Showing that much lower brand prices are possible, even in the U.S., Theracosbio Inc. announced July 13 that its diabetes drug, Brenzavvy (bexagliflozin), is coming to the U.S. market through the Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Co. at a monthly price that’s less than the copay most patients have to pay for other drugs in the class. A new molecular entity approved in January to improve glycemic control in adults with type 2 diabetes, Brenzavvy is an oral, once-daily sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitor that will be available through Cost Plus Drugs with a monthly price tag of $47.85, plus shipping and handling. A 30-day supply of other SGLT2 inhibitors costs hundreds of dollars, with some approaching $600 a month. Read More
First Wave Biopharma Inc. is taking apart the top-line data from its phase II study of adrulipase for treating nutrition deficiencies in cystic fibrosis patients and seems unsure exactly what it found. The company said that while the initial data found the enhanced enteric microgranule delivery formulation of adrulipase was safe, well-tolerated and was an improvement over other formulations, the preliminary data also indicate that “it is likely the primary efficacy endpoint was not achieved.” Read More
Although shares of TG Therapeutics Inc. took a hit on word of positive phase III data in multiple sclerosis (MS) from competitor Genentech, a unit of Roche Holding AG, the results may not end up affecting much the market showdown between the CD20 players. Read More
Questionable efficacy, high priced and risky side effects are some words to describe Leqembi (lecanemab), the latest amyloid beta-targeting antibody approved by the U.S. FDA, Korean experts said, but none of that diminishes the profound significance of the drug for Alzheimer’s disease. Read More
In brain research, be it basic or clinical, neurons have long hogged the limelight. But at the 2023 European Meeting on Glial Cells in Health and Disease, neurons take a back seat to glia – cell types that have often been described as support cells and treated as an afterthought, but that play critical roles in all aspects of brain function, including information processing. Read More
EG 427 SAS has added a further a further €5 million (US$5.6 million) to its series A, closing the round at €18 million and setting the stage for the first clinical trial of a gene therapy in the treatment of a chronic disorder. Read More
China’s NMPA approved Daiichi Sankyo Co. Ltd. and Astrazeneca plc’s Enhertu (fam-trastuzumab deruxtecan) as the first HER2-directed therapy for patients with HER2-low metastatic breast cancer. Read More
Clinical updates, including trial initiations, enrollment status and data readouts and publications: Achieve, Direct, George, Incyte, Leap, Sciwind. Read More
Biopharma happenings, including deals and partnerships, grants, preclinical data and other news in brief: Aeon,Astrazeneca,Kamada, Kedrion, Lianbio, Solve FSHD. Read More
Regulatory snapshots, including global drug submissions and approvals, clinical trial approvals and other regulatory decisions and designations: Aridis, Astrazeneca, Beigene, Daiichi, Junshi, Takeda, Therapeutic Solutions. Read More
