The process of discovery is resource-consuming in any type of litigation, but this is especially the case for patent litigation due to the exceptional importance of attorney-client privilege in patent prosecution. However, a U.S. judicial advisory committee is considering a rewrite of the rules to ease some of this burden in a move that could cut both the expense and time consumed by patent litigation, a development that is sure to draw cheers from across the spectrum of innovators in the life sciences.
The U.S. FDA is in the midst of a shake-up of several major offices, including the Office of Regulatory Affairs, but its commissioner, Robert Califf, believes there are even greater issues faced by the agency. Califf said during an Aug. 22 public forum that prices for generic drugs are too low to encourage manufacturers to continue to produce these products, adding that the issue is sufficiently severe to constitute a national security risk.
The impact of a black box warning on Neurocrine Biosciences Inc.’s expanded U.S. label for Ingrezza (valbenazine) to treat chorea associated with Huntington’s disease (HD) appears up for debate, following FDA approval late Aug. 18. But analysts agree that it is unlikely to affect sales of the VMAT2 inhibitor in tardive dyskinesia, for which the company recently raised 2023 guidance as high as $1.82 billion.
On the heels of the U.S. FDA clearance for Veopoz (pozelimab-bbfg) from Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. to treat Chaple disease, the regulatory rollercoaster ride for the firm’s bid with higher-dose Eylea (aflibercept) ended with a green light for that compound as well. Eylea HD is indicated for wet age-related macular degeneration, diabetic macular edema, and diabetic retinopathy.
Regulatory snapshots, including global drug submissions and approvals, clinical trial approvals and other regulatory decisions and designations: Astellas, Astrazeneca, Calliditas, Can-Fite, Infex, Iveric,
Janssen, Leo.
The U.S. FDA has approved its second treatment for an ultra-rare disease in the past three days by greenlighting Veopoz (pozelimab-bbfg) from Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. Approval of the priority BLA for Veopoz, a fully human monoclonal antibody to treat Chaple disease, was announced two days ahead of its Aug. 20 PDUFA date. It is the only FDA-approved therapy for the indication.
Drug approvals by the U.S. FDA increased 20.48% compared to the first seven months of 2022, even with July approvals slightly down to 13 from the previous six months’ average of 14.5 per month. Worldwide approvals from January to July are down 13.8% from the same period last year.
Regulatory snapshots, including global drug submissions and approvals, clinical trial approvals and other regulatory decisions and designations: Abbvie, Innovent, Ipsen, Nuvectis, Regeneron.
As a U.S. appeals court ruling that restores the original restrictions the FDA imposed on the abortion drug mifepristone in 2000 heads to the Supreme Court for what will likely be full argument, the Biden administration continues to insist that the courts have no business overriding the FDA’s “scientific, evidence-based decisions.” Commenting on the Aug. 16 opinion from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, which reinstated the original use restrictions, Vice President Kamala Harris said, “It endangers our entire system of drug approval and regulation by undermining the independent, expert judgment of the FDA.”
China’s National Medical Products Administration has approved Innovent Biologics Inc.’s proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin-type 9 (PCSK9) inhibitor, Sintbilo (tafolecimab), making it the first first locally developed PCSK9 monoclonal antibody to be approved in China. The approval is for treatment of adult patients with primary hypercholesterolemia (including heterozygous familial and non-familial hypercholesterolemia) and mixed dyslipidemia (abnormal lipid levels). Tafolecimab marks Innovent's first cardiovascular drug as well as the company’s 10th approval.
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