Royalty earns back its investment. — Max Bayer Semnur hits Wall Street via SPAC: The company is merging with special-acquisition company Denali Capital Acquisition Corp. in a $2.5 billion deal. Semnur is owned by Scilex Holding Company, which itself took the SPAC route to go public in 2022. — Max Bayer Sonoma Biotherapeutics records $45M milestone: The payment from Regeneron Pharmaceuticals stems from a deal inked in 2023 to develop and commercialize T cell therapies for inflammatory bowel disease and two other undisclosed indications. — Jaimy Lee Atara Biotherapeutics seeks $36M: The company raised the money in a registered direct offering, getting funding from Redmile Group, EcoR1 Capital and Adiumentum Capital Management. An unnamed “large public biotechnology company” also participated in the offering. — Max Gelman Feldan Therapeutics closes $21M Series B: The money will go toward completing a Phase 1/2a trial for the company’s non-invasive intralesional treatment for basal cell carcinoma, which is meant to be an alternative to surgery. Genesys Capital and Fonds de solidarité FTQ co-led the round . — Katherine Lewin Indivior, Aelis Farma drug fails Phase 2b trial: A study investigating a treatment for patients with moderate-to-severe cannabis use disorder didn’t hit the primary or secondary endpoints. The primary endpoint was the proportion of participants who reduced their cannabis use to one day or less per week. Indivior said it will not exercise an exclusive option to license the global rights to the treatment. — Katherine Lewin Acepodia inks Pfizer Ignite collab: The company is collaborating with Pfizer Ignite to advance its off-the-shelf cell therapies to treat autoimmune diseases. Financial terms weren’t disclosed. Acepodia said it retained all rights to its lead program, ACE1831, and Pfizer Ignite “will provide strategic guidance and resources.” — Max Bayer

Aelis Farma is reviewing the results of its phase 2b cannabis use disorder study and is yet to decide on the next steps. Aelis Farma’s hopes of securing a quick, positive decision on a $100 million option payment have gone up in smoke. The French biotech reported the failure of its phase 2b cannabis use disorder (CUD) study Wednesday, prompting its partner Indivior to say it doesn’t currently expect to exercise its option.Indivior paid $30 million for an option to license the candidate in 2021. The British drugmaker planned to make a decision on AEF0117, a signaling-specific inhibitor of cannabinoid receptor 1 (CB1), after seeing the phase 2b data and hearing what the FDA has to say on clinical endpoints for future studies. However, the failure of the study prompted Indivior to signal its intentions without waiting for the FDA’s feedback.The prompt dampening of expectations about the likelihood of a deal followed an analysis of clinical data that paints a bleak picture of the prospects of AEF0117. Aelis randomized 333 treatment-seeking people with moderate to severe CUD to receive one of three doses of AEF0117 or placebo for 12 weeks.Participants used cannabis at least five days a week at baseline. AEF0117 was no better than placebo at reducing use to one day a week, causing the study to miss its primary endpoint. The study also missed secondary endpoints that looked at the proportion of patients who completely abstained or cut their use to two days a week. Aelis is yet to share the numbers behind the failures but did note “a very low placebo effect for these endpoints.” With AEF0117 failing to beat placebo, the comment suggests there was little improvement on the endpoints in the treatment arms. The data are a blow to the hypothesis that selectively blocking CB1 can decrease cannabis use by inhibiting signaling pathways that drive its intoxicating effects.The only positives disclosed by Aelis related to safety and tolerability, which was similar in the treatment and placebo groups, and the effect of the highest dose on some secondary endpoints. Aelis reported “consistent positive trends” on quantitative endpoints measuring the total amount of cannabis used and “a nearly statistically significant effect” on measures of anxiety, depression and sleep quality.Some of the decreases in quantitative measures of cannabis use were statistically significant in people with moderate CUD. The moderate CUD subgroup was small, though, with 82% of participants having the severe form of the disorder.Aelis is still reviewing the results and is yet to decide on the next steps. Indivior doesn’t intend to take up its option, although it is yet to conclusively abandon the deal, and favorable clinical data could shift its thinking. 

