Several Chinese biotech developments during the Lunar New Year break have put investors on high alert, namely the continued share price slide of Chinese biotech bellwether WuXi Apptec, Lianbio ceasing operations and I-Mab divesting its China business to become a fully US-focused company.

The three-day meeting in Carlsbad, CA, included commentary from numerous executives and investors in the cell and gene therapy space. Here are some of the biggest takeaways.

The FDA Modernization Act 2.0 should make it easier for companies to gain regulatory authorization using non-traditional testing methods, like organs-on-a-chip. But biopharma will need to make the leap into technology to help build knowledge and data if the drug development world is to move away from animal testing entirely. 

SIGA provides an update on its monkeypox program, while Massive Bio announces progress on its AI platform for connecting cancer patients to trials, with additional updates from BridgeBio, the Oncology Institute, and CROs Caidya, Charles River Labs, Syneos Health and PPD parent Thermo Fisher Scientific.