With the first biosimilar to Neulasta (pegfilgrastim) freshly approved and data due in the fourth quarter of this year from Beyondspring Inc.'s phase III Study 105 testing plinabulin against the Amgen Inc. blockbuster, Wall Street is busy handicapping the latter in chemotherapy-induced neutropenia (CIN). Read More
Japanese scientists at the Center for induced Pluripotent Stem (iPS) Research and Application (CiRA) at Kyoto University have shown for the first time that small levels of turbulence in blood promote the generation of platelets. Read More
PERTH, Australia – Draft legislation released by the Turnbull Government on the overhauled R&D Tax Incentive (R&DTI) received an overall positive response from the biotech and med-tech industry, but a few components of the bill are causing concern, industry stakeholders said. Read More
Dermavant Sciences Inc., of Phoenix, a subsidiary of Roivant Sciences Ltd., said it agreed to purchase rights to tapinarof, an aryl hydrocarbon receptor modulating agent in development for psoriasis and atopic dermatitis, from London-based Glaxosmithkline plc. Read More
Octave Bioscience Inc., of Menlo Park, Calif., said it completed a series A funding of $14 million led by BCBS Venture Partners, with participation from Echo Health Venture (a collaboration of Cambia Health Solutions and Mosaic Health Solutions), Section 32 and new as well as existing private investors. Read More
To date, increases in healthspan have not kept up with those in lifespan, and many elderly, despite surviving cancer and cardiovascular disease that would have once killed them, are in poor health overall. Recent studies have suggested that senescent cells, which are not dying but have stopped dividing, are contributors to the frailty that accompanies aging. Now a team from the Mayo Clinic has put that idea to the test directly, transplanting senescent cells into young mice. Read More
Cytodyn Inc. is seeking to expand prospects for lead program PRO-140 beyond HIV and a more recent effort in graft-vs.-host disease (GVHD) by evaluating its use in cancer and immunology. To drive that effort, the Vancouver, Wash.-based firm is bringing in Prostagene LLC, a privately held company focused on prostate cancer diagnostics and therapies seeking to prevent cancer metastasis by blocking CCR5. The companies said that research conducted by Cytodyn along with Richard Pestell, Prostagene's CEO, and his collaborators showed that selectively blocking the CCR5 receptor and the interaction of the chemokine CCL5/RANTES was important to modulate immune cell trafficking. The CCR5 receptor also is believed to play a role in cancer cell invasion and metastasis. Read More
At the midpoint of the year, the global biopharma industry has recorded 554 partnering deals – a total that suggests that companies are still maintaining a high priority on business development through collaborations to help them execute on their business plans. The volume of partnering deals recorded by BioWorld in the second quarter, at 281, was about the same as those completed in the first quarter. However, year to date, the total number of transactions are about 10 percent down from the total recorded at this time last year. (See Volume of biopharma deals, right.) Read More
