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In addition to delivering two approved medicines to Biogen’s portfolio, the acquisition of Apellis Pharmaceuticals will support the future launch of the pharma’s own kidney disease asset, currently in multiple Phase 3 trials.
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The FDA has some big verdicts lined up in the second quarter, including one for a closely watched obesity drug that many anticipate will further intensify competition in weight loss.
Accumulating scientific evidence and industry interest from Eli Lilly, Altimmune and startup Baseline Therapeutics is driving further research on the therapeutic potential of GLP-1 receptor agonists in treating substance use disorders.
At the AD/PD annual meeting, Eisai presented real-world data suggesting Leqembi’s long-term safety and efficacy in people homozygous for APOE4, who were identified in trials as being at higher risk of brain bleeds while on the treatment. Alzheon, meanwhile, added further detail to trial results of its candidate in patients with the same genetic profile.
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While requests by government officials for anonymity when speaking to the media are nothing new, the practice attracts more scrutiny when the Department for Health and Human Services has pledged a commitment to “radical transparency.”
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As the FDA unveils a parade of initiatives aimed at accelerating drug development for rare diseases, experts appeal for a consistent approval process that will support and further catalyze momentum.
The R&D pipeline for depression therapies faced a demoralizing 2025 as five high-profile candidates, including KOR antagonists by Johnson & Johnson and Neumora Therapeutics, flunked late-stage clinical trials, underscoring the persistent challenges of CNS drug development.
Innovative outcome measures coupled with a focus on patient-centered clinical differentiation can help the biopharma industry make meaningful progress in the highly complex area of neuroscience.
Commissioner Marty Makary said that the FDA will soon start requiring only one pivotal trial, instead of two, for companies seeking approval for new drugs.
Hypersensitivity reactions in a mouse model prompted the agency to suspend Denali’s planned Phase I development for DNL952 for Pompe disease.
Praxis Precision Medicines has also announced a “successful” pre-NDA meeting with the FDA for its essential tremor drug candidate ulixacaltamide, for which an approval application is slated for early 2026.
Days after Johnson & Johnson’s posdinemab failed to slow clinical decline in patients with Alzheimer’s disease, Eisai Chief Clinical Officer Lynn Kramer expressed unwavering conviction in his company’s own anti-tau asset, while others suggest the Alzheimer’s field is heading in a completely different direction.
Investor optimism has waned as final minutes from uniQure’s pre-BLA meeting with the FDA convey that data from the company’s Phase I/II studies of AMT-130 are “unlikely” to provide the primary evidence to support a biologics license application.
Writing in separate editorials in two leading medical journals, former chiefs of federal scientific agencies issued warnings about the changes being proposed to vaccine frameworks by current officials.
The partnership will focus on Crescent’s PD-1/VEGF inhibitor CR-001 and Kelun-Biotech’s SKB105, both of which the companies plan to push into Phase I/II development for solid tumors early next year.