In an effort to increase global access to COVID-19 technologies, the World Health Organization’s COVID-19 Technology Access Pool and the Medicines Patent Pool finalized a licensing agreement May 12 with the U.S. NIH for research tools, early stage vaccines and diagnostics.
Computational disease modeling company Cytoreason Ltd. is expanding its reach into Asia with a recent partnership with South Korean big data company Helixrus Inc., which is focused on biological big data and multiomics. The alliance will focus on leveraging Helixrus’ deep knowledge of the South Korean pharmaceutical market, and extensive network of relationships in Asian markets, to highlight Cytoreason’s capabilities in prioritizing new targets, finding biomarkers, profiling combinations, stratifying patients and other use cases within the drug lifecycle.
Perkinelmer Inc. said the Vega is a first-of-its-kind preclinical ultrasound system that will accelerate preclinical research and drug development studies of cancer, cardiovascular, liver, kidney and other diseases. The imaging platform combines hands-free automation with high-throughput capability, which the company said is a major advance over manual ultrasound scanning across the bodies of individual lab mice.
Quris Technologies Ltd. has inked an agreement with Merck KGaA to assess its BioAI safety prediction platform. The partnership will compare the Quris’ artificial intelligence (AI)-based platform with traditional in vivo and in vitro approaches of evaluating drug safety concerns.
Russia’s Ministry of Health is looking to extend its role on the global stage. Over the next few months, the ministry, along with other regulatory agencies in Russia, said it plans to start the accreditation process of coming into compliance with World Health Organization (WHO) standards.
Russia’s Ministry of Health is looking to extend its role on the global stage. Over the next few months, the ministry, along with other regulatory agencies in Russia, said it plans to start the accreditation process of coming into compliance with World Health Organization (WHO) standards.
The U.S. FDA’s emergency use authorization for two oral antivirals to be used to treat individuals at high risk of progressing to severe disease is just one hurdle cleared, as Pfizer Inc.’s Paxlovid and Merck & Co. Inc.-Ridgeback Biotherapeutics Inc.’s molnupiravir still have many more laps to run.
There are many companies using artificial intelligence to aid drug development, with a seemingly overwhelming number of “world firsts” being claimed in this quickly evolving field. After signing a three-year neurology drug development deal with Eli Lilly and Co. worth up to $706 million in July, Verge Genomics is also making waves and just raised $98 million in series B financing to support development of its own AI drug development technology.
Cansino Biologics Inc. has entered a development and commercial supply partnership with Aerogen Ltd. for an inhalable version of its COVID-19 vaccine, Convidecia, also known as Ad5-nCoV. Cansino will combine Convidecia with Aerogen’s vibrating mesh aerosol drug delivery technology to produce a consistent droplet size for optimal lung deposition.
With 2021 coming to a close in just a few weeks, the U.S. FDA is racing to release the guidances it planned to get out the door this year. The regulator issued two draft guidances Dec. 7 detailing key clinical and production considerations to support applications for “N of 1,” or single-subject, clinical trials and drug development programs for severely debilitating or life-threatening diseases.
