Nov. 21 Quick Takes: Merck buying neurology play Caraway

Five years after the venture arm of Merck & Co. Inc. (NYSE:MRK) invested in a $23 million series A round for neurodegeneration company Caraway Therapeutics Inc., the pharma is acquiring the Cambridge, Mass.-based biotech for an undisclosed amount up front. If all of the deal’s milestones are fulfilled, Caraway shareholders will receive $610 million. Caraway’s pipeline of preclinical assets includes therapies targeting TRPML1, TMEM175 and ATP13A2. Its other shareholders included AbbVie Ventures, Amgen Ventures, Alexandria Venture Investments, the Mayo Clinic, SV Health Investors and the Dementia Discovery Fund.

Ahead of a planned regulatory submission, Connect Biopharma Holdings Ltd. (NASDAQ:CNTB) entered a deal giving Simcere Pharmaceutical Group Ltd. (HKEX:2096) local rights to its IL-4R-targeting mAb rademikibart. For RMB150 million ($21.2 million) up front, Simcere will receive rights in mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau to the program; the deal includes another RMB875 million in milestones. Connect is guiding for a 1Q24 submission of radeikibart to China’s National Medical Products Administration to treat atopic dermatitis...