Oxford BioMedica Plc has given a clinical update on its gene therapy programmes for ocular diseases, highlighting the safety of its early-stage therapy for a subtype of the deaf-blindness disorder, Usher syndrome. Sanofi SA has in-licensed the programme.
Algeta ASA said it is on course to complete a US regulatory filing for the radium-223 product, Alpharadin, for advanced prostate cancer patients with bone metastases by the end of 2012. The drug is partnered with Bayer Pharma AG.
Mologen AG has confirmed plans to start a Phase 2 study of its lead compound, MGN1703, in non-small cell lung cancer having shown evidence earlier this year of improved progression free survival of the same drug in colorectal cancer.
Clavis Pharma ASA has suspended all work on a lipid-based drug for pancreatic cancer following the drug’s failure in a pivotal trial. The trial was being conducted by Clavis’s partner, Clovis Oncology Inc.
A candidate malaria vaccine developed by GlaxoSmithKline Plc has shown efficacy in a Phase 3 trial in infants in Africa. But the results were less robust than expected. Researchers involved in the project said they will continue to analyse the data to clarify how the vaccine might play a role in overall malaria prevention.
After a trial delay that triggered a corporate restructuring, Pharming Group NV of the Netherlands has now reported positive clinical data for Ruconest, its lead drug for hereditary angioedema (HAE). A US regulatory filing is expected in the 2013 first half.
Addex Therapeutics Ltd of Switzerland has reported top-line data from an early trial of an allosteric modulator drug in patients with schizophrenia. The data show that the compound, ADX71149, met its primary objectives of safety and tolerability.
The Lancet has published two Phase 3 studies of the Sanofi SA multiple sclerosis drug, Lemtrada (alemtuzumab), which show that the antibody significantly reduced relapse rates of the disease compared with the standard of care – Rebif (interferon beta 1a).
Clavis Pharma ASA expects to report top-line results before the end of 2012 from a pivotal trial of its personalized therapy for patients with pancreatic cancer – one of the most difficult-to-treat cancers.
Eli Lilly and Company said that three Phase 3 studies of dulaglutide, its glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) treatment for Type 2 diabetes, met their primary endpoints and showed superiority in reducing blood sugar levels compared with exenatide and two other drugs.