Pfizer Inc., of New York, reported that detailed results of the Community-Acquired Pneumonia Immunization Trial in Adults, or CAPiTA, which enrolled approximately 85,000 subjects, demonstrated that Prevenar 13 (pneumococcal polysaccharide conjugate vaccine [13-valent, adsorbed]) prevented a first episode of vaccine-type community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in adults 65 years of age and older, the study’s primary endpoint. Pfizer said the trial was the first in adults to demonstrate a significant reduction in vaccine-type pneumococcal CAP and non-bacteremic/non-invasive vaccine-type pneumococcal CAP. Read More
Antares Pharma Inc., of Ewing, N.J., said it received a second milestone payment of $5 million from Leo Pharma A/S, of Ballerup, Denmark, in connection with the launch of psoriasis drug Otrexup (methotrexate) and the achievement of a specific percentage of patient lives covered by managed care organizations. To date, Antares has received $10 million in milestone payments from Leo. Read More
Sciclone Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Foster City, Calif., reported revenues for the full year 2013 of $127.1 million compared to $156.3 million for the full year of 2012. In the fourth quarter 2013, the company reported revenues of $32.7 million, compared to $33.1 million for the same period in 2012. Read More
Senesco Technologies Inc., of Bridgewater, N.J., opened two sites in the Republic of South Africa in its open-label, multiple-dose, dose-escalation phase Ib/IIa study of SNS01-T, which is evaluating the safety and tolerability in 15 patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma or mantle cell or diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. Read More
Aegis Therapeutics LLC, of San Diego, said its Intravail technology was formulated successfully with phenylephrine in compressed tablets, improving oral bioavailability by more than 50 percent. It marked the first application of Intravail, a drug delivery platform designed for non-invasive delivery of protein, peptide and nonpeptide drugs currently administered only via injection, in a solid dosage form. Read More
Despite pricing its initial public offering (IPO) at the bottom of the range, Achaogen Inc. enjoyed a strong debut Wednesday on the Nasdaq Global Market. Trading under the ticker AKAO, shares opened at $12.85 but quickly moved above the price range, hitting $14.48 by midday before closing at $14.31. Approximately 3.2 million shares changed hands. Read More
While Geron Corp. awaits formal notification by letter from the FDA regarding the full clinical hold placed on imetelstat, shares crashed and investors had few answers to their questions about the surprising move. Read More
ALDERLEY PARK, CHESHIRE – Astrazeneca plc has sold its historic research and development home at Alderley Park, Cheshire, for development as a bioincubator and science park, as it advances the plan to bring small molecules and biologics R&D carried out by the Medimmune Inc. subsidiary together at a new $500 million global research center it is building in Cambridge. Read More
Putting children over politics, senators set aside their differences to unanimously pass a bill that creates a new fund for pediatric research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The Gabriella Miller Kids First Research Act now heads to the president for his signature. Read More
LONDON – A majority of members of parliament (MPs) say there should be no limit on the price per patient paid for drugs to treat ultra-orphan diseases, according to a survey commissioned by the UK Bioindustry Association (BIA). Read More
LONDON – Bone contains different types of blood vessels, one of which is vital for the formation of new bone, a study has shown. The findings suggest that boosting the presence of this specific type of blood vessel in the bone has the potential to heal fractures faster and treat osteoporosis. Read More
