Soleno Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: SLNO) pulled off in a major way its randomized-withdrawal phase III study with DCCR (diazoxide choline) in Prader-Willi syndrome, boosting the shares by $22.37, or 505%, to close Sept. 26 at $26.80. “Our work is not done, but this was a big step,” said CEO Anish Bhatnagar. Read More
Positive top-line phase III study results for olezarsen in treating familial chylomicronemia syndrome has Ionis Pharmaceuticals Inc. looking down the road to U.S. FDA approval. It’s the company’s second attempt at getting an approval for treating the rare disorder. Read More
Acurastem Inc. said on Sept. 25 that it struck an out-licensing deal potentially worth $580 million with Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. to develop drugs for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and other PIKfyve gene-targeting therapeutics. Under the terms, Tokyo-headquartered Takeda obtains exclusive worldwide rights to Acurastem’s PIKfyve-targeting therapeutics, including Acurastem’s lead AS-202 asset, an antisense oligonucleotide therapy to treat ALS. Read More
Three months after Intercept Pharmaceuticals Inc. received its second complete response letter for obeticholic acid to treat fibrosis due to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, causing a mass layoff and the decision to drop development for the indication, Bologna, Italy-based Alfasigma SpA agreed to acquire the company for $19 per share in cash, or about $793.8 million. Read More
As biosimilar development expands beyond monoclonal antibodies to more complex biologics, the flexibility built into regulatory paths across the world will become more essential. Rather than making wholesale changes to those pathways, regulators need to follow the science in exercising the flexibility they already have, Leah Christl, executive director of global biosimilars regulatory affairs and R&D policy at Amgen Inc., told BioWorld. In doing so, “we do need to look forward to what might be coming down the pipeline,” in addition to looking backwards at what types of biosimilars have already been approved, she said. Read More
Thanks to a raft of new approvals by Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW), patients in Japan will soon have access to Biogen Inc./Eisai Co. Ltd.’s Leqembi (lecanemab), an amyloid-beta binder, for slowing progression of mild cognitive impairment and mild dementia due to Alzheimer's disease. Read More
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Clinical updates, including trial initiations, enrollment status and data readouts and publications: 4SC, Ascendis, Clene, Escient, Lantern, Nervgen, Novartis, Nykode, Reviva, Zucara. Read More
Regulatory snapshots, including global drug submissions and approvals, clinical trial approvals and other regulatory decisions and designations: Acelrx, Alvotech, Appili, Ardelyx, Biogen, Biora, Cara, Coherus, Daewoong, Eisai, Genmab, Nymox, Pfizer, Sanofi, Shuttle, Takeda, Theratechnologies, Tris. Read More
