Heading into the J.P. Morgan Healthcare conference, pharmas have been focusing on discovery alliances. J&J’s deals look into novel tissue-targeted drugs, ionic liquid delivery technology and cancer vaccine R&D. Lilly teams with Entos on novel methods for delivering neurology drugs.

Glenmark’s US-based innovation arm Ichnos delivers first licensing deal for IL-1RAP antagonist, while early data for a bispecific antibody demonstates promising activity in multiple in vitro and in vivo tumor models relative to daratumumab and magrolimab.

From the CD20-directed bispecific antibody studies presented at ASH, the risk and severity of cytokine release syndrome is being viewed as a way to determine whether the bispecifics will be used before, after or instead of CAR-Ts.

Novartis hopes a CAR-T with rapid manufacturing will be a winner, while novel bispecific antibodies in lymphoma and myeloma will make appearances, along with next-generation PI3K and BTK inhibitors.