Zai Lab and Pfizer Inc. are teaming up in China to fight the deadly carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (CRAB) infection with novel antibacterial drug Xacduro (sulbactam-durlobactam). Through the collaboration, Zai Lab will leverage Pfizer’s commercial infrastructure in the anti-infective space to widen access to Xacduro in mainland China. Terms of the deal were not released.
The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) approved South Korea’s first denosumab (Prolia/Xgeva) biosimilars, developed by Celltrion Inc. under the brand names of Stoboclo/Osenvelt (CT-P41) for respective indications, a move the company hopes will help secure first-mover advantage for the drugs, currently under review in the U.S. and Europe.
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.
Radiopharmaceutical company Telix Pharmaceuticals Ltd. has inked a deal worth up to AU$264 million (US$171 million) to license and develop next-generation radiopharma imaging and therapy technology targeting fibroblast activation proteins found in a wide range of cancers.
China’s National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) has accepted Ascentage Pharma Group Corp. Ltd.’s NDA for its in-house-developed Bcl-2 selective inhibitor, lisaftoclax (APG-2575), which could be the first domestically approved Bcl-2 inhibitor in China and the second global approval.
The U.S. FDA issued a complete response letter Nov. 15 for Izervay’s (avacincaptad pegol intravitreal solution, ACP) supplemental NDA, which sought to include positive two-year data for the Astellas Pharma Inc. therapy, previously approved for use in a treatment for geographic atrophy secondary to age-related macular degeneration.
Endometriosis has been woefully under-recognized in the medical community, and consequently, the delay between onset and diagnosis is often quite long, with some women waiting up to 12 years for a diagnosis.
Keymed Biosciences Co. Ltd. is out-licensing global rights, excluding China, for its bispecific antibody, CM-336, to Platina Medicines Ltd. in a deal worth up to $626 million plus sales royalties.
As China rises to second place, next only to the U.S., for innovative new drugs, a new report by Clarivate – A Decade of Innovation, A Decade to Come – outlines key policy reforms and regulatory, R&D and investment trends driving past and future growth of Chinese biopharmaceuticals.
Gender bias in cardiac treatment guidelines is putting women at risk because guidelines are written based on clinical trials conducted mostly in men. As previously reported in BioWorld, nearly 70% of female patients are underdiagnosed for cardiovascular disease as women are grossly under-represented in clinical trials.