Among the latest financing deals, advanced therapeutics such as cell and gene therapies (CGT) continued enjoying the spotlight from venture capital and private equity investors in China. Meanwhile, small molecules with novel mechanism of action such as molecule glue stood out from their peers to win investors’ favor.

Unexpected protocol changes and a single-blind design for a Phase III head-to-head trial seem to have played to the advantage of Junshi’s oral derivative of Gilead’s antiviral remdesivir in COVID-19.

Simcere is weighing options for SIM0417 in a Phase I trial in China as the first major domestically-developed potential rival to Pfizer’s oral COVID-19 antiviral Paxlovid. The study is likely to include wider patient groups ranging from those without symptoms to severe patients.

Pfizer gets European Commission approval for Paxlovid after a positive CHMP opinion, while Moderna started a Phase II study of its Omicron-specific vaccine candidate. Meanwhile, China's Junshi enters into a new oral antiviral collaboration while Daiichi Sankyo investigates its mRNA vaccine contender as a booster shot.