Those affected by primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) are fighting back against the recommendation by the EMA that the marketing authorization for Ocaliva (obeticholic acid), a second-line treatment used by 7,000 patients in Europe, be withdrawn. Earlier today, July 25, patients and their supporters staged a protest outside the European Commission building in Brussels to oppose EMA’s position that Ocaliva’s conditional license should be revoked.

Three years after stopping development in nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, Genfit SA and partner Ipsen Pharma SA have announced positive phase III data for elafibranor in the treatment of primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) and are preparing to file for U.S. FDA and EMA approval.

New research has identified a novel receptor that interacts with the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) by which the SARS-CoV-2 enters host cells, and shown it can be inhibited with marketed drugs, reducing expression of ACE2 and blocking viral entry.