Much has been made of the recent skyrocketing of Medicare spending on skin substitutes, but a new enforcement action by the U.S. Department of Justice might help to explain some of those spending increases.

Sanegenebio has obtained clinical trial clearance in China for SGB-7342, an siRNA medicine targeting inhibin β E (INHBE) for the treatment of obesity. A phase I trial is scheduled to begin early next year.

Nchroma Bio Inc. has received a certificate for clinical trial in Hong Kong to initiate a first-in-human phase I/II trial of CRMA-1001 for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. Dosing is expected to begin early next year.

Recludix Pharma Inc. has obtained IND clearance from the FDA to advance REX-8756 (SAR-448755), an oral STAT6 inhibitor for inflammatory diseases, into phase I testing. REX-8756 is an oral, selective STAT6 inhibitor that employs a novel therapeutic approach by targeting STAT6’s SH2 domain.

Edwards Lifesciences Corp., of Irvine, Calif., petitioned the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to revise the Medicare coverage policy for transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) devices on two points, the combination of which would make a big difference for TAVR devices across manufacturers. Edwards requested that CMS explicitly cover TAVR for asymptomatic aortic stenosis patients, a notion well supported by recent data, and bring an end to the coverage with evidence development mandate.

Companion Spine SAS received premarket approval from the U.S. FDA for its DIAM spinal stabilization system, for treatment of degenerative disc disease. The approval comes as the company recently completed the acquisition of a number of assets from Xtant Medical Holdings Inc., including Paradigm Spine GmbH, as it continues to strengthen its position in providing solutions to treat spinal degenerative conditions.

The U.S. FDA announced Dec. 15 that it will take a more relaxed approach to device premarket applications using real-world evidence from data sources that lack individual patient-level data, a switch that might ease manufacturers’ efforts to expand a device’s labeled indication for use.

Immusoft of CA Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Immusoft Corp., has announced that the FDA has granted orphan drug designation to ISP-002, the company’s investigational engineered B-cell therapy for the treatment of mucopolysaccharidosis type II (MPS II), also known as Hunter syndrome.

Abpro Holdings Inc. and Celltrion Inc. have announced the submission of an IND application to the FDA for ABP-102 (CT-P72), a HER2 x CD3 T-cell engager. Pending clearance, a phase I trial in patients with HER2-positive cancers, including breast and gastric cancers, is anticipated to begin in the first half of next year.

Pilatus Biosciences Inc. has obtained IND clearance from the FDA for PLT-012, a first-in-class anti-CD36 monoclonal antibody, for the treatment of solid tumors. Pilatus plans to initiate a first-in-human phase I trial with this metabolic checkpoint antibody in the first quarter of next year.