A new Swedish company, Galecto Biotech AB, has received venture funding to develop small-molecule modulators of the galectin family of proteins that could potentially treat fibrosis, inflammation and other diseases.
Apogenix GmbH of Germany has received €2.3 million from the German government to explore a new indication for its lead cancer product, APG101, which is a fusion protein. The new indication is myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS).
Zealand Pharma A/S has received €3 million in milestone payments from the Helsinn Group of Switzerland following progress in the early-stage development of a new peptide drug for the treatment of diarrhoea induced by chemotherapy.
The US Food and Drug Administration has approved Prevnar 13, a pneumococcal 13-valent conjugate vaccine, for people 50 years and older to prevent pneumonia and invasive disease caused by the bacterium, Streptococcus pneumoniae.
Researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and colleagues have described how antigenic drift occurs on the influenza virus opening the possibility that more rational designs for influenza vaccines could be created in the future.
A novel study that will look at the relative efficacy of two marketed rheumatoid arthritis drugs has been initiated by UCB SA. The post-marketing study will compare UCB’s Cimzia (certolizumab pegol) with Abbott’s Humira (adalimumab).
The European Medicines Agency has announced the start of a safety review of aliskiren-containing medicines following a decision by Novartis, the developer, to stop a Phase 3 study of the drug in a new indication.
Sanofi SA has agreed to pay up to €180 million to privately-held Scil Technology GmbH for exclusive rights to the German company’s preclinical programme for cartilage regeneration. The programme is based on the rhCD-RAP protein.
AstraZeneca Plc has struck deals with companies operating in China and Japan giving it access to novel compounds in the therapeutic areas of oncology and diabetes. The separate deals involve preclinical and clinical assets.
Paion AG has announced significant staff cuts and a reduction in the compensation of its executive team in order extend the company’s cash runway and secure more time to reach a partnering agreement for its sedative, remimazolam.