Best of the Blog, START-UP July-August 2009
This article was originally published in Start Up
Executive Summary
A rundown of our favorite blog posts from July and August on stories not covered elsewhere in this issue of Start-Up. (See the original postings for free at http://invivoblog.blogspot.com/).
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Corporate Venture Takes Center Stage
Corporate venture groups are poised to become one of the main sources of funding for early-stage biotechs thanks to the current economic climate. Even if corporate venture groups invest at the same levels as previous years, some industry veterans believe they could play a role in up to half of the early-stage financings this year, largely because the traditional sources of financing--the public market and venture capital groups flush with cash--have disappeared. And the new vigor of corporate venture offers big benefits to both small biotechs and Big Pharma.
Building Bone: Next-Generation Osteoporosis Therapies
As Amgen gears up to launch osteoporosis candidate denosumab, a host of smaller players are working on what they see as the next-generation therapies: those that help build up new bone. Tough economic times across the board, plus the high development risks and costs associated with osteoporosis--a chronic, primary care condition--are making financing almost impossible for some.
MPM/Novartis Fund Deals with Radius
In mid-September, the MPM Capital/Novartis investment fund closed a $10 million investment in Radius Health -- getting an option on Radius's Phase II osteoporosis candidate and the first evidence that its strategy of melding business development with VC can work. And that's why the outcome will be important to watch. If the Radius deal is followed by others, Big Pharma will try to copy the model. If the deal is seen as preventing Radius from getting a profitable exit for its investors, serving Novartis' needs at their expense, corporate VC will go back to the drawing board.