EcoR1’s Platshon takes new role at Zymeworks amid strategy shift — and more

EcoR1 Capital partner Scott Platshon is moving from the board room of Vancouver-based  Zymeworks Inc. (NASDAQ:ZYME) to the C-suite to serve as acting chief investment officer. The move came alongside an announcement that the company is adopting a new strategy to become a “royalty-driven organization differentiated by in-house R&D capabilities.” It aims to reinvest revenues, including expected near-term milestones and royalties, from its partnered oncology therapies Ziihera zanidatamab and pasritamig, as well as other assets. At the same time, the company will continue to invest in its in-house pipeline, with a view toward further partnerships for its therapies. The announcement follows Monday’s positive readout for Ziihera to treat gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma.

As part of a newly announced restructuring, Nxera Pharma Co. Ltd. (Tokyo:4565) plans to cut 15% of its workforce in Japan and the U.K. and streamline its executive team to seven from 10. It also announced the addition of former Peptone Ltd. CSO Patrik Foerch as CSO and president of Nxera Pharma UK, succeeding Matthew Barnes. The announcement came with several cuts to the pipeline and a new focus for its R&D. The company now plans to focus on best-in-class assets “where the biology of G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) targets is best understood and de-risked” and differentiated therapies created via the company’s NxWave technology...