AROUND THE VALLEYS

CONEJO VALLEYCAMARILLONews personality Trish Regan has joined the Salem Podcast Network lineup at Christian and conservative radio broadcaster Salem Media Group Inc. As of this month, Regan, who is best remembered as the host of her own primetime show on Fox Business Network and who has hosted shows on Bloomberg TV, CNBC and CBS Television, will helm the eponymous Trish Regan Podcast, on which she will deliver her take on current affairs. “I am thrilled to enter into a partnership with Salem Media,” Regan said in a statement. “Salem is an organization with real leadership and a management team that stands up for American values including — most importantly — our First Amendment.”  THOUSAND OAKSAmgen Inc. has announced a $1.25 billion deal with Japanese company Kyowa Kirin Co. Ltd. to jointly develop and commercialize Kyowa’s treatment for atopic dermatitis, KHK4083. Amgen will lead the development, manufacturing and commercialization for KHK4083 for all markets except Japan, where Kyowa Kirin will retain all rights. Amgen will make a $400 million payment to Kyowa Kirin up-front and future contingent milestone payments potentially worth up to an additional $850 million, as well as royalty payments on future global sales. In February, Kyowa Kirin announced positive results from a Phase 2 study in patients with moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis, which affects 15 to 20 percent of children and 1 to 3 percent of adults worldwide. The chronic disease impacts the immune system, triggering inflammation that produces rashes on the body which can weep fluid or bleed when scratched, making skin vulnerable to infection. “Kyowa Kirin was one of Amgen’s very first collaborators and we are delighted to be joining forces with them once again to advance this promising late-stage asset to treat atopic dermatitis,” Amgen Chief Executive Robert Bradway said in a statement. “We will take advantage of our two decades of experience in inflammatory disease, as well as our industry-leading human genetics capabilities, to help realize the full potential of KHK4083 as quickly as possible.”WESTLAKE VILLAGEMannKind Corp. has signed a collaboration agreement with Thirona Bio Inc. to further the development of a new Thirona-owned chemical employed to treat lung fibrosis. FBM5712 is a small molecule inhibitor of the ALK-5 Kinase, which is being developed by Thirona as a means of preventing and/or reducing skin fibrosis through topical application. Additionally, “ALK-5 has been validated as a potential target for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. FBM5712 will be formulated as a dry powder by MannKind under the collaboration agreement as a potential treatment for lung fibrosis. MannKind has already developed Afrezza, an inhalable insulin powder used to control blood sugar in diabetics. “We recently announced our goal of launching a new product from our pipeline every year between 2025 and 2030,” MannKind Chief Executive Michael Castagna said in a statement. “We are excited by the opportunity to evaluate FBM5712 and to assess its potential to support our pipeline ambitions.” The companies also entered into a promissory note purchase agreement that would allow for the support of Thirona’s Series A financing.

 San Fernando ValleyCALABASASCheesecake Factory Inc. has provided a business update ahead of two upcoming investor conferences. This year’s second quarter-to-date sales, measured through May 31, increased about 196 percent year-over-year and 7 percent compared to the same period in fiscal 2019, according to the restaurant company. Weekly sales quarter-to-date averaged $226,500 per unit, equating to an annualized average of $11.8 million per unit. Last year’s first quarter occasioned a cratering of Cheesecake’s business with the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. The impact included temporary furloughs for about 41,000 hourly restaurant employees, as well as cuts of 20 percent to executive salaries. In its update, the company said nearly all its restaurants, across different brands, have reopened indoor dining rooms at limited capacity in accordance with local mandates, including 206 Cheesecake Factory restaurants.NORTHRIDGECalifornia State University – Northridge has received a $40 million gift from philanthropist MacKenzie Scott, the former wife of Amazon.com Inc. founder Jeff Bezos. Scott has made history with this gift, which is the biggest single donation that the university has ever received from an individual. Forbes estimates that Scott’s net worth approaches $60 billion. The gift to CSUN is one of 286 announced by Scott that details $2.74 billion in gifts to various universities, art organizations and nonprofits. The list of recipients also included California State University – Channel Islands in Camarillo for $15 million.“Because we believe that teams with experience on the front lines of challenges will know best how to put the money to good use, we encouraged them to spend it however they choose,” Scott wrote in a statement.CSUN intends to apply the gift toward supporting the school president’s priorities and that it comes not long after the release of CSUN President Erika Beck’s Listening Tour report. The report identifies Beck’s priorities, which includes the elimination of equity gaps, diversifying faculty and holistic student support. “While one-time dollars cannot be used to support long-term expenses in perpetuity, with a mix of focused spending and investment, we can, and will, use these dollars to transform our campus for generations to come,” Beck said in a statement.VAN NUYSFloQast, the accounting software developer, said Wednesday it has opened a new office in London to better serve customers in Africa, Europe and the Middle East. The Van Nuys company said that it had doubled its customer base in Africa, Europe and the Middle East – a region called EMEA – over the past six months. “As the FloQast platform continues to grow with new features and innovations, so does our customer base around the world,” Chief Executive Mike Whitmire said in a statement. “Building out our global workforce and footprint with a physical office is the next logical step to give our EMEA-based customers the same high level of support that we offer here in the U.S.” SANTA CLARITA VALLEYVALENCIASix Flags Magic Mountain and Hurricane Harbor lifted capacity limits and removed mask requirements for fully vaccinated  guests as of June 15; the same date many of California’s business restrictions have eased. Updated state classifications categorize theme parks as “outdoor mega events” and recommend — but do not require — that parks ask visitors to be fully vaccinated or show proof of a recent, negative coronavirus test to enter. Magic Mountain will strongly encourage unvaccinated guests to wear masks, though there will be no requirement to provide  vaccine status. The two adjacent Valencia theme parks will no longer require reservations to attend and have opened their doors  to out-of-state guests for the first time in more than a year. The parks had closed all operations last March amid coronavirus concerns.

California Resources Corp.

has appointed  Chris Gould as the company’s first ever chief sustainability officer. The Santa Clarita-based oil company’s new appointment previously worked at Exelon.“Bringing Chris on board reflects the importance of our ESG (environmental, social and governance) initiatives and our commitment to decarbonization and a realistic energy transition,” Mac McFarland, chief executive of California Resources, said in a statement.— Compiled by Michael Aushenker