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Tristan Manalac

Tristan Manalac

Contributing Writer | News

Tristan is an independent science writer based in Metro Manila, with 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.

Deals
Alcon Strengthens Foothold in Eye Space with $770M Aerie Buy
Alcon announced it is buying out Aerie Pharmaceuticals for about $770 million to gain access to the ophthalmic pharma firm’s open-angle glaucoma and ocular hypertension treatments.
August 23, 2022
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Yichuan Cao/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Business
Elon’s Plan B: Musk Reportedly Explores Synchron Investment
Elon Musk has reportedly gotten in touch with Synchron, a company developing a brain-computer interface (BCI) device, to explore potential investment opportunities, according to a report by Reuters.
August 23, 2022
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Courtesy of Sundry Photography/Getty Images
Gilead Scores First Approval for Twice-Yearly HIV Drug in Latest Advance
Gilead’s regulatory win could open the doors for patients with complicated medication histories and for whom viral suppression regimens have become difficult to create.
August 22, 2022
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Drug Development
Lundbeck’s Migraine Drug Hits Roadblock in Phase III
Lundbeck revealed that its migraine drug Vyepti failed to demonstrate statistical superiority over placebo at reducing the number of monthly migraine days.
August 19, 2022
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Courtesy of Genuv Inc.
Drug Development
Genuv Repurposes Novartis’ Cancer Drug to Treat Alzheimer’s - Updated
South Korea-based Genuv Inc. announced the publication of a preclinical study showing the potential of Mekinist, approved by the FDA for melanoma, in Alzheimer’s disease.
August 18, 2022
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3 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Monkey pox vesicles in a hand
Policy
Bavarian Nordic Seeks Help as Monkeypox Vaccine Supply Line Crumbles
Cases of monkeypox are growing at an alarming rate and Bavarian Nordic, the company that owns one of the two approved vaccines, may no longer be able to keep up.
August 18, 2022
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Policy
In Historic Ruling, FDA Allows Sale of Over-the-Counter Hearing Aids
The FDA expects to foster innovation and competition among manufacturers, which would lower the prices of hearing aids without compromising their quality.
August 17, 2022
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Courtesy of nitpicker/Getty Images
Drug Development
Phase III Flop Ends Sanofi’s SERD Breast Cancer Candidate
All other ongoing and pending studies of Sanofi’s amcenestrant, including the early-stage breast cancer trial AMEERA-6, will also be discontinued.
August 17, 2022
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3 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Sarah Silbiger/Getty Images
Policy
FDA Clock Starts for AstraZeneca and Merck in Prostate Cancer, Roche in DLBCL
The FDA has accepted the sNDA for AstraZeneca and Merck’s Lynparza and the sBLA for Genentech (Roche)'s for Polivy in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.
August 16, 2022
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3 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Courtesy Taljat David/Getty Images
Drug Development
Novartis’ Canakinumab Flunks Another Phase III NSCLC Trial
Novartis released results from the Phase III CANOPY-A trial, showing that its canakinumab candidate failed to meet its primary efficacy endpoint in adult NSCLC patients.
August 15, 2022
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3 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Study: Implantable Corneas from Pig Skin Restore Vision to Blind
In a small pilot study, the implants were able to restore corneal thickness and curvature to normal levels, and vision outcomes were as good as if human-donated corneas had been used.
August 12, 2022
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Terazosin shows top line results in ALS treatment.
FDA-Approved Hypertension Drug Shows Promise in ALS
Scientists from the University of Edinburgh have shown that Terazosin approved for high blood pressure and prostate enlargement could be repurposed for another unlikely indication: ALS.
August 12, 2022
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3 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: Stop sign in front of FDA headquarters/S
Drug Development
FDA Wants More Answers Before Releasing Clinical Hold on MaaT’s GvHD Drug MaaT013
MaaT Pharma announced that the U.S. FDA has maintained the clinical hold on MaaT013, its candidate for patients with steroid-resistant acute graft-versus-host disease.
August 11, 2022
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Katherine Welles
Policy
Merck’s Blockbuster Diabetes Drug Sitagliptin Found Contaminated with Potential Carcinogen
The FDA will still allow continued distribution of sitagliptin containing NTTP with an acceptable intake limit of 37 ng per day and up to 246.7 ng per day.
August 10, 2022
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3 min read
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Tristan Manalac
MIT Makes Possible Breakthrough in Enabling Implantable Insulin Device
If established as safe and effective in humans, this technology could prove transformative in treating many diseases, such as diabetes.
August 10, 2022
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3 min read
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Tristan Manalac
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