The U.S. SEC adopted final amendments Dec. 2 to its rules implementing 2020’s Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act.

Due to COVID-19, diagnostics are in the limelight, and public and private investors are watching how the pandemic may impact the in vitro diagnostics (IVD) market in the future. As the sector receives an influx of investment, companies will be in strong positions to expand their portfolios. So, with 2022 around the corner – what are the investment trends to watch?

Far from the Groundhog Day spectacle of amyloid-targeting antibodies that do little to nothing for patients in trial after trial, researchers have reported success in reducing the risk of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) in unexpected ways. Researchers at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation have discovered that a Viagra prescription was associated with a roughly 70% reduced risk of being diagnosed with AD. And investigators from the University of Washington reported that in the prospective Adult Changes in Thought study, a long-term study into risk and protective factors for dementia, persons who underwent cataract surgery reduced their risk of AD by 30%, an effect that lasted for 10 years after surgery.

John Klein, the former CEO and majority shareholder of a New Jersey-based pharmaceutical company, was charged Dec. 6 with one count of wire fraud involving the alleged embezzlement of millions of dollars from the unnamed company.

In the Dec. 3, 2021, issue of Science, researchers reported that a missense variant that is highly enriched in the Amish population was associated with reduced levels of both LDL cholesterol and fibrinogen. To date, very few variants have been identified that affect more than one risk factor for cardiovascular disease.

With the $2 trillion Build Back Better spending bill held up in the U.S. Senate, President Joe Biden took to his public microphone Dec. 6 to call on senators to pass the bill that will permit Medicare negotiation of certain prescription drug prices, impose an excise tax on drug companies that raise the price of their products beyond inflation and set a monthly cap on cost-sharing for insulin.

The U.S. SEC adopted final amendments Dec. 2 to its rules implementing 2020’s Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act.

The emergence of the Omicron variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus has sparked a vigorous reaction around the globe, which in the U.S. includes steps taken by the Biden administration to ensure that the roughly 100 million people who have received an initial vaccination regime will receive a booster if eligible. The administration also reported Dec. 2 that it will take steps to ensure that home testing will be covered by private payers, all of which amounts to a massive boost in business for manufacturers of vaccines and tests despite concerns about how the Omicron variant might affect vaccine and test performance.