Gruenenthal GmbH has patented new cis-8-(3,5-difluorophenyl)-8-(dimethylamino)-1,3-diazaspiro[4.5]decan-2-one derivatives acting as nociceptin receptor (OPRL1; KOR3; ORL1) agonists and thus reported to be useful for the treatment of pain.

China’s drug regulator approved Alpha Biopharma Ltd.’s EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI), Zorifer (zorifertinib hydrochloride tablets; AZD-3759), as a first-line treatment for EGFR-mutated non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with brain metastases.

Rising from a $51 million series A round a year ago to a $1.1 billion acquisition, Kate Therapeutics Inc. has stepped under the umbrella of Novartis AG, which gains preclinical adeno-associated virus-based gene therapies for neuromuscular diseases.

The bad news keeps piling up for Sage Therapeutics Inc. Having absorbed other study stumbles in the past few months, the company now has halted development of dalzanemdor in treating Huntington’s disease after top-line phase II data showed it missed a statistically significant difference compared to placebo on the primary endpoint.

Aeovian Pharmaceuticals Inc. has prepared tricyclic fused imidazole compounds acting as ADP-ribosyl cyclase/cyclic ADP-ribose hydrolase 1 (CD38) inhibitors reported to be useful for the treatment of neurodegeneration, inflammation, fibrosis, systemic scleroderma and more.

Sangamo Therapeutics Inc. has received IND clearance from the FDA for ST-503, an investigational epigenetic regulator for the treatment of intractable pain due to idiopathic small fiber neuropathy (iSFN).

Verge Analytics Inc. (dba Verge Genomics) has prepared and tested new hydrazone and pyrazole 3H-imidazo(4,5-b)pyridine compounds acting as 1-phosphatidylinositol 3-phosphate 5-kinase (PIKfyve) inhibitors.