News
Biogen’s new data, presented at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference, supports a tau-focused approach to the intractable neurodegenerative disease; psychedelics are back in the news with more positive data from Compass Pathways and final guidance from the FDA; and the ATTR-CM space got a major shakeup with the late-stage failure of AstraZeneca and Ionis’ antisense therapeutic.
FEATURED STORIES
Biopharma is entering its second-quarter earnings season riding high on a wave of massive deals and venture capital flow, plus a clearing of regulatory and policy overhangs. What can industry watchers expect to hear on the upcoming investor calls?
Biogen touted an “unprecedented” drop in tau in a Phase 2 trial, backing the company’s decision to take diranersen to Phase 3 despite a missed primary endpoint and seemingly supporting the anti-tau approach.
As antibody-drug conjugates advance and move into earlier lines of treatment, drug developers have to build gentler therapies that don’t just extend survival but improve it.
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Congressional letters sent to the CEOs of Eli Lilly, Pfizer, Merck, BMS and AbbVie this week voicing concerns about the pharmas’ clinical trials in China highlight an ongoing discrepancy in how government and industry think about the rise of the Asian country’s biotech industry.
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Novartis is paying $925 million upfront to acquire Anthos Therapeutics, whose launch the pharma backed in February 2019.
Following an initial report from Reuters, Merck KGaA confirmed that it is in talks with SpringWorks for a potential acquisition, though details of its offer have yet to be revealed.
Eli Lilly inked two collaborations on Monday, one focused on cardiometabolic diseases with South Korea’s OliX Pharmaceuticals and another for cancer therapies with Australia’s AdvanCell.
Vertex expects to make the newly approved non-opioid pain medicine Journavx available by the end of February.
Nerandomilast, an oral phosphodiesterase 4B inhibitor, hit the primary endpoint in a Phase III trial in progressive pulmonary fibrosis—nearly six months after achieving a similar feat in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. Boehringer plans to submit for FDA and other global approvals in both indications.
The intravenous antibiotic Emblaveo, a combination of aztreonam and avibactam approved in Europe last year, was developed in partnership with Pfizer. AbbVie acquired its share of the asset as part of its $63 billion buyout of Allergan.
Adding a new indication for the CAR T cell therapy could help BMS offset the loss-of-exclusivity headwinds it faces in the coming years.
The carve-out acquisition will allow Bain to capitalize on the “promising signs for growth” in the Japanese life sciences market, recently revitalized by more industry-friendly policy changes from the government.
It is unclear why an independent data safety monitoring board recommended the suspension of Pliant’s Phase IIb/III BEACON-IPF study in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.
AceLink is advancing a small-molecule treatment option for Fabry disease that could provide a more convenient alternative to the current enzyme replacement therapy standard.