It appeared that investors were far more interested in their vacations than in tracking the progress of blue-chip biopharma companies last month. Not helping their cause was the ongoing drug pricing debate taking place in Washington. The quest to reduce the cost of drugs moved a step closer with the Senate Finance Committee completing its markup of the Prescription Drug Pricing Reduction Act and voting 19-9 to send the legislation to the full U.S. Senate. 

Although collectively the large-cap biotech companies have failed to move the valuation needle this year, those innovative mid-cap public companies engaged in areas of research such as immuno-oncology, cell and gene therapies and CNS diseases have bucked the general trend. That is illustrated by the year-to-date performance of the BioWorld Drug Developers index, which has soared in value by more than 22%, well ahead of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which has increased 15% in the same period. 

Every year at the Cleveland Clinic Medical Innovation Summit, the Top 10 list of technologies that are predicted to come to the market and change patient care is revealed. Last year's October event saw RNA-based therapies take the No. 10 spot. 

Every year at the Cleveland Clinic Medical Innovation Summit, the Top 10 list of technologies that are predicted to come to the market and change patient care is revealed. Last year's October event saw RNA-based therapies take the No. 10 spot. Certainly, the honor was well earned because, after falling out of favor despite their early promise a few years ago, the technology is now enjoying a major resurgence and the product pipeline is growing once again, driven by increasing investments and business partnerships.

Despite the ups and downs of the general markets and a U.S. government shutdown at the beginning of the year that contributed to no biopharma companies graduating to the public ranks in January, the enthusiasm for biopharma IPOs has remained steady since then. In fact, a flurry of IPO listings on U.S. stock exchanges last month helped bring the total of those offerings to 30 at the halfway point in the year. 

Despite the ups and downs of the general markets and a U.S. government shutdown at the beginning of the year that contributed to no biopharma companies graduating to the public ranks in January, the enthusiasm for biopharma IPOs has remained steady since then.

Although the public biopharmaceutical sector set a fast pace at the beginning of the year, it has been all downhill since February, with the BioWorld Biopharmaceutical index losing 16% of its value. However, a strong performance in June, with the group gaining 7.6%, helped the sector marginally push into positive territory year-to-date (YTD). At the halfway point of the year, the index is trailing the general market by a wide margin, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average trading up 14% and the Nasdaq Composite index up 20%. 

Although the public biopharmaceutical sector set a fast pace at the beginning of the year, it has been all downhill since February, with the BioWorld Biopharmaceutical index losing 16% of its value. However, a strong performance in June, with the group gaining 7.6%, helped the sector marginally push into positive territory year-to-date (YTD). At the halfway point of the year, the index is trailing the general market by a wide margin, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average trading up 14% and the Nasdaq Composite index up 20%. 

It has been acknowledged by governments around the world that there are simply not enough antibiotics currently in the product pipeline to meet the predicted requirements of their health care systems. Not good news considering that antibiotic resistance continues to be a major societal concern, with the CDC estimating that in the U.S. alone at least 2 million people contract an antibiotic-resistant infection, and at least 23,000 people die annually as a result.

It has been acknowledged by governments around the world that there are simply not enough antibiotics currently in the product pipeline to meet the predicted requirements of their health care systems. Not good news considering that antibiotic resistance continues to be a major societal concern, with the CDC estimating that in the U.S. alone at least 2 million people contract an antibiotic-resistant infection, and at least 23,000 people die annually as a result.