Evotec AG has expanded its capacity to discover new drugs through the use of adult stem cells that have been reprogrammed to produce any type of cell in the human body. These induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells can be used to model disease and identify prospective treatments.
The US Food and Drug Administration has made its first move to bring drug prices down under the new leadership of Commissioner Scott Gottlieb.
Netherlands-based BioGeneration Ventures has secured new commitments for its third investment fund, BGV III, enabling it to expand the number of companies to which it provides seed capital. The new commitments raise the fund’s capital to €66 million.
Following an accelerated assessment, the European Medicines Agency is recommending two new combination drugs to treat infections caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV). Both therapies are direct-acting antivirals and effective against all genotypes of the virus.
The US Food and Drug Administration has approved the first C1 esterase inhibitor for the prophylaxis of hereditary angioedema, a rare protein deficiency that can cause swelling of the limbs or airway. The product, Haegarda, was developed by CSL Behring LLC.
As medical developers edge their way towards using biomarkers to establish progress in clinical trials, a British company has developed an epigenetic, blood-based marker with potentially broad applications for detecting disease.
Another step towards developing a cell therapy for retinal disease was reported by UK-based ReNeuron Group Plc on 19 June, following approval by the US Food and Drug Administration of its formulation for cryopreserving cells.
China’s Creat Group Corp, one of the country’s large investors in foreign companies, is purchasing Germany’s Biotest AG, a Frankfurt Stock Exchange-listed biologics company, for about €1.2 billion.
The coming into effect of new legislation governing the conduct of clinical trials in the EU has been delayed again due to difficulties with the development of the underlying IT system, the European Medicines Agency announced on 16 June.
Helsinn Healthcare SA has returned elsiglutide, a treatment for chemotherapy-induced diarrhoea, to its creator, Zealand Pharma A/S, thus ending a partnership agreement to develop the drug further.