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Disc Medicine’s leadership tried to express optimism that its rare disease therapy bitopertin can be approved based on a Phase 3 trial set to begin shortly. However, analysts are worried that the protocol was developed with former FDA leaders.
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The FDA’s refusal to review Moderna’s mRNA-based flu vaccine is “part of a disturbing pattern” of moving regulatory goalposts, according to Clay Alspach, executive director of the Alliance for mRNA Medicines. Meanwhile, streamlined communications with regulators in other countries pave the way for rapid uptake of novel modalities.
The current state of political affairs in the U.S. does not bode well for the direction of that turn. The country is at real risk of losing its long-held lead in biotech innovation.
FDA
The FDA’s refusal to review Moderna’s mRNA-based flu vaccine is part of a larger communications crisis unfolding at the agency over the past nine months that has also ensnarled Sarepta, Capricor, uniQure and many more.
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The FDA issued a rare Refusal-to-File letter to Moderna over its mRNA-based influenza vaccine application, in an unusual move that sent the biotech’s shares tumbling.
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Two recent documents—one from the FDA, the other from a commission organized by The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology—indicate an evolving mindset toward treating obesity as a chronic disease.
More than a decade after Merck’s Keytruda and BMS’ Yervoy ushered in the immuno-oncology revolution, the space is at a crossroads, with experts highlighting novel targets, combinations and pre-emptive immunization as the next wave for IO.
In the five weeks since Donald Trump returned as U.S. president, the FDA, NIH and CDC have been thrown into disarray, with meetings regarding vaccines and rare diseases canceled or indefinitely postponed—all without a clear reason why.
In a move straight out of 2021, BridgeBio Oncology is taking the SPAC route to the public markets in a deal with Helix Acquisition Corp. II worth $450 million in proceeds.
Eisai’s cuts will affect 121 employees across the Japanese company’s U.S. operations, including 57 people at its American headquarters in Nutley, New Jersey. A company spokesperson said the pharma remains fully committed to the U.S. market.
The molecular glue space has attracted several Big Pharma players over the past few years, including Novo Nordisk, Pfizer and Novartis.
The search for a partner for zerlasiran is ongoing, according to Silence. In the meantime, the biotech will focus its resources on divesiran, which it is testing for polycythemia vera and other hematologic indications.
Mission Therapeutics is down to its clinical assets MTX652 and MTX325, which work by disabling a key enzyme that interferes with the cell’s normal process of removing faulty or dysfunctional mitochondria.
The licensing deal follows years of controversy for Cassava, as well as the high-profile late-stage failure of its Alzheimer’s disease drug simufilam.
While at SCOPE 2025, Sam Srivastava, CEO at WCG Clinical discusses the challenges and responsibilities of the life sciences industry in building public trust amidst growing anger towards healthcare.