Analytical AI Engineering Engineer

Bristol Myers, Ono sue Amgen to block proposed Opdivo biosimilar in US. Washington: Bristol Myers Squibb and Ono Pharmaceutical have sued Amgen in Delaware federal court, seeking to block Amgen's proposed U.S. biosimilar of their blockbuster cancer immunotherapy drug Opdivo. The lawsuit, filed last week and made public on Monday, alleges that Amgen's biosimilar would infringe several patents. Opdivo earned Bristol Myers more than $5.9 billion in revenue in the United States last year, according to a company report. An Amgen spokesperson on Tuesday declined to comment on the lawsuit but said the company has applied for U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval of its drug and "remains confident" that it will be "in the first wave of Opdivo biosimilars." Spokespeople for Bristol Myers and Ono did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Biosimilars are based on existing versions of biologic drugs and are comparable to generic versions of traditional pharmaceuticals. Unlike traditional drugs, complex biologics are made from living cells and cannot be copied exactly. Bristol Myers and Ono, which co-developed Opdivo, allege that Amgen's biosimilar would infringe seven U.S. patents covering the drug, and asked the court to block sales of the biosimilar while their patents remain in force. Opdivo has been approved in the U.S. to treat advanced or metastatic cancers, including melanoma, non-small cell lung cancer and kidney cancer. Bristol Myers and Ono settled a patent dispute with Merck in 2017 over its rival blockbuster cancer drug Keytruda. Under the settlement, Merck agreed to pay $625 million and a share of Keytruda royalties through 2023. Bristol Myers said in a report filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in February that it expects to maintain patent exclusivity over Opdivo until 2028. The case is Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. v. Amgen Inc., U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware, No. 1:26-cv-01134. For BMS and Ono: Steven Maslowski of Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld Disclaimer: This website is primarily for healthcare professionals. The content here does not replace medical advice and should not be used as medical, diagnostic, endorsement, treatment, or prescription advice. Medical science evolves rapidly, and we strive to keep our information current. If you find any discrepancies, please contact us at [email protected]. Read our Correction Policy here. Nothing here should be used as a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. We do not endorse any healthcare advice that contradicts a physician's guidance. Use of this site is subject to our Terms of Use, Privacy Policy, and Advertisement Policy. For more details, read our Full Disclaimer here. NOTE: Join us in combating medical misinformation. If you encounter a questionable health, medical, or medical education claim, email us at [email protected] for evaluation. Sheeba Farhat Joined Medical Dialogues in 2018 to report on the latest Education news. A Graduate of the University of Delhi, she specializes in covering stories related to Medical Education updates. For inquiries or further information, you can reach her at [email protected]. Our comments section is governed by our Comments Policy. By posting comments at Medical Dialogues you automatically agree with our Comments Policy, Terms And Conditions and Privacy Policy.

