China's First Domestic Dual-Target Anti-Obesity Drug Nears Market Submission; 2023 'Top Ten Advances in Chinese Life Sciences' Announced

Jan 12, 2024 19:58 CST Updated 19:58

Cartesian Therapeutics

Pharmaceutical R&D Developer

1. JiMi Bio Completes Pre-A Round Financing Worth Tens of Millions of RMB

GMEELAN (Guangzhou Jimei Biotechnology Co., Ltd.) recently announced the completion of a Pre-A round of financing worth tens of millions of RMB. The round was led by AC Ventures, a top-tier dollar investment fund in Southeast Asia, with continued participation from existing shareholder Lightspeed Guanghe. Lingbo Capital served as the exclusive financial advisor for this round. Since its establishment, Jimei Biotechnology has successfully completed three rounds of financing. The funds from this round will mainly be used for product research and development, global supply chain layout, and the recruitment of key talents. Jimei Biotechnology is a skincare group with the mission of "making skin care simpler and more enjoyable," adhering to user value and committed to international development.

2. Cartesian Therapeutics Announces Durable Efficacy of Innovative RNA Cell Therapy in Phase 2 Trial

On January 12, 2024, Cartesian Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company, announced the 12-month follow-up data from its Phase 2a clinical trial of Descartes-08, a B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA)-targeted CAR-T therapy for patients with myasthenia gravis (MG). Patients did not require lymphodepleting chemotherapy and showed sustained, significant, and durable clinical improvements across four validated MG disease rating systems. The findings have been compiled and published on the preprint platform medRxiv.

3. The First Domestically Produced Dual-Target Weight Loss Drug in China to Apply for Market Launch, Potentially Rivaling Overseas "Wonder Drugs"

On January 9, 2024, Innovent Biologics, Inc. (hereinafter referred to as "Innovent Biologics", 01801.HK) announced that the first Phase III clinical study (GLORY-1) of GLP-1R/GCGR dual agonist Mazdutide (research code: IBI362) in Chinese overweight or obese adult subjects has achieved the primary endpoint and all key secondary endpoints. It plans to submit the first New Drug Application (NDA) for Mazdutide's weight loss indication to the Center for Drug Evaluation (CDE) of the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) in the near future.

4. More than 200 newly discovered depression-related genes

On January 11, a global study led by scientists from University College London discovered more than 50 new genetic loci (a locus is the position occupied by a gene on a chromosome) and 205 new genes linked to depression. This marks the first large-scale genetic study on major depressive disorder conducted with participants from diverse ethnic groups, offering potential for new treatments for depression. The related paper was published in the latest issue of *Nature Genetics*.

5,829 Chemicals in Everyday Products May Increase Breast Cancer Risk

Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer type and cause of cancer death among women worldwide. Exposure to ionizing radiation or compounds that affect estrogen can increase the risk of breast cancer. According to The Science Times, a study recently published in Environmental Health Perspectives indicates that 829 chemicals frequently found in daily life may increase this risk.

6. Public Announcement of the Selected Projects for the "Top Ten Advances in Chinese Life Sciences in 2023"

The Joint Body of Life Science Societies of the China Association for Science and Technology conducts the selection work for the "Top Ten Advances in Chinese Life Sciences in 2023" project based on the principles of "fairness, impartiality, and openness." The proposed selected projects are now being publicly announced for social supervision, with a five-working-day public announcement period (from January 8, 2024, to January 12, 2024).

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