Deal Snapshot: CEO Stoffels delivered on a recent promise to bring in mid-stage assets, acquiring a firm with a Phase I/IIa CAR-T therapy program for €125m ($131.6m) up front.

Upstream Bio acquired Phase Ib-ready UPB-101 from Astellas, and its experienced team plans to buy additional drug candidates for the treatment of allergic and inflammatory diseases. 

England’s health technology appraisal body NICE has recommended Galapagos’ Jyseleca for ulcerative colitis, Takeda’s Revestive for short bowel syndrome and Zogenix’s Fintepla for seizures associated with Dravet syndrome.

The family-owned German group is the market leader in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis with Ofev but the big-selling drug has significant side effects and only slows, but does not stop, the progression of the disease. It is hoping that the Phase III-ready compound BI 1015550 will offer a significant improvement.