After immuno-oncology, cell therapies such as CAR-Ts have attracted millions of dollars of funding in China and one former executive is now sailing into the largely uncharted waters of natural killer cells.

Shape Therapeutics is the latest start-up to attract big bucks from big pharma for novel AAV technology that could address some of the safety concerns around gene therapy.

The board members of Vectura, a manufacturer of inhalers and inhaled drugs, have approved a $1.4bn takeover bid by Philip Morris International, the manufacturer of Marlboro cigarettes.

Several companies have recently raised large amounts of money from venture capital as well as potentially through partnerships for next-generation capsid technology.