Shennon Biotechnologies raises $12 million, names Cyril Konto CEO. September 14, 2026 Photo caption (from left to right): Li Sun, Ph.D., Founder, President and CTO; Cyril Konto, M.D., CEO, Shennon Biotechnologies. Photographer: Erin Beach Shennon Biotechnologies has raised $12 million in new financing and appointed biotechnology executive Cyril Konto, M.D., as CEO as the San Francisco-based company moves its precision immunotherapy platform toward clinical development and potential strategic partnerships. The financing came from Future Ventures, NextGen Venture Partners, Samos Investments, Atypical Ventures and Saras Capital, with continued backing from existing investors DCVC, Foundation Capital and AV8 Ventures. The round brings ShennonBio's total capital raised since its 2021 founding to $25 million. The company plans to use the new funding to continue developing its integrated drug discovery platform and advance an oncology pipeline that currently includes three T-cell engager programs targeting small cell lung cancer, ovarian cancer and hepatocellular carcinoma. Founder and current CEO Li Sun, Ph.D., will transition to president and chief technology officer. Sun will continue leading ShennonBio's scientific strategy, technology development and pipeline innovation, while Konto assumes responsibility for leading the company through its next stage of development. Konto brings more than 20 years of experience spanning oncology drug development, biotechnology company building and strategic transactions. Most recently, he served as president and CEO of Ichnos Glenmark Innovation, where he led an operational and strategic restructuring that concentrated the company's portfolio on oncology and expanded its multispecific therapeutics franchise. During his tenure, IGI completed three external partnerships, including an agreement with AbbVie involving a Phase 1 trispecific T-cell engager. That transaction included $700 million upfront and up to $1.9 billion in total potential value plus royalties. Konto previously held senior oncology development positions at Allogene Therapeutics, Pfizer and Bristol Myers Squibb. His appointment comes as ShennonBio shifts from primarily building its technology infrastructure toward advancing internally generated drug candidates. "ShennonBio has spent the last several years building a differentiated foundation spanning proprietary human data, target discovery, functional screening, therapeutic design and safety prediction," Konto said. He said his priorities include moving the pipeline toward the clinic, establishing strategic partnerships and preparing the company for its next phase of growth. ShennonBio is developing both antibody-based T-cell engagers, or Ab-TCEs, and TCR-based T-cell engagers, known as TCR-TCEs. The antibody programs are designed to address targets expressed on tumor cell surfaces, while the TCR approach could potentially reach intracellular cancer targets presented through HLA. The company has built four proprietary technologies around that strategy. PINTRA uses human tumor datasets and computational methods to identify potential surface and intracellular therapeutic targets. TCELERATOR is an ultra-high-throughput functional screening system capable of evaluating more than 10 million single-cell interactions concurrently and screening millions of therapeutic candidates. AFFINIS focuses on computational prediction, design and optimization of antibody binders and TCRs, while SERIS applies AI to identify potential off-target cross-reactivity earlier in drug development. Supporting those technologies is a proprietary dataset encompassing more than 10,000 tumor samples, over 11 million single cells and a collection of TCR sequences. ShennonBio has relationships involving more than 15 institutions across multiple cancer types and other diseases and operates approximately 6,000 square feet of laboratory space near UCSF Mission Bay in San Francisco. The company's initial pipeline includes SBT-121, a dual-targeting trispecific antibody-based T-cell engager for small cell lung cancer; SBT-201, an Ab-TCE targeting ovarian cancer; and SBT-425, a TCR-TCE being developed for hepatocellular carcinoma. The three programs give ShennonBio opportunities to apply its discovery technology across both antibody- and TCR-based approaches to solid tumors. The programs remain in development, with the company planning to move a development candidate toward an investigational new drug filing and Phase 1 clinical development over the next two years. ShennonBio is also evaluating licensing opportunities for selected therapeutic programs and potential partnerships involving parts of its technology platform. Areas identified for potential collaboration include binder prediction and generation, clinical toxicity prediction and access to the company's proprietary datasets. "We have built an integrated technology platform, generated proprietary human datasets and begun translating those capabilities into a pipeline of precision immunotherapies," Sun said. He described the financing and CEO transition as the beginning of a new stage as ShennonBio works to move its first T-cell engager programs toward the clinic. With $25 million raised to date, the leadership transition gives ShennonBio an experienced oncology drug-development executive to oversee that shift. The next phase will center on converting its technology and datasets into clinical candidates while using partnerships and licensing opportunities to expand the commercial potential of the platform.

Bristol Myers Squibb selects Houston for $2.3 billion manufacturing campus. Published. September 9, 2026 Bristol Myers Squibb has selected Houston for a new $2.3 billion manufacturing campus designed to produce multiple types of medicines and expand as the company's pipeline changes. The Generation Park site is expected to create nearly 500 permanent jobs. The approximately 600,000-square-foot campus will support small molecules, biologics, and antibody-drug conjugates, with manufacturing capabilities spanning late development through commercial launch. Its modular design will allow Bristol Myers Squibb to add or reconfigure capacity as product and pipeline needs evolve. The Houston project is part of the company's broader $40 billion commitment to U.S. research and development, technology, and domestic manufacturing over five years. Bristol Myers Squibb said the site will also incorporate digital systems and automation across its manufacturing operations. Construction is expected to create approximately 2,000 construction and indirect jobs between 2027 and 2030. Once operational, the campus is projected to employ nearly 500 people across production, engineering, maintenance, quality, and site operations. Bristol Myers Squibb selected Houston following an evaluation of multiple markets in the central and eastern United States. The company cited the region's life sciences workforce, infrastructure, available incentives, and access to transportation and utilities as factors in the decision.