DUBLIN – Novartis AG is deepening its commitment to ocular gene therapy by picking up Gyroscope Therapeutics Ltd. for $800 million up front and up to $700 million more in potential milestone payments. Read More
The largest swings in stock price in 2021 can partly, or mostly, be attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic, as biopharma solutions either saved the world or fell short, depending on the newest emerging variant. Those ups and downs have led the BioWorld Biopharmaceutical Index to a nearly flat position in comparison with the beginning of the year. It is up by only 0.33%. The Nasdaq Biotech Index, however, is up 4.6%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average, representing the broader markets, is up by 14.13%. Read More
Discouraging news from two trials with lirentelimab slammed shares of Allakos Inc. (NASDAQ:ALLK), which ended the day at $8.55, down $75.84, or almost 90%. The Redwood City, Calif.-based firm reported data from Enigma 2, a phase III study in patients with biopsy-confirmed eosinophilic gastritis and/or eosinophilic duodenitis, and Kryptos, a phase II/III experiment in biopsy-confirmed eosinophilic esophagitis. Both experiments met their histologic co-primary endpoints but fell short of statistical significance on patient-reported symptomatic co-primary goals. Read More
Antengene Corp. Ltd. received marketing approval from China’s NMPA for ATG-010 (selinexor), a drug that was in-licensed from Karyopharm Therapeutics Inc. It was approved for use in combination with dexamethasone to treat adults with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma, specifically those who have received prior therapies and whose disease is refractory to at least a proteasome inhibitor, an immunomodulatory agent and an anti-CD38 monoclonal antibody. Read More
The EU is on its way to becoming one of the first to implement a historic global tax reform agreement, setting a minimum effective tax rate of 15% for large multinational groups, including biopharma and med-tech companies. Read More
Astrazeneca plc has confirmed it is working with Oxford University to produce a vaccine against the Omicron variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. The Cambridge, U.K.-based pharma was one of the first to get a COVID-19 vaccine okayed by regulators, after acquiring rights to the shot from Vaccitech plc, a spin-out from Oxford University’s Jenner Institute specialist vaccine unit. Read More
LONDON – The latest cut of data from a study tracking the COVID-19 pandemic in near real time in Scotland indicates the Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 is two-thirds less likely to result in hospitalization than the Delta variant. Read More
With Omicron spreading rapidly, U.S. COVID-19 vaccine producers are facing increasing pressure to up their production and to do more to ensure their vaccines are accessible globally. Read More
A U.S. federal jury convicted Charles Lieber, the former chair of Harvard University’s chemistry and chemical biology department, on charges related to lying to federal authorities about his affiliation with China’s Thousand Talents Plan and the Wuhan University of Technology (WUT), as well as failing to report the income he received from the institute. Read More
Every year, the BioWorld team takes time to look back and assess the market-moving and life-changing stories and trends of the year. Without a doubt, COVID-19 shook humanity to the core, again. And like glioblastoma, the tentacles of COVID-19 invaded far beyond the obvious and ultimately changed the world. So that’s our top story of the year. But the biopharmaceutical industry is resilient and responsive. Even though there were tectonic shifts in efforts to bring an armamentarium of COVID-19 vaccines and therapeutics to patients with record-breaking speed, work continued on other fronts. Read More
Biopharma happenings, including deals and partnerships, grants, preclinical data and other news in brief: Affiris, Biondvax, Claritas, Cocrystal, Arcus, Cytonus, Durect, Dyadic, Frontier, Gilead, Innocoll, RDIF, Replicel, Salzman Scandinavian, Shiseido, Titan, Vaxalta, Viewpoint. Read More
Regulatory snapshots, including global drug submissions and approvals, clinical trial approvals and other regulatory decisions and designations: Acadia, Amgen, Aquestive, Astrazeneca, Biontech, Biogen, Cstone, Deciphera, Eli Lilly, Gilead, Helsinn, Hepion, Hoth, Janssen, Lianbio, Mind, Novavax, Northwest, Pfizer, Sandoz, Sol-Gel, Takeda, Vaxine, Viiv, Zogenix. Read More
