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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.

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Neuroscience
Centessa’s Narcolepsy Drug Shows ‘Compelling’ Effect in Early Study
Analysts at BMO Capital Markets said Centessa’s orexin receptor agonist has “best-in-class” potential for narcolepsy, putting the company in a strong position in the $15 billion market.
April 7, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Accumulated problems, contradictions. Dead end, we need to go back. You cannot continue further. Complete impossibility to continue. Rejection of an idea. Hard sanctions. Fatal error.
Immunology and inflammation
Aldeyra Shares Crash as Dry Eye Drug Gets Second Rejection from FDA
The FDA has asked for another well-controlled trial to establish the efficacy of reproxalap in dry eye disease.
April 4, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
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Government
FDA Faces ‘Catastrophic Collapse’ as Massive Layoffs Endanger User Fee Program
The FDA derives just under half of its yearly funding from pharma user fees, which help support its operations and fund employee salaries. An analysis from AgencyIQ suggests that the agency is dangerously close to losing it all.
April 4, 2025
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3 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Amgen sign at its headquarters in Thousand Oaks, California, USA.
Approvals
Amgen Wins Expansion for Uplizna as First Drug for IgG4-Related Disease
In the Phase III MITIGATE trial, Uplizna cut IgG4-related disease flares by 87% versus placebo.
April 4, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
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Gene therapy
Lilly Throws Sangamo a Lifeline With Pact Worth Potential $1.4B+
Sangamo, which has been having cash problems, will receive $18 million upfront in licensing fees for its AAV capsid that in preclinical studies has shown the ability to cross the blood-brain barrier.
April 4, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
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Pipeline
BeiGene Scraps TIGIT Candidate After Underwhelming Lung Cancer Data
An independent data monitoring board found that BeiGene’s ociperlimab was unlikely to significantly boost overall survival in patients with untreated NSCLC.
April 3, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Medical 2D illustration
FDA
FDA Misses Review Deadline for Novavax’s COVID-19 Shot, Days After Marks’ Resignation
The FDA was scheduled to release its decision on Novavax’s updated, protein-based COVID-19 vaccine on April 1, but the agency’s principal deputy commissioner intervened.
April 3, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Government
Trump Tariffs Miss Pharma For Now, But Uncertainties Loom
Pharma’s reprieve from Donald Trump’s tariffs is expected to be temporary, with Leerink analysts anticipating possible sector-specific duties “in the next month or so.”
April 3, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
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Government
Drugmakers Ask Trump for Staggered Tariffs as ‘Liberation Day’ Arrives
Trump has repeatedly called April 2 “Liberation Day,” alluding to a more sweeping and aggressive set of tariffs. Leerink Partners analysts said that the risks from Trump’s tariffs on the biopharma industry are “underappreciated.”
April 2, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: J&J's building in Switzerland
Legal
J&J Pulls $7B Commitment as Court Swats Final Talc Settlement Plan
Johnson & Johnson will not appeal the dismissal of its bankruptcy proposal.
April 2, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
A woman's hand holding a scale.
Government
Democrats Push Back on Trump Health Cuts With Lawsuits and Longest Ever Senate Speech
Nearly two dozen states on Tuesday sued the Department of Health and Human Services over a planned $11 billion funding cut for public health projects while New Jersey Senator Cory Booker spoke for 25 hours in protest of Trump administration policies.
April 2, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Cardiovascular disease
Merck’s Winrevair Cuts Morbidity, Mortality Risk by Over 75% in Phase III PAH Study
Merck continues to build the case for the pulmonary arterial hypertension drug that won FDA approval in 2024.
April 1, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
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Funding
AIRNA Hits $155M Series B Haul To Advance RNA Editor for Rare Genetic Disease
AIRNA’s lead candidate AIR-001 works by correcting the most common pathologic mutation driving the rare disease alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency.
April 1, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Robert F Kennedy Jr speaking at the White House
Government
Calls To End Kennedy’s Leadership Follow Marks’ Abrupt Exit
Analysts at financial firm Cantor Fitzgerald are urging President Donald Trump to rethink his appointment of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Secretary of Health and Human Services.
April 1, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
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Layoffs
Tenaya Slashes a Third of Workforce To Fund Development of Cardio Gene Therapies
The layoffs will take place throughout 2025 and will mostly affect Tenaya’s research and manufacturing operations. The company is continuing to test its hypertrophic cardiomyopathy gene therapy.
April 1, 2025
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
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