Drug Discovery and Development

Merck (NYSE:MRK) announced today that it received FDA approval for Keytruda for treating high-risk, early-stage, triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). Kenilworth, N.J.-based Merck’s Keytruda anti-PD-1 therapy received approval for use in combination with chemotherapy as neoadjuvant treatment, then continued as a single agent as adjuvant treatment after surgery, according to a news release. Approval was based…

PerkinElmer (NYSE:PKI) today posted Street-beating second-quarter revenues and announced the $5.3 billion acquisition of BioLegend. The Waltham, Mass.-based company posted profits of $245.9 million, or $2.19 per share, on sales of $1.2 billion for the three months ended July 4, 2021, for a 79.3% bottom-line gain on sales growth of 51.3%. Get the full story at…

Last year, FDA approved the celecoxib oral solution Elyxyb from Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories as an acute treatment of migraine with or without aura in adults. Formerly known as DFN-15, Elyxyb is a novel selective inhibitor of cyclooxygenase-2. The company received FDA approval for the drug in May 2020. The company formulated the drug as an oral solution…

An accelerated rebound in medical device sales helped drive Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) second-quarter results that topped the consensus forecast. The New Brunswick, N.J.-based company posted profits of $6.3 billion, or $2.35 per share, on sales of $23.3 billion for the three months ended June 30, 2021, for a 73.1% bottom-line gain on sales growth of 27.1%…

Eli Lilly (NYSE:LLY) announced today that it acquired peptide- and protein-engineering platform developer Protomer Technologies. The potential value of the transaction is over $1 billion, depending on the achievement of future development and commercial milestones. Pasadena, Calif.–based Protomer Technologies develops next-generation protein therapeutics designed to identify and synthesize molecules that can sense glucose or other endogenous…

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) announced today that it has launched the J&J Centers for Global Health Discovery, a global network of research partnerships to address the world’s health challenges. The first J&J Satellite Center for Global Health Discovery is at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. The pharma and medtech giant plans to…

Global investment firm Francisco Partners announced today that it has agreed to acquire Abbott’s STARLIMS informatics product suite for an undisclosed amount. Companies in the life sciences, pharma and biotech, chemical and refining, food and beverage, manufacturing, environmental, public health and forensics sectors have used the STARLIMS suite of products for more than 35 years.…

The Dublin-based pharmaceutical R&D firm APC Ltd has launched a ‘Global Centre of Excellence for Vaccine and Advanced Therapeutic Research and Manufacturing.’ The result of a €25 million investment, the new facility will staff 120 new employees. The facility will have the capacity to produce hundreds of millions of doses of vaccines (including for COVID-19)…

Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:TMO) announced today that it appointed Alan Sachs to chief medical officer and Karen E. Nelson to chief scientific officer. Sachs served as Waltham, Mass.-based Thermo Fisher’s CSO since 2016 and will be succeeded by Nelson as he assumes the newly established CMO position at the company. Both will join the company’s leadership…

Santa Clara, Calif.–based NVIDIA has launched the Cambridge-1, which it hails as “the United Kingdom’s most powerful supercomputer.” Developed with healthcare applications in mind, NVIDIA invested some $100 million in the supercomputer. Initial applications of the Cambridge-1 include using AI to improve drug development, explore the causes of dementia and identify genomic-based disease risk factors.…

Investment firm Carlyle and Inova today announced a long-term funding partnership to accelerate growth, product innovation and M&A activities. Lyon, France-based Inova develops software platforms dedicated to life sciences to enable pharmaceutical and biotech companies to collaborate on workstreams across organizations. Inova touts its flagship product, “Inova Enterprise,” as a collaborative tool used to manage…

Charles River Laboratories (NYSE:CRL) announced that it completed a $292.5 million acquisition of Vigene Biosciences. Rockville, Md.-based Vigene, a gene therapy contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO), develops viral vector-based gene delivery systems, with a primary area of expertise in CGMP viral vector manufacturing for gene therapies and gene-modified cell therapies. Get the full story…

Boston Children’s Hospital announced today that it partnered with ElevateBio for a five-year cell and gene therapy advancement program. The collaborative agreement will seek to advance cell and gene therapy programs originating out of Boston Children’s Hospital with an introduction to Boston Children’s translational research capabilities. Get the full story at our sister site, Drug Delivery Business…

