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
Kodiak Sciences lost 47% of its stock market value on Monday after presenting top-line results from three Phase III studies of tarcocimab tedromer, an antibody biopolymer conjugate. 25 July 2023
The SGLT2 inhibitor drug Jardiance (empagliflozin), developed and marketed by family-owned German pharma major Boehringer Ingelheim and the USA’s Eli Lilly, has won approval from the European Commission for the new indication of chronic kidney disease (CKD). 25 July 2023
US biotech major Biogen today reported solid second quarter 2023 financial results, with top-line revenues of $2.46 billion that were down 5% (-3% at constant exchange rates) that beat consensus expectations of $2.38 billion. 25 July 2023
Shares in BioCardia, a developer of cellular and cell-derived therapeutics for the treatment of cardiovascular and pulmonary disease, closed nearly 50% lower on Monday. 25 July 2023
Japanese pharma major Astellas Pharma today announced a research collaboration and license agreement with Kanagawa-based biotech firm PeptiDream to discover novel protein degraders for two targets selected by Astellas. 25 July 2023
Germany-based STADA Arzneimittel and Sweden’s Xbrane Biopharma are considering options, including out-licensing, for their co-developed ranibizumab biosimilar candidate in North America. 25 July 2023
Shares of Denmark-based vaccine developer Bavarian Nordic plummeted 21% to 148.80 Danish kroner yesterday, after it said it was discontinuing its RSV program. 25 July 2023
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Ycanth (cantharidin), a drug/device for the topical treatment of molluscum contagiosum in adult and pediatric patients two years of age and older. 25 July 2023
Ahead of its second quarter financials due to be released on August 8, Germany’s Bayer adjusted its full-year outlook for 2023 downward on Monday, mainly due to a significant further decline in sales of glyphosate-based products (broad-spectrum herbicides). 25 July 2023
Ireland-headquartered Horizon Therapeutics’ shares were barely changed in morning trading today, despite the company announcing after hours on Friday that its Phase II clinical trial evaluating daxdilimab for the treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) did not show a statistically-significant separation between daxdilimab and placebo on the primary endpoint. 24 July 2023
Bicara Therapeutics, a biotech start-up founded in 2021 with the goal of developing dual-action biologics, has appointed David Raben as chief medical officer. 24 July 2023
California, USA-bas biotech Quince Therapeutics today announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire EryDel SpA, a privately-held, late-stage biotech company, in a stock-for-stock upfront exchange and potential downstream milestone cash payments. 24 July 2023
US antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) developer ImmunoGen today announced a multi-target license and option agreement to research novel, first-in-class ADCs with Canadian privately-held firm ImmunoBiochem Corp. 24 July 2023
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is working closely with Pfizer to assess the impact of the damage at its facility at Rocky Mount, North Carolina. 24 July 2023
Swiss pharma giant Roche has entered into a new partnership with USA-based Alnylam to develop and commercialize zilebesiran, the latter’s investigational RNAi therapeutic currently in Phase II for the treatment of hypertension. 24 July 2023
The US affiliate of Israel’s Teva Pharmaceutical Industries and Icelandic firm Alvotech have agreed to expand their existing strategic partnership agreement. Teva will also acquire subordinated convertible bonds to be issued by Alvotech. 24 July 2023
Obesity is one of the most urgent health challenges of our time. With more than half the global population estimated to be either overweight or living with obesity in the next twelve years and the cost of the condition is predicted to soar to $4.3 trillion, there is no question that innovative weight loss solutions will significantly contribute to the sustainability of the healthcare sector. 24 July 2023
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Cyfendus (anthrax vaccine adsorbed, adjuvanted), previously known as AV7909, developed by US biotech Emergent BioSolutions, whose shares closed up 8% on the news. 24 July 2023