Hi Simon From the announcement .. ... “Discussions are ongoing...

Hi Simon
From the announcement ..
... “Discussions are ongoing as to how to transition BlastX back to Next Science and the subsequent timing of this...”

-So they don’t want to hang around at the back of 3M’s bottom shelf?

And - from the position of confirmation bias and wishful thinking - I just looked up the new NXS commercial head, Dustin Haines again [Linkedin],
As already noted, his previous position was President and General Manager of ViiV Healthcare, Tokyo, which saw
.... “ 7% growth YoY, top line sales 108% above plan, as well as producing highest franchise market share globally.
Responsible for managing the business partnership with Shionogi Pharmaceuticals and delivering the strategic direction for the company...”



Konnichiwa Shionogi?

Shionogi is most famous for developing the statin “Crestor” but researches widely in other areas.
It is a public company with more than 6,000 employees according to [Wikipedia], with a particular interest in antimicrobial and antibiotics.(!!!)

Dustin’s linkedin bio says back in 2012 when the Shionogi/ViiV partnership was signed [ref], he was the senior director of global commercial strategy for ViiV:
.. “Responsible for delivering pipeline assets from phase 3 through registration and ultimately commercialization.
Led global strategic planning process including brand positioning, creative concepts, message platform, and strategic launch plan.
Managed global professional, consumer, and digital agencies to deliver an optimized product launch plan suitable for regions and countries across the globe.
Delivered category leading launches across multiple regions including US, Europe, and Asia.”..

So apart from seeming to be exactly what NXS needs at this crucial time when the relationship with 3M is officially waning yet ‘insiders’ have been so confidently buying (check recent announcements), Dustin would have quite a comfortable relationship with Shionogi after a successful partnership of around eight years?
....And may have mentioned the status of our now somewhat orphaned BlastX to some of his mates there?



Just conjecture
And yet -perhaps auspiciously (for link providing at least) - Shionogi has recently been reminding it has

...... “a strong heritage in the field of anti-infectives and has been developing antimicrobial therapies for more than 60 years. ​

Shionogi is proud to be one of the few large pharmaceutical companies that continues to focus on research and development in anti-infectives. ​

The company invests the highest proportion of its pharmaceutical revenues in relevant anti-infectives R&D compared to other large pharmaceutical companies.[vi]”​

- That excerpt is from this announcement
[26/10/20 SHIONOGI ADVOCATES INNOVATION IN ANTIBIOTIC DEVELOPMENT AND POLICY CHANGE TO ADDRESS THE GROWING THREAT OF ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE]


-It makes no mention of Next Science but still mt wishful thinking is kindled.

cheers

and fingers crossed