Gilead Sciences Inc. reported that Sovaldi (sofosbuvir) sales hit nearly $3.5 billion for the second quarter, blowing past analyst forecasts of about $2.6 billion for the quarter and accounting for more than half its total antiviral sales. Read More
Profits at Biogen Idec Inc. surged in the second quarter on strong sales of Tecfidera (dimethyl fumarate) and its other multiple sclerosis (MS) therapies, beating analyst expectations and pumping up sales forecasts as the company notched a new drug approval in Europe. Read More
Angling to strengthen its position in Hunter syndrome by way of a method past the blood-brain barrier, Shire plc – already an investor in Armagen Technologies Inc. – paid $15 million up front and added an equity investment, sweetening the deal to develop the enzyme replacement therapy AGT-182 for somatic as well as central nervous system (CNS) effects of Hunter syndrome. Read More
No discussion focused on the future of health care would be complete without considering how the field of personalized medicine will help shape medical innovation and the delivery of next-generation therapies. Read More
There's a "big revolution in oncology," according to Bahija Jallal, executive vice president of Medimmune, part of London-based Astrazeneca plc, thanks to the advent of immunotherapy. Read More
Sage Therapeutics Inc., of Cambridge, Mass., closed its initial public offering of 5.75 million common shares at $18 each, including the full exercise by underwriters of their overallotment option, raising $103.5 million. Read More
Amorchem Holdings Inc., of Montreal, said it closed a transaction with tech transfer organization Univalor for the development of a drug aiming to stop the development and progression of atherosclerosis. Read More
Biotron Ltd., of Sydney, presented new data from its trial of BIT225 in HIV-infected subjects at AIDS 2014, the 20th International AIDS Conference, under way in Melbourne, Australia, this week. Read More
Dompe International SA, of Lausanne, Switzerland, said its recombinant human nerve growth factor (rhNGF) was designated an orphan drug by the FDA for the treatment of neurotrophic keratitis, a degenerative corneal disease that affects less than one in 5,000 people and is currently without a cure. Read More
UCB SA, of Brussels, Belgium, reported top-line phase III data showing that brivaracetam reduced partial-onset seizure frequency and improved responder rates, both with statistical significance vs. placebo, when used as an adjunctive treatment in adult focal epilepsy patients with partial-onset seizures not fully controlled despite treatment with one or two concomitant antiepileptic drugs. Read More
