Drug Development

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Multiple players are exploring whether modalities designed to combat B cell malignancies can be repurposed against lupus, myasthenia gravis and other conditions traced to misdirected immune response.
This year has seen several biopharma companies drop Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease programs, but experts say plenty are still chasing these multi-billion-dollar markets.
While some of the initial excitement around immunotherapies has waned, companies—particularly smaller biotechs—are developing newer iterations that will take cancer care to the next level.
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The investigational therapy, vesleteplirsen, had been positioned as an updated version of Sarepta’s original exon 51-skipping Duchenne muscular dystrophy drug Exondys 51.
Truist Securities analyst Asthika Goonewardene in an investor note said data for anito-cel—particularly its safety profile—will help differentiate the CAR T therapy from Legend Biotech and J&J’s entrenched Carvykti in relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma.
BEAM-101 seems to be competitive with approved sickle cell treatments, William Blair analysts said in a note to investors, but a patient death underscores the need for less-toxic preconditioning treatments.
While expected and seen as largely incremental, Jefferies analyst Peter Welford in a Tuesday note to investors said the detailed data for three early-stage assets support moving them into Phase IIb studies and creates a “foothold” for AstraZeneca in the weight loss space.
Jefferies analyst Roger Song in an investor note said that Viking Therapeutics’ readout for its investigational therapy VK2735 exceeded expectations, with “class-leading” weight loss. Patients on 100-miligram doses of the pill lost 8.2% of their body weight after 28 days.
In part 1 of the pivotal ESSENCE trial, Novo Nordisk’s weight loss drug Wegovy demonstrated “statistically significant and superior improvement” in liver fibrosis in patients with metabolic dysfunction–associated steatohepatitis.
On its third-quarter earnings call Tuesday, Sage highlighted the launch of its Biogen-partnered postpartum depression drug Zurzuvae but said it will stop pursuing approval for major depressive disorder, which the FDA previously denied.
Approved by the FDA in July to treat adults with early symptomatic Alzheimer’s disease, Eli Lilly’s Kisunla reduced the brain swelling of patients in a late-stage trial following an adjusted dosing regimen.
Eli Lilly and Johnson & Johnson are seeking label expansions for Omvoh and Tremfya, respectively, in Crohn’s disease following approvals for ulcerative colitis. GlobalData projects total sales for Tremfya to reach $7.8 billion globally by 2029.
The acquisition of Aliada Therapeutics gives AbbVie access to a Phase I anti-amyloid antibody as well as the biotech’s novel platform engineered for efficient blood-brain barrier transport.