The Russian Ministry of Health issued the 14th version of its guidelines on preventing, diagnosing and treating COVID-19 infections. Released Dec. 28, the latest version includes information about the Omicron variant and provides updates on new therapies, including two new oral drugs: Pfizer Inc.’s Paxlovid (nirmatrelvir tablets and ritonavir tablets, co-packaged for oral use) and Merck & Co. Inc.-Ridgeback Biotherapeutics Inc.’s siRNA drug molnupiravir, which will be marketed in Russia as Mir-19.
Regulatory snapshots, including global drug submissions and approvals, clinical trial approvals and other regulatory decisions and designations: Amniotics, Astrazeneca, Cstone, Daiichi, Leo, Novavax, Regor.
Biopharma happenings, including deals and partnerships, grants, preclinical data and other news in brief: Aditxt, Aipharma, Collegium, Dicerna, Immuneoncia, Moderna, Novo Nordisk, Wuxi.
As global demand for rapid testing soars due to a new variant of COVID-19, one company is shaking up the diagnostics market with an at-home rapid PCR solution. Founded in 2017 by scientist and entrepreneur Jonathan Rothberg, Detect Inc. is the developer of Detect COVID-19, a direct-to-consumer PCR test that provides results within one hour.
LONDON – A suite of papers rushed through peer review and published in Nature late on Dec. 23, 2021 contain data indicating approved monoclonal antibody drugs designed to neutralize SARS-COV-2 have substantially weaker activity against the Omicron variant.
The FDA went from zero to two oral antivirals to treat COVID-19 in the space of two days, granting emergency use authorizations last week to Pfizer Inc.’s Paxlovid and Merck & Co. Inc.-Ridgeback Biotherapeutics Inc.’s molnupiravir. Both five-day regimens are authorized for use, within five days of COVID-19 symptom onset, in individuals at high risk of progressing to severe disease, including hospitalization and death.
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