Failure of Regeneron's anti-RSV antibody suptavumab (REGN2222) comes at a tough time for the company, as some marketed products disappoint and a long-time alliance with Sanofi comes to an end.

North Carolina biotech may need to conduct a 9,000-patient safety study after solithromycin was rejected by FDA, but it has $231m in cash and another Phase III candidate. Apricus is clearing financial room by transferring ex-US rights to Vivaros to Ferring, while Heat is acquiring former spinout Pelican.

Novartis and MedImmune have over the past several months also started clinical studies of antibodies licensed from the Swiss biotech, which derives its products from patients with highly effective immune responses.

The biotech’s senior VP for infectious disease and vaccine R&D says prevention must be a part of fighting antimicrobial resistance, but moving the new approach into advanced trials first requires getting a handle on the incidence of hospital-acquired pneumonia in intensive care patients.