Sanofi (NYSE:SNY) announced today that it plans to invest approximately $476.3 million (€400 million) per year on mRNA vaccine development. Paris-based Sanofi’s intends for its annual investment to go toward a first-of-its-kind vaccine “mRNA Center of Excellence” to accelerate the development and delivery of next-generation vaccines. Approximately 400 employees will integrate end-to-end mRNA vaccine capabilities…

AlloSource (Centennial, Colo.), a central U.S. provider of allograft providers, has founded a separate nonprofit known as Essent Biologics to provide human-derived biomaterials for research. Essent has recently launched a human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) offering for a range of research applications.  “The mission for the nonprofit is to maximize that gift of donation,” said…

A new study shows that the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines create an immune response that may protect recipients for years. The study, published in Nature, revealed that those who received the two-dose mRNA vaccines developed by Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna could provide immunity for years or even a lifetime in those who were infected with COVID-19…

Roche announced today that it received FDA emergency use authorization (EUA) for intravenous Actemra/RoActemra in treating COVID-19. Basel, Switzerland-based Roche’s Actemra/RoActemra (tocilizumab) drug received authorization to treat COVID-19 in hospitalized adults and pediatric patients (two years of age and older) who are receiving systemic corticosteroids and require supplemental oxygen, non-invasive or invasive mechanical ventilation or…

Glassdoor has released its latest list of the top 100 best places to work in 2021, and six pharmaceutical companies made the cut. One thread running across the entries in the entire list is the employers’ ability to empower and inspire workers in a time of continued challenges. In addition to the pharma companies, the Glassdoor ranking…

The Bothell, Wash.–based clinical-stage biopharma Athira Pharma (NSDQ:ATHA) is in a tailspin after the company’s board put Leen Kawas, the firm’s CEO, on temporary leave. The company’s stock closed the day at an all-time low of $11.15. The stock was valued as high as $34.25 on Dec. 31, 2020. The company had its initial public…

Flagship Pioneering announced that former FDA commissioner Dr. Stephen Hahn will lead its Preemptive Medicine & Health Security initiative. A “bioinnovation platform company,” Flagship Pioneering has originated and fostered more than 100 scientific ventures totaling more than $90 billion in aggregate value, according to the company. It has, to date, deployed more than $2.4 billion…

COVID-19 disrupted oncology clinical trials. More than a year into the pandemic, drug developers and regulators, including FDA, are also looking for ways to catalyze clinical trial innovation with AI and other tech. The FDA has been “vigilant as they always are to make sure that there is strong science, but they are much more…

Novavax (NSDQ:NVAX) announced today that its COVID-19 vaccine demonstrated 90.4% efficacy in protecting against COVID-19. Gaithersburg, Md.–based Novavax’s recombinant nanoparticle protein-based COVID-19 vaccine demonstrated 100% protection against moderate and severe disease, with 90.4% efficacy overall as it met the primary endpoint in the Prevent-19 pivotal Phase 3 trial. According to a news release, the study…

Moderna (NSDQ:MRNA) announced today that former Johnson & Johnson executive Dr. Paul Burton will join as chief medical officer. Cambridge, Mass.-based Moderna said in a news release that Burton assumes the role of CMO effective July 6, 2021, and he will serve on the company’s executive committee and report to CEO Stéphane Bancel. “Paul’s extensive…

A member of the FDA’s expert panel for nervous system therapies reportedly resigned over the decision to authorize an Alzheimer’s therapy. The FDA controversially authorized Aduhelm (aducanumab) from Biogen on Monday, making it the first novel Alzheimer’s drug treatment in 18 years despite drug companies pumping billions of dollars into more than 400 clinical trials. STAT…

Billing itself as the “world leader in opioid addiction treatment,” Indivior (INDV.L) is looking to diversify into treating cannabis use disorder. The North Chesterfield, Va.–The headquartered company will spend $30 million upfront to acquire Aelis Farma for development rights for AEF0117, an investigational drug that blocks the CB1 cannabinoid receptor in the brain. In addition…