Eli Lilly and Co.’s Ebglyss (lebrikizumab) becomes the latest U.S. entrant in the increasingly competitive atopic dermatitis space, following FDA approval of the IL-13-targeting antibody, which will now go up against other biologics such as established blockbuster Dupixent (dupilumab, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc.), as well as more recently approved Adbry (tralokinumab, Leo Pharma Inc.).
The Nov. 20-21 meeting of the digital health advisory committee will discuss the use of generative artificial intelligence algorithms in medical devices with a focus on the total product life cycle – a theme that suggests a concern on the agency’s part regarding the reliability of these algorithms’ output.
Days ahead of its contentious annual shareholders’ meeting slated for Sept. 19, Masimo Corp. established partnerships with two big players – Google LLC and Qualcomm Technologies Inc. – to significantly expand and support the ecosystem for Wear OS smartwatches by developing a next-generation smartwatch reference platform for original equipment manufacturers.
Exact Sciences Corp. reported performance data for its blood-based colorectal cancer screening test that showed sensitivities of 88.3% for CRC and 31.2% for advanced precancerous lesions at specificity of 90.1% for negative samples confirmed by colonoscopy.
Hiiti Sillo, director of the WHO’s office for regulation and safety, told an audience at this year’s IMDRF meeting in Seattle that WHO is putting the finishing touches on a streamlined product application dossier process, one of several work products that should be ready for publication sometime in 2025.
Three biopharmas debuted on Nasdaq Sept. 13, raising a combined $703 million for two Massachusetts-based companies focused on bifunctional antibodies for autoimmune diseases and cancer, and one Midwestern firm developing peptide therapies for endocrine and metabolic disorders.
Immuneering Corp. CEO Benjamin Zeskind said he is “pleased with enrollment across the full trial” that’s ongoing with IMM-1-104 in cancer, and 30 subjects are due per arm in five arms that the phase IIa experiment includes.
Intercept Pharmaceuticals Inc. lost its uphill battle to convince the U.S. FDA’s Gastrointestinal Drugs Advisory Committee that the risks of its second-line primary biliary cholangitis drug outweigh the benefits. The committee overwhelmingly said the data in the follow-up studies of treating the rare disease with Ocaliva (obeticholic acid), which has accelerated approval from the FDA, was insufficient.
Despite heightened political tensions, both Chinese and U.S. industry officials are working to strengthen ties in the health care and biotech sector, including launching strategic initiatives to foster Sino-U.S. biotech investment and M&A deals. As one of the initiatives, representatives from Hong Kong, China and the U.S. convened at the Bio Hong Kong 2024 conference to launch a global health care M&A and financial investment alliance, along with fostering company and talent growth in Hong Kong.
As Novo Nordisk A/S and Eli Lilly and Co. go head-to-head in the U.S. and Chinese glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RA) market for diabetes and obesity, Novo Nordisk is in innovator gear once more with leading studies of GLP-1s in Alzheimer’s disease.