While most of the R&D attention in the hot space of claudins has focused on targeting CLDN18.2, the Swiss biotech believes its CLDN1 programs have the advantage of a broader expression profile.

Private Company Edition: Nine new venture capital mega-rounds include Insilico’s series C, $250m from Blackstone for a CAR-T therapy spinout from Intellia and a $210m series B round for Umoja.

Building on 20 years of work and positive preclinical data, and backed by a fresh injection of cash, Alentis is taking its liver fibrosis candidate into Phase I trials in the fourth quarter.

October was an active fundraising month for both start-up biopharma companies and more established privately held firms, ranging from $3m for Appili's drug for anaerobic infections to $270m for Harmony's rare disease programs.