Atuzaginstat targets a bacteria associated with Alzheimer’s disease. The higher of two doses showed a 57% slowing in cognitive decline in the Phase II/III GAIN trial in mild to moderate patients with P. gingivalis infection confirmed by saliva test.

Public Company Edition: Xilio, Ventyx, MiNK and Context went public in the US and later traded at or above their initial public offering prices. Also, Sarepta raised $500m and Relay grossed $350m in new offerings, while Oncopeptides, Esperion, Zymergen and Ardelyx reorganized and cut jobs.

Avoro Capital, Holocene Advisors and Darwin Global say that Acceleron should sell later for a higher price based on forthcoming data or Merck should raise its bid above $180 per share.

Analysts expected at least $12m in third quarter sales, but the Alzheimer’s therapy brought in just $300,000. The company says educating doctors and procuring a coverage determination from CMS – not lower pricing – are key to growth.  

Gene therapy remains attractive when data show new technologies can advance the field, but gene regulation, editing and RNA therapies are grabbing investors’ attention, panelists said at ARM’s Cell and Gene Meeting on the Mesa.

Private Company Edition: The industry raised $28bn in venture capital through the third quarter, breaking the record $27.4bn raised last year. Also, big pharmas backed a start-up lab in Israel, plus mega-rounds for CinCor Pharma ($143m) and Rectify Pharmaceuticals ($100m), while Cerecin raises $40m.