Awaiting the potential U.S. FDA approval of a second product this year, Protagonist Therapeutics Inc. with partner Johnson & Johnson won the go-ahead for oral peptide Icotyde (icotrokinra), an IL-23 receptor antagonist, to treat moderate to severe plaque psoriasis in adults and pediatric patients 12 and older who weigh at least 40 kg and who are candidates for systemic therapy or phototherapy.

It’s déjà vu all over again for Aldeyra Therapeutics Inc., which disclosed its third complete response letter (CRL) for dry eye disease candidate reproxalap, with the U.S. FDA citing a lack of substantial and consistent evidence of efficacy.

Roche Holding AG received CE Mark approval for its Elecsys Apolipoprotein E4 (ApoE4) biomarker test, an in vitro diagnostic immunoassay to identify the ApoE4 gene variant from a blood sample. With APOE4 considered as the strongest genetic risk factor for developing Alzheimer’s disease, the test provides a fast, reliable way to determine whether an individual carries the genetic variant without the need for DNA‑based genotyping.

In one fell swoop March 16, a U.S. federal judge stayed the CDC’s January memo revising the childhood vaccine schedule and the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) as reconstituted by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy, along with everything that committee has done since early June.

Qyuns Therapeutics Co. Ltd. has moved closer to its first commercial product after China’s National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) accepted its NDA for IL-17 antibody crusekitug (QX-002N) for treating ankylosing spondylitis (AS), a chronic inflammatory disease that affects the spine and sacroiliac joints.

China’s National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) has accepted for review Hightide Therapeutics Inc.’s NDA for HTD-1801 for type 2 diabetes, marking the Shenzhen-based company’s first NDA submission and a major step toward commercialization.

CF Pharmtech Inc. has announced IND approval by China’s National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) for ICF-001, a long-acting inhalation powder candidate for the treatment of pulmonary hypertension and related severe pulmonary diseases.

Akeso Inc.’s first-in-class trispecific antibody, AK-150, has received IND clearance from China’s National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) for clinical trials in patients with advanced solid tumors. Engineered using Akeso’s AI-driven drug discovery platform and its proprietary Tetrabody technology, AK-150 is a humanized anti-CSF-1R, ILT2 and ILT4 trispecific antibody that achieves multipathway blockade of both innate and adaptive immunity.

Shanghai Unixell Biotechnology Co. Ltd. has obtained IND clearance from the FDA for UX-GIP001, its iPSC-derived allogeneic cell therapy for focal epilepsy. A phase I study will evaluate UX-GIP001 in patients with drug-resistant epilepsy.