GSK (GlaxoSmithKline)

British pharma giant controlling 94% of the shingles vaccine market with Shingrix, setting the competitive bar Sanofi aims to challenge. - Market leader in adult vaccines, defending shingles monopoly

Sanofi dropped $2.2 billion on December 24, 2025 to acquire Dynavax, a California biotech with a two-dose hepatitis B vaccine and a shingles shot in development. The 39% premium signals desperation: Sanofi is playing catch-up in a vaccine market projected to hit $37.2 billion by 2033, driven by the largest aging population in human history. By 2050, 2.1 billion people will be over 60—triple the population over 80. The deal is expected to close in Q1 2026 pending Hart-Scott-Rodino antitrust clearance and other customary regulatory approvals.[1]

Updated Feb 4

GSK developed both Shingrix and the AS01 adjuvant now showing unexpected dementia-protective properties. - Actively investigating AS01 adjuvant for dementia prevention through major clinical studies

A shingles vaccine is showing up in dataset after dataset as a dementia preventer. Oxford researchers published results in Nature Medicine in July 2024 showing Shingrix—the recombinant shingles vaccine—cuts dementia risk by 17-20% compared to unvaccinated people. Stanford followed with a Cell study in December 2024 showing it might even slow progression in people already diagnosed, cutting dementia death risk by 29.5 percentage points. Then in April 2025, Geldsetzer's team published in Nature showing causal evidence from a natural experiment in Wales. By July 2025, GSK was presenting data at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference showing risk reductions as high as 51% in Southern California populations.

Updated Feb 2

British pharmaceutical giant facing loss of U.S. patent protection on its $5.4 billion HIV drug dolutegravir beginning in 2028. - Acquirer; expanding immunology portfolio ahead of patent cliffs

For decades, the 27 million American adults and children with food allergies had one option: avoid the allergen and carry an EpiPen. That changed in February 2024 when the FDA approved Xolair as the first drug to reduce allergic reactions—including anaphylaxis—from accidental exposure to multiple foods. Now GSK has paid $2.2 billion for RAPT Therapeutics and its experimental antibody ozureprubart, betting it can build a better version with once-quarterly dosing instead of Xolair's every-two-to-four-week schedule.

Updated Jan 20