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Biotech Briefs: Atrium Therapeutics, Gyre Therapeutics, XyloCor & More 

The latest from small and Emerging Pharma companies featuring Atrium Therapeutics, BioAtla, Gyre Therapeutics, Kivu Bioscience, Portal Innovations, Theravance Biopharma and XyloCor. 

For news on the large and mid-sized bio/pharmaceutical companies, see Global Briefs.  

* Atrium Therapeutics Launches as New Company 
* BioAtla Announces Restructuring  
* Gyre Therapeutics Acquires Cullgen for $300 M 
* Kivu Bioscience Appoints New Chief Business Officer 
* Portal Innovations Opens New Incubator for Pharma 
* Theravance Biopharma Announces Restructuring After Phase III Miss 
* US Gov’t Launches $158-M in Funding for Lymphatic Diseases 
* XyloCor Appoints New CEO 

Atrium Therapeutics Launches as New Company 
Atrium Therapeutics, a San Diego, California-based bio/pharmaceutical company, has launched as a newly independent, publicly traded company focused on delivering RNA therapeutics directly to the heart to treat genetic cardiomyopathies. Atrium Therapeutics was established in connection with Avidity Biosciences’ acquisition by Novartis. The company is led by Kathleen Gallagher, President and Chief Executive Officer, and begins operations with two precision cardiology candidates, two undisclosed research targets, and approximately $270 million in cash and cash equivalents. 

Source: Atrium Therapeutics 

BioAtla Announces Restructuring 
BioAtla, a clinical-stage bio/pharmaceutical company focused on developing antibody therapeutics for treating solid tumors, has initiated a formal process to explore and evaluate strategic options, including the sale of preclinical and clinical assets, licensing transactions, strategic partnerships, or other corporate transactions. Concurrently, the company is implementing a restructuring plan to significantly reduce operating expenses, including a workforce reduction of approximately 70% and expansion of cost-containment measures. 

Source: BioAtla 

Gyre Therapeutics Acquires Cullgen for $300 M 
Gyre Therapeutics, a San Diego, California-based commercial-stage bio/pharmaceutical company advancing therapies across organ systems affected by chronic diseases, has agreed to acquire Cullgen, a San Diego, California-based privately held, clinical-stage bio/pharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of targeted protein degrader and degrader antibody conjugate therapies, for $300 million. Following the closure of the acquisition, the new combined entity will have US- and China-based capabilities from discovery to manufacturing and commercialization covering multiple therapeutic areas, including inflammatory diseases, cancers, and pain. 

Source: Gyre Therapeutics 

Kivu Bioscience Appoints New Chief Business Officer 
Kivu Bioscience, a San Meteo, California-based clinical-stage bio/pharmaceutical company developing antibody-drug conjugates for difficult-to-treat cancers, has announced the appointment of Brunilda Shtylla, currently Chief Business Officer at Sutro Biopharma, as Chief Business Officer.  

Shtylla brings more than 25 years of experience across biotechnology, medical devices, finance, and strategic transactions. Most recently, as Chief Business Officer at Sutro Biopharma, she led business strategy and development, advancing the company’s platform through collaborations, licensing, and partnerships, and helping secure more than $5.5 billion in total deal value. Previously, she advised organizations, including Genentech, Grail, and Edwards Lifesciences, and held leadership roles at LifeScan, a Johnson & Johnson company. 

Source: Kivu Bioscience 

Portal Innovations Opens New Incubator for Pharma 
Portal Innovations, a venture capital firm, has opened a new 30,000-square-foot science incubator as part of Powered by Portal, its services platform for biotech startups, at Woodbine Labs in Salt Lake City, Utah. Set to open in the second quarter of 2027, this marks the fourth Powered by Portal lab announced under the platform in the past two years. 

Source: Portal Innovations 

Theravance Biopharma Announces Restructuring After Phase III Miss 
Theravance Biopharma, a Dublin, Ireland-based bio/pharmaceutical company, has announced a restructuring following the company’s decision to discontinue development of ampreloxetin, a rare disease drug for treating neurogenic orthostatic hypotension (a sudden drop in blood pressure) after the drug failed to meet its primary endpoint in a Phase III study. The company is implementing an organizational restructuring to streamline costs and align its resources with its commercial focus on Yupelri (revefenacin), the company’s drug for treating chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The restructuring will involve winding down the company’s R&D function and significantly reducing general and administrative functions. The restructuring is expected to reduce operating expenses by approximately 60%, relative to 2025 preliminary actuals of approximately $110 million. The full run-rate cost savings of approximately $70 million are expected to fully materialize in the third quarter of 2026. Together, the cost savings from the restructuring and continued sales from Yupelri are expected to result in the company generating approximately $60 million to $70 million of annualized cash flow starting in the third quarter of 2026. 

Source: Theravance Biopharma 

US Gov’t Launches $158-M in Funding for Lymphatic Diseases 
The Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H), an agency within the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), has awarded funding to research teams at pharmaceutical startups and academia through its Groundbreaking Lymphatic Interventions and Drug Exploration (GLIDE) program. GLIDE will give healthcare providers a new toolkit of therapies that directly target abnormal lymphatic structure and function and is the first major effort to directly address the root causes of chronic diseases due to underlying lymphatic disease, not just the symptoms. 

The GLIDE program total is up to $158 million over five years. Performer awards vary in funding amount per awardee and are contingent upon each team meeting set milestones. The performer teams are led by:  

  • 3DT Holdings, a San Diego, California-based pharmaceutical technology company; 
  • Georgia Tech Research Corporation, an Atlanta, Georgia-based research company; 
  • LymphaTech, an Atlanta, Georgia-based technology company; 
  • Monash University, a Melbourne, Australia-based university; 
  • Stanford University; 
  • Ropirio Therapeutics, a Boston-based bio/pharmaceutical company focused on lymphatic medicines; and 
  • William Marsh Rice University, a Houston-based university. 

Source: The Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health 

XyloCor Appoints New CEO 
XyloCor Therapeutics, a King of Prussia, Pennsylvania-based clinical-stage bio/pharmaceutical company developing gene therapies focused on cardiovascular disease, has announced the appointment of John Tucker, currently CEO of scPharmaceuticals, as President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), effective immediately (as reported on March 5, 2026). Prior to joining the company, Tucker served as CEO of scPharmaceuticals, and prior to that, as CEO of Alcresta Therapeutics.  

Source: XyloCor Therapeutics