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONTAINS INSIDE INFORMATION FOR THE PURPOSES OF ARTICLE 7 OF THE MARKET ABUSE REGULATION (EU) 596/2014 (AS IT FORMS PART OF DOMESTIC LAW IN THE UK BY VIRTUE OF THE EUROPEAN UNION (WITHDRAWAL) ACT 2018). Primary and Secondary End Points of the Study were Not Met Indivior Does Not Currently Expect to Exercise AEF0117 Option SLOUGH, United Kingdom and RICHMOND, Va., Sept. 4, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Indivior PLC (Nasdaq/LSE: INDV) is today providing an update following Aelis Farma's announcement of the results from its clinical Phase 2B trial with AEF01171, evaluating the efficacy and safety in treatment-seeking participants with moderate to severe Cannabis Use Disorder (CUD). The purpose of this trial was twofold: (1) to show that AEF0117 (0.1, 0.3, 1 mg once a day for 12 weeks) lowers cannabis use and (2) to determine the endpoints and optimal dosage of AEF0117 for use in future studies. In this phase 2B study, patients were treatment-seeking participants, 84% of whom had severe CUD. The results of the study demonstrated that the primary endpoint, the proportion of participants who reduced their cannabis use to ≤1 day per week, as well as secondary endpoints measuring the proportion of participants reaching either complete abstinence or who used ≤2 day per week, were not met. Although these results are disappointing, they indicate that significant work remains to be done to understand subpopulations of patients with CUD, specifically those with severe CUD. This clinical Phase 2B study is part of the strategic collaboration between Aelis Farma and Indivior, which includes an exclusive option for Indivior to license the global rights to AEF0117. Given the lack of separation from placebo on primary and secondary endpoints and before seeing further additional favorable clinical data, Indivior does not currently expect to exercise its option. Important Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements This news release contains certain statements that are forward-looking. Forward-looking statements include, among other things, express and implied statements regarding whether: we will be able to ultimately demonstrate the safety and efficacy of AEF0117, which is a prerequisite to filing any New Drug Application; we might ever exercise our option for AEF0117 and, if so, when; and other statements containing the words "believe," "anticipate," "plan," "expect," "intend," "estimate," "forecast," "strategy," "target," "guidance," "outlook," "potential," "project," "priority," "may," "will," "should," "would," "could," "can," "outlook," "guidance," the negatives thereof, and variations thereon and similar expressions. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties as they relate to events or circumstances that may or may not occur in the future. Actual results may differ materially from those because they relate to future events. Various factors may cause differences between Indivior's expectations and actual results, including, among others, the risks described in our most recent annual report on Form 20-F beginning on page 9 as filed with the U.S. SEC and in subsequent releases; legal and market restrictions that may limit how quickly we can repurchaser our shares; the substantial litigation and ongoing investigations to which we are or may become a party; our reliance on third parties to manufacture commercial supplies of most of our products, conduct our clinical trials and at times to collaborate on products in our pipeline; our ability to comply with legal and regulatory settlements, healthcare laws and regulations, requirements imposed by regulatory agencies and payment and reporting obligations under government pricing programs; risks related to the manufacture and distribution of our products, most of which contain controlled substances; market acceptance of our products as well as our ability to commercialize our products and compete with other market participants; competition; the uncertainties related to the development of new products, including through acquisitions, and the related regulatory approval process; our dependence on third-party payors for the reimbursement of our products and the increasing focus on pricing and competition in our industry; unintended side effects caused by the clinical study or commercial use of our products; our ability to successfully execute acquisitions, partnerships, joint ventures, dispositions or other strategic acquisitions; our ability to protect our intellectual property rights and the substantial cost of litigation or other proceedings related to intellectual property rights; the risks related to product liability claims or product recalls; the significant amount of laws and regulations that we are subject to, including due to the international nature of our business; macroeconomic trends and other global developments such as armed conflicts and pandemics; the terms of our debt instruments, changes in our credit ratings and our ability to service our indebtedness and other obligations as they come due; changes in applicable tax rate or tax rules, regulations or interpretations and our ability to realize our deferred tax assets; and volatility in our share price due to factors unrelated to our operating performance or that may result from the potential move of our primary listing to the U.S. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date that they are made and should be regarded solely as our current plans, estimates and beliefs. Except as required by law, we do not undertake and specifically decline any obligation to update, republish or revise forward-looking statements to reflect future events or circumstances or to reflect the occurrences of unanticipated events. This release is being made by Kathryn Hudson, Company Secretary Indivior PLC. About Indivior Indivior is a global pharmaceutical company working to help change patients' lives by developing medicines to treat substance use disorders (SUD), overdose and serious mental illnesses. Our vision is that all patients around the world will have access to evidence-based treatment for the chronic conditions and co-occurring disorders of SUD. Indivior is dedicated to transforming SUD from a global human crisis to a recognized and treated chronic disease. Building on its global portfolio of OUD treatments, Indivior has a pipeline of product candidates designed to both expand on its heritage in this category and potentially address other chronic conditions and co-occurring disorders of SUD. Headquartered in the United States in Richmond, VA, Indivior employs over 1,000 individuals globally and its portfolio of products is available in over 30 countries worldwide. Visit to learn more. Connect with Indivior on LinkedIn by visiting . References: National Library of Medicine (U.S.) (2022, April). Effect of AEF0117 on treatment-seeking patients with cannabis use disorder (CUD) (SICA2). Identifier NCT05322941 Logo -