Agreement with Alexion is JCR’s first international deal for its blood-brain barrier drug delivery technology. Sartoris buys PolyPlus from private equity investors.

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.

Private Company Edition: Venture capital invested in pharma and biotech in 2020 totaled $19.5m through Q3, just $400m below the full-year record total of $19.9bn in 2018. Also, Canaan and Catalio reveal new VC funds, while Talaris’s $115m series B leads recent financings.