Public Company Edition: Direct Biologics, YishengBio and Estrella Biopharma will go public by merging with special purpose acquisition corporations. Also, Vir lands a government contract worth up to $1bn, Idorsia raises CHF164m ($167.4m) in a real estate deal and Adamis reviews alternatives.

Public Company Edition: Mergers with special purpose acquisition corporations also continue to take companies public, with three new SPAC offerings in late 2021. Also, Xeris raised $30m in a private placement of stock to support its recently approved drug and Sirnaomics went public in Hong Kong.

In a series of articles, Scrip takes a look at some of the key novel products expected to reach the market in 2022 in a cross-section of therapy areas. Here, with input from Biomedtracker, are eight new oncology products to treat solid tumors that could make their market debuts next year.

A plasmid DNA vaccine for human use has moved a step closer to reality, with Zydus Cadila applying for an accelerated nod for its COVID-19 candidate in India. 67% efficacy reported in an interim data readout and Delta variant being the prominent strain during a Phase III trial imply better odds for approval.