Novartis said that a Phase 3 trial of its new drug for acromegaly, pasireotide, is superior to the current standard of care for the disease. The current standard of care, Sandostatin (octreotide), is an older Novartis medicine.
Biotec Pharmacon ASA, a Norwegian company that produces beta-glucans for immune modulation products and enzymes originating from fish reported lower first quarter sales because of destocking of shrimp alkaline phosphate (SAP) at its biggest customer.
Research published online in the journal Cell Stem Cell suggests that inhibiting a protein that regulates cell signalling could mitigate the process of ageing in haematopoietic stem cells (HSCs), key support mechanisms for blood cells and for the immune system.
Oxford Nanopore Technologies Ltd, a developer of gene sequencing technology, has raised £31.4 million in new funding in a private placement of its ordinary shares. Nearly all of the funds have been supplied by the company’s existing investors.
MorphySys AG expects to start reporting clinical data on its lead antibody compound, MOR103, in the third quarter of this year. A trial in patients with rheumatoid arthritis will report first, followed in 2013 by data from a trial in multiple sclerosis.
New research has been published in Nature suggesting that the peptide pyroglutamate amyloid beta may play a crucial role in the initiation of Alzheimer’s disease. The research was conducted by scientists at Probiodrug AG and their academic partners.
A new company dedicated to the discovery of small-molecule immunomodulators to treat cancer has been launched in the Walloon region of Belgium. The company, iTeos Therapeutics SA, has secured €9 million in Series A funding.
Novartis is to significantly expand its Sandoz generics business with the acquisition of Fougera Pharmaceuticals Inc, a US specialty dermatology business with net 2011 sales of $429 million. Novartis is paying $1.53 billion in cash.
Like many pharmaceutical companies, H. Lundbeck A/S expects that the loss of patent protection for key medicines will depress earnings in 2012. But offsetting this will be the potential launch of four new products over the next 18 months.
Galecto Biotech AB has expanded its investor syndicate and raised a further €5 million to support the development of its small-molecule modulators of the galectin family of proteins. Total capital raised thus far is €10 million.