Codiak BioSciences Inc. said yesterday that it has filed for chapter 11 protection in the latest blow to the struggling drug developer's ambitions of making a COVID-19 vaccine, Reuters reported. The chapter 11 filing ends months of investor uncertainty after the company, which has been facing a cash crunch, raised going concern doubts and cut its workforce by 37% last year. The company said yesterday that it will cut an additional 34 jobs, bringing its total number of employees to 19, and expects to incur severance-related costs of about $1.1 million. Codiak previously said it would prioritize its COVID-19 vaccine development program that was funded by a global vaccine coalition, while halting development of two cancer drug candidates which were ready for mid-stage study. The company will also wind down a clinical trial of its drug for a type of bone marrow cancer, according to a filing yesterday. The $2.5-million funding by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations in July was aimed at an experimental vaccine that would target COVID-19 as well as other coronaviruses.
