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Tristan Manalac

Tristan Manalac

Senior Staff Writer

Tristan is BioSpace‘s senior staff writer. Based in Metro Manila, Tristan has more than eight years of experience writing about medicine, biotech and science. Being formally trained in molecular biology, he once dreamed of collecting degrees and starting his own lab. But these days, he finds his greatest joy in a bottle of beer and a beautiful sentence. He can be reached at tristan.manalac@biospace.com, tristan@tristanmanalac.com or on LinkedIn.

Facade of Novo Nordisk's office in Fremont, California
Business
Novo Deepens Obesity, MASH Expertise in Deals Worth $1B with Two Flagship Biotechs
Novo Nordisk’s partnerships with Flagship Pioneering-backed Omega and Cellarity, each worth up to $532 million, will explore novel treatment approaches to obesity and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis.
January 4, 2024
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: Pfizer office in Brussels, Belgium/iStoc
Policy
Pfizer’s Hemophilia B Gene Therapy Wins Approval in Canada, FDA Decision Looms
With a PDUFA date in the second quarter of 2024, Pfizer is poised to compete with CSL Behring, whose Hemgenix became the first FDA-approved gene therapy for hemophilia B in November 2022.
January 4, 2024
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: CVS Health's signage outside its office in Texas
CVS to Remove AbbVie’s Humira from Reimbursement Lists, Cover Biosimilars
The pharmacy benefit management subsidiary of CVS Health is favoring Humira’s biosimilars for its major formularies, with AbbVie’s branded product to be nixed on April 1, 2024.
January 4, 2024
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3 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: Boehringer Ingelheim's office in California
Business
Boehringer Inks Potential $2B Deal with Ribo, Targets NASH-MASH with siRNA Therapies
In a collaboration agreement announced Wednesday, Boehringer Ingelheim will gain access to Ribo’s platform to target hepatocytes with investigational siRNA therapies for nonalcoholic or metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis.
January 3, 2024
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: FDA signage at its office in Washington, DC
FDA
FDA Approvals Jumped 50% in 2023 Dominated by Novel Drug Nods for Pfizer
The regulator greenlit 55 new drugs last year, seven of which belonged to Pfizer, including an ulcerative colitis treatment and a migraine nasal spray—both acquired in multibillion-dollar buys.
January 3, 2024
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: Bar and line graphs showing increasing t
Drug Development
Longboard Stock Skyrockets on Positive Epilepsy Data, Plans $150M Public Offering
Patients treated with Longboard Pharmaceuticals’ bexicaserin saw a 32.5% drop in the frequency of countable motor seizures relative to placebo in a Phase 1b/IIa study. The company’s shares soared 316% Tuesday on the news.
January 3, 2024
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: Facade of Novartis building in Switzerland
Business
Novartis Inks Potential $1.3B Gene Therapy Deal with Voyager to Target Neuro
The Swiss pharma is looking to leverage Voyager Therapeutics’ capsid technology for gene therapies aimed at treating Huntington’s disease and spinal muscular atrophy.
January 2, 2024
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: Businessmen shaking hands after closing a deal
Deals
Biopharma Closes 2023 with Flurry of M&A Activity from AstraZeneca, BMS, Roche
All three companies closed out the year, which saw significant growth in mergers and acquisitions, with high-value deals that could potentially set the tone for M&A in 2024.
January 2, 2024
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: Medicines on dollar bills/iStock, Julia_
Pfizer, Sanofi, Takeda Look to Hike Drug Prices This Month: Reuters
Amid the Biden administration’s efforts to reduce drug prices, Reuters reported in an exclusive that several pharmaceutical companies will raise pharma prices in January 2024.
January 2, 2024
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: BMS sign on a building in San Diego, California/iStock, JHVEPhoto
Deals
BMS Closes the Year with $14B Karuna Buy to Bolster Neuro Portfolio
The acquisition announced on Friday will give Bristol Myers Squibb ownership of Karuna Therapeutics’ investigational antipsychotic KarXT, which is being tested for schizophrenia and Alzheimer’s disease psychosis.
December 22, 2023
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: Man sitting on a bed looking stressed
Drug Development
Jazz’s Future in PTSD Left Uncertain Following Mid-Stage Trial Failure
In a Phase II study, Jazz Pharmaceuticals’ investigational fatty acid amide hydrolase inhibitor JZP150 did not significantly improve post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms compared to placebo.
December 22, 2023
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
AstraZeneca's sign on its office in California
FDA
AstraZeneca, Ionis Get FDA Approval for hATTR-PN Therapy
Wainua, which is jointly developed and commercialized by AstraZeneca and Ionis Pharmaceuticals, was given the FDA’s green light on Thursday and will now compete with Alnylam’s two approved hATTR-PN therapies.
December 22, 2023
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Merck Research Laboratories in South San Francisco, California
Policy
Merck’s Chronic Cough Drug Fails to Secure FDA Approval for Second Time
The regulator’s Complete Response Letter on Wednesday said Merck’s data package for gefapixant “did not meet substantial evidence of effectiveness.” The FDA also rejected the drug in 2022 due to a lack of efficacy evidence.
December 21, 2023
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Facade of the FDA's office in Maryland
FDA
Calliditas Therapeutics Nabs Full FDA Approval for IgAN Therapy Tarpeyo
The oral formulation of budesonide, marketed as Tarpeyo, is the only FDA-approved therapy that significantly reduces the loss of kidney function in immunoglobulin A nephropathy patients.
December 21, 2023
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Illustration showing a downward graph trend
Drug Development
Argenx Nixes Efgartigimod’s Development in Pemphigus After Phase III Flop
Argenx’s subcutaneous Fc receptor blocker efgartigimod was unable to induce a significantly higher rate of complete remission than placebo in the skin autoimmune disease. The company’s stock plummeted in response to the news.
December 20, 2023
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
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