The UK’s new 2024 voluntary scheme for branded medicines pricing, access, and growth (VPAG) came into force at the beginning of January this year. 4 October 2024
GigaGen has been awarded a contract by the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), part of the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR) within the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). 4 October 2024
Oxford, UK-based Enara Bio today announces the closing of a $32.5 million Series B financing supported by a strong syndicate of new and existing biotech investors. 3 October 2024
French drugmaker Mitem Pharmavhas the worldwide acquisition of Desferal (deferoxamine), a major MITM in hematology, from Swiss giant Novartis. 25 September 2024
The Austrian Academy of Sciences (OeAW) is further expanding its focus on life sciences by opening an institute for biomedical artificial intelligence (AI) based on a 150 million euros ($166.8 million) funding from the German non-profit Boehringer Ingelheim Foundation (BIS). 18 September 2024
Zenas BioPharma announced the pricing of its upsized initial public offering of 13,235,294 shares of its common stock at an initial public offering price of $17.00 per share. 13 September 2024
US pharma major Eli Lilly and Egyptian firm EVA Pharma have entered into an agreement to expand access to Olumiant (baricitinib) to an estimated 20,000 people in 49 low- to middle-income countries in Africa by 2030. 6 September 2024
Novartis is building two new radioligand therapy (RLT) manufacturing facilities in the USA to enhance its supply chain for cancer treatments. This move supports the growing use of RLTs, a form of precision medicine that targets tumors with radiation. 6 September 2024
Belgium’s largest drugmaker UCB announced a strategic divestment deal in China, underscoring its strategic shift towards innovation and partnership in one of the world’s fastest-growing pharmaceutical markets. 27 August 2024
The UK’s largest pharma company AstraZeneca has rejected claims that it is moving its vaccine operations to the USA, according to media reports. 23 August 2024
Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma announced the termination of its exclusive sales rights agreements with AnGes for the HGF gene therapy product, Collategene (beperminogene perplasmid) intramuscular injection targeting peripheral arterial diseases in Japan and the USA. 23 August 2024
UK pharma major AstraZeneca has become the only current UK-lis¬ted company to reach a £200 billion ($256.4 billion) valuation, the Financial Times reported today, noting that it is a vindication of the company’s bet on developing a leading portfolio of cancer drugs. 14 August 2024
Japan’s Eisai and US biotech Biogen today revealed that the Ministry of Health and Prevention in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has approved Leqembi (lecanemab) for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). 14 August 2024
US pharma giant Pfizer has announced the publication of real-world results from a cohort of the longitudinal, observational Phase IV THAOS (Transthyretin Amyloidosis Outcomes Survey) study in the Journal of Cardiac Failure. 8 August 2024
Japanese drugmaker Shionogi says that its New Drug Application (NDA) for cefiderocol has been accepted for review by the Center for Drug Evaluation, National Medical Products Administration (NMPA). 5 August 2024
Germany’s Bayer has submitted to the US Food and Drug Administration for approval to market elinzanetant for moderate to severe vasomotor symptoms (VMS), commonly known as hot flashes, associated with menopause. 2 August 2024
UCB has won two approvals from the US Food and Drug Administration, one for a new first-in-class rare disease med and another, for Bimzelx (bimekizumab-bkzx), bringing a new option for Americans with plaque psoriasis. 18 October 2023
Sanofi has presented new data from its Phase III program for Tzield (teplizumab-mzwv) at the 49th Annual ISPAD Conference, in The Netherlands. 18 October 2023
Shares USA-based clinical-stage biotech Evelo Biosciences plummeted 59% to $1.20 yesterday, as it announced disappointing top-line results from its Phase II clinical study with EDP2939 in moderate psoriasis. 18 October 2023
Japanese drugmaker Takeda has announced that the Phase III ADMIRE-CD II study of Alofisel (darvadstrocel) in complex Crohn’s perianal fistulas (CPF) failed to meet its primary endpoint of combined remission at 24 weeks, based on topline data. 18 October 2023
A firm in Massachusetts, USA, has won approval for a new kind of medicine, a phosphate absorption blocker, which will be used to treat certain people with chronic kidney disease (CKD). 18 October 2023
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved US pharma giant Merck & Co’s leading checkpoint blocker Keytruda (pembrolizumab) for the treatment of patients with resectable non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). 18 October 2023
The first generic version of the popular drug for controlling glucose levels, Ozempic (semaglutide), which is produced by the Danish diabetes care giant Novo Nordisk, has been registered in Russia by a local drugmaker, the Pharma Letter’s local correspondent reports. 18 October 2023
October marks the annual Rett Syndrome Awareness Month, a time to examine the support and research being afforded to advance pharmacological treatments for this rare condition. 18 October 2023
Despite statements from international pharmaceutical companies about the suspension of new clinical trials in Russia after February 24, 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the Anglo-Swedish drug major AstraZeneca will conduct a study of a new drug for the prevention of COVID-19 in Russia, reports The Pharma Letter’s local correspondent. 18 October 2023
US antiviral-focused biotech Assembly Biosciences saw its share price rocket nearly 95% to $1.42, on news of a research collaboration with Gilead Sciences. 17 October 2023
Spanish genetic medicines company SpliceBio has signed an exclusive collaboration and licensing agreement with Spark Therapeutics, which was acquired by Swiss pharma giant Roche in a $4.8 billion deal in 2020, to utilize SpliceBio’s proprietary Protein Splicing platform to develop a gene therapy for an undisclosed inherited retinal disease. 17 October 2023
A formal disclosure from Aldeyra Therapeutics, suggesting a potential rejection from the US Food and Drug Administration, has stripped around 70% from the firm’s share price. 17 October 2023
In what the company said was a big day for Monte Rosa Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotech company developing novel molecular glue degrader (MGD)-based medicines, the company announced two major milestones. 17 October 2023
Chicago, USA-based artificial intelligence and antibody specialist SparX Biopharmaceutical is to embark on a new strategic collaboration with Arovella Therapeutics. 17 October 2023
Israeli drugmaker Teva Pharmaceutical Industries has announced that data from the UNITE study presented at the World Congress of Neurology in Montreal, Canada, show that Ajovy (fremanezumab) reduced migraine attacks and depression symptoms in migraine patients with major depressive disorder. 17 October 2023
Seattle, USA-based biotech Omeros Corporation saw its shares plummet as much as 58% to an all-time low of $0.92 yesterday, after it said it will discontinue development of an experimental therapy to treat a type of kidney disease after a late-stage study failure. 17 October 2023
Analysis of American prescribing trends made available by health tech pioneer DrFirst show a six-fold increase in prescriptions written for popular weight loss drug Wegovy (semaglutide) between December 2022 and June 2023. 17 October 2023