Merck & Co’s combination treatment has disappointed in a challenging group of lung cancer patients, marking yet another setback for the increasingly precarious anti-TIGIT space even as some analysts say this is not the end of the road.

Start-up hopes to bring its first candidate, an NY-ESO-1-targeting off-the-shelf product, into the clinic in Q2. Astex and Cardiff University team up on novel therapies for neurodegenerative disease.

Hyundai Bioscience’s niclosamide-based oral antiviral moves into Phase II, joining other Korean COVID-19 treatment candidates in the pivotal trial stages, while SK Bioscience’s Phase III recombinant protein vaccine gears up for global market entry.

Private Company Edition: Also, Medicxi’s new €200m fund will be reinvested in a portfolio of six life science companies and Silverback more than doubled its 2020 money with an $85m series C round.