Roche

Heath Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s efforts to overhaul vaccine policy are likely illegal, a Massachusetts District Court Judge ruled; Structure’s GLP-1 weight loss pill succeeds in Phase 2 while Rhythm’s Phase 3 basket trial fails to find the beat; Eli Lilly warns of potential safety risks of taking compounded tirzepatide, and Novo Nordisk is hit with an FDA warning letter regarding adverse events potentially linked to Ozempic.

While Johnson & Johnson retains the top revenue rank across the major pharma companies, Eli Lilly last year established itself as the clear leader in the obesity market, in the process capturing investors’ attention and enthusiasm.

Rare disease biotech stocks pop on the news that Vinay Prasad, the FDA’s chief biologics regulator, will depart the FDA at the end of April; Sen. Ron Johnson launches an investigation into recent rare disease drug rejections; and Roche and Zealand’s amylin analog fails to match investor expectations—and Eli Lilly’s rival candidate—in a mid-stage trial.

Roche’s shares tumbled nearly 5% on news that a key pillar in the five-pronged clinical plan for the breast cancer asset giredestrant was unsuccessful.

Zealand Pharma’s shares fell 32% in early morning trading Friday after its Roche-partnered asset petrelintide failed to meet investor expectations in a mid-stage clinical trial.

South Korea has attracted increasing investment from the pharmaceutical industry, which is drawn to the Asian country due to its experience in antibody-drug conjugates and cell and gene therapies, according to McKinsey.

The company plans to divest a drug it has made for 40 years, citing increasing production costs and falling prices.

Pfizer announces the first data from its Metsera-acquired pipeline just ahead of its earnings call, where analysts pressed execs for more details; Merck and Roche also released Q4 and full year earnings, with Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk and others reporting Wednesday; REGENXBIO hits a regulatory snag ahead of its upcoming PDUFA; more.

The alliance will add to Roche’s RNAi efforts, which include the hypertension candidate zilbesiran, partnered with Alnylam under a July 2023 agreement.