LONDON – Curevac NV blamed the high number of circulating SARS-CoV-2 variants after its COVID-19 vaccine failed to meet the primary endpoint in the interim analysis of the phase IIb/III trial. The vaccine, Cvncov, was only 47% effective in preventing COVID-19 infections in the 40,000-person study.
While phase I-III clinical trial data continue to rise above the same timeframe in 2020, the gap is closing and a smaller percentage of this year’s reports are focused on the COVID-19 pandemic.
LONDON – Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc.’s antibody cocktail, Regen-Cov, has been shown to significantly reduce mortality in seriously ill hospitalized COVID-19 patients who have failed to mount their own immune response against the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Among these seronegative patients, the casirivimab/imdevimab monoclonal antibody mixture reduced deaths by 20% (p=0.001) in the U.K. Recovery trial.
There’s been a mixed bag of data from Astrazeneca plc’s efforts against COVID-19, after data suggested Pfizer Inc.’s rival vaccine is more effective against the Delta variant and the failure of a trial involving its long-acting antibody therapy.
Biogen Inc. has announced contrasting results from phase III trials of therapies for a rare eye disease and depression, following last week’s controversial FDA approval of Alzheimer’s drug Aduhelm. The Cambridge, Mass.-based firm said a phase III gene therapy study in the rare retinal disease choroideremia missed its primary and secondary endpoints, although the news was better from a potential therapy for major depressive disorder.
LONDON – The Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 originally identified in India is causing more serious illness and reducing the effectiveness of vaccines compared to the Alpha (Kent) variant, according to a nationwide study covering Scotland’s whole population of 5.4 million.
Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen Cilag Ltd. pharma unit has phase III data from its project combining the oral blood cancer drug Imbruvica (ibrutinib) with its blockbuster rival, Venclexta (venetoclax), in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), which could give it an edge over competitors in the space.
Rapt Therapeutics Inc. CEO Brian Wong said RPT-193 monotherapy in atopic dermatitis (AD) “looks really promising, but there’s still quite a bit to learn” about the small molecule, designed to inhibit the migration of Th2 cells into inflamed tissues by blocking CCR4. Investors saw enough to push the shares of South San Francisco-based Rapt up 115.5%, or $21.45, to close at $40.02, after trading as high as $41.99 during the day.
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