Delonix Bioworks Ltd. has obtained IND clearance from China’s National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) for its group B meningococcal (MenB) vaccine candidate, DX-104. This follows the successful completion last month of clinical trial notification (CTN) procedures and ethics committee approval in Australia.

Beijing Innocare Pharma Tech Co. Ltd. has gained IND clearance in China to conduct clinical trials of ICP-538, an orally administered molecular glue degrader targeting VAV1, which is a key protein downstream of T-cell and B-cell receptors. ICP-538 is being studied for the treatment of autoimmune diseases, such as inflammatory bowel disease, systemic lupus erythematosus and multiple sclerosis.

Trumprx.gov launched with much fanfare late Feb. 5, and the online tool brings promise for the “world’s lowest prices” on prescription drugs. Alongside the website hoopla came word from Hims & Hers Health of its own steep discounts on what’s to be the compounded version of a Trumprx-featured therapy: oral Wegovy (semaglutide) for obesity. Novo Nordisk A/S, Wegovy’s originator, vowed to fight.

The U.K.’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has recommended the use of Abbott Laboratories’ Cardiomems HF system, giving people living with heart failure an option to monitor their condition daily from home. The implantable wireless sensor could transform care for individuals with the chronic condition as it will enable them to catch early warning signs before they escalate to medical emergencies.

In keeping with the congressional practice of passing major NIH reform legislation every 10 years, the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee took the first step in looking at what can be for the NIH while unburdening it from what has been over the past few years.

Affinia Therapeutics Inc. has obtained IND clearance from the FDA for AFTX-201, an investigational genetic medicine for the treatment of BAG3-associated dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). The phase I/II UPBEAT trial will begin in the first half of this year.