Shionogi & Co. Ltd. and Fosun Pharmaceutical (Group) Co. Ltd. were involved in separate divestment transactions this week, with Shionogi buying out Pfizer Inc.’s stake in Viiv Healthcare Ltd. to lift its holding to 21.7%.

Citing the “totality of data,” Sanofi SA plans to file global regulatory submissions this year for amlitelimab in atopic dermatitis, despite mixed results from two additional phase III trials testing the OX40-ligand (OX40L) inhibitor the pharma firm has been positioning as a potential successor to its Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc.-partnered blockbuster, Dupixent (dupilumab).

Four years after they were first mooted, the finishing line is in sight for new U.K. clinical regulations, which will come into force on April 28. In the first major update since 2004, about 20% of lower-risk studies are expected to be approved by a fast track, and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency will introduce a 14-day assessment route for phase I healthy volunteer trials, amongst other measures to streamline approvals.

Corxel Pharmaceuticals Ltd. completed a $287 million series D round to advance its lead compound, an oral small-molecule GLP-1 receptor agonist, CX-11, for obese and overweight patients.

The U.S. NIH may be weathering the budget storm thanks to bipartisan congressional support, but another squall line is forming on the horizon over politicization of the research agency.

Cancer cells expand through mutations – but not just through mutations. They also change their behavior in the absence of underlying genetic alterations. Such plasticity helps the cells both adapt to the cellular stress fueled by out-of-control growth and resist targeted and chemotherapies alike. Investigators from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and Huazhong Agricultural University have gained new insights into the underlying mechanisms of plasticity.