The accelerated clearance won by Johnson & Johnson (J&J) from the U.S. FDA for Talvey (talquetamab-tgvs) for relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma (r/r MM) in adults brings to the market the bispecific antibody that takes aim at G protein-coupled receptor class C group 5 member D, a target of interest to other developers as well.
Johnson & Johnson and its Janssen pharmaceutical companies added their name July 18 to the growing list of biopharma companies and organizations challenging the Inflation Reduction Act’s (IRA) mandated drug price negotiations.
With the biggest biosimilar launch in the U.S. just days away, Humira’s (adalimumab) record-breaking ride is quickly slowing down, but the Abbvie Inc. mega-blockbuster immunology drug is nowhere near the end of its road. Meanwhile, the U.S. journey is just beginning for the eight adalimumab biosimilars that could come to market as early as July 1 through licensing agreements with Abbvie. Besides revving their engines against Humira, the new launches will be looking to overtake Amgen Inc.’s biosimilar, Amjevita, which got a five-month headstart in the U.S., thanks to the first-mover status Amgen earned for being the first to sign a licensing agreement with Abbvie.
The FDA gave the greenlight to Route 92 Medical Inc. for its Freeclimb 70 reperfusion system in the treatment of ischemic stroke. The 510(k) clearance includes a Freeclimb 70 aspiration catheter, as well as a Tenzing 7 delivery catheter.
Acetaminophen (APAP) is a very common nonprescription analgesic, harmless at low doses, that can cause acute liver injury and even death from acute liver failure when overdosed. The temporal course of acetaminophen overdose-induced liver injury (AILI) can be depicted in two stages – injury and recovery.
Johnson & Johnson’s Biosense Webster division reported that its Qdot Micro diagnostic and ablation deflectable tip catheter secured approval for marketing in China from the National Medical Products Administration where options for treating arrhythmias are seeing growing demand. A radiofrequency (RF) ablation catheter, Qdot Micro reduced total ablation procedure time by nearly 90 minutes.
Rapport Therapeutics Inc. launched with $100 million in series A funding and ambitious plans to bring a hitherto unprecedented level of precision to therapies for neurological disease. Although the Boston-based company is new to the world, its underlying platform has been a decade in the making, and it already has one clinical-stage asset, which is in development for seizure disorders. It is currently undergoing a phase I trial.
As several key revenue-driving products fall off patent in coming years, pharmaceutical companies are increasingly focused on mechanisms by which they can draw innovation to them. What launched as the Partner of Choice organization, for example, has now become the newly named Pfizer Ignite model – an end-to-end engine designed to bring innovation to the pharmaceutical company in return for services.
For Aqemia SA, the year got off to a good start, as one of its pharma partners, Les Laboratoires Servier SAS, extended an existing collaboration to drug a supposedly undruggable immuno-oncology target, using its Launchpad artificial intelligence platform.
The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to grant cert for a petition filed by Johnson & Johnson on behalf of its Ethicon subsidiary to review a case in California that will cost the company more than $300 million. The outcome highlights the differential hazards of advertising and promotion in various U.S. states, with California state law allowing fines of up to $2,500 for each violation of state law, an amount that can quickly tally into the hundreds of millions.
