CRISPR Setbacks, Vaccine Policy Reversed, and an Oral Antibiotic Breakthrough — This Week in Biotech #54

In this week’s recap, we spotlight three biotech stories that reveal where the sector is headed, both the promise and the pitfalls:Gene therapy trials stumble hard: Intellia’s in vivo CRISPR trial was hit with a serious liver toxicity case, sending shares tumbling and reigniting concerns over editing DNA inside the body. But the real blow came for Rocket Pharma, which saw a patient death trigger an FDA clinical hold and a 60% stock drop. Safety remains the field’s biggest challenge.CDC reverses COVID vaccine guidance: Under new leadership from RFK Jr., the CDC will no longer recommend COVID-19 vaccines for healthy kids and pregnant women. The move was praised by skeptics and blasted by the medical community, who warned it undermines trust in science and public health.A win for antibiotic innovation: GSK and Spero reported that their oral UTI drug matched IV antibiotics in a phase 3 trial, prompting an early stop for efficacy. If approved, it would be the first oral carbapenem in the U.S., a potential game-changer for patients with drug-resistant infections. Shares of Spero surged 250%.Thanks for tuning in. I’ll be back next week with more biotech news you need to know.

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