Celltrion Inc., of Incheon, South Korea, gained MFDS clearance of Eydenzelt (CT-P42) as a biosimilar referencing Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc./Bayer AG’s Eylea (aflibercept) on May 30. The news comes on the heels of the U.S. FDA approving the first Eylea interchangeable biosimilars on May 20.
The EU has given the go ahead for a large-scale transnational project that will invest €6.9 billion (US$7.45 billion) to address unmet medical need and fill gaps across the pharmaceutical value chain.
A recent hearing in the U.S. House of Representatives highlighted some of the issues Congress has with the agency’s performance, but there were questions as well about the FDA’s statutory authorities. One of these is the lack of statutory authority to require a recall for prescription drugs as well as the deadline for notifying the agency of device recalls, both of which are areas of legislative interest on the part of Congress.
Novo Nordisk A/S’s once-weekly human insulin analogue for adults with type 1 diabetes mellitus could be a useful tool for patients and physicians, the U.S. FDA’s Endocrinologic and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee said May 24, but it also agreed that the risks outweighed the benefits for improving glycemic control.
South Korea’s Celltrion Inc. secured May 22 the European Commission’s go-ahead for Omlyclo (CT-P39) to be the first biosimilar to Genentech Inc./Novartis AG’s Xolair (omalizumab) in Europe for three of its major indications.
Weighing in on the side of 21 drug and device companies accused of knowingly aiding and abetting terrorist attacks against U.S. troops and civilians in Iraq from 2005 to 2011, the U.S. solicitor general is asking the Supreme Court to grant the companies’ petition for cert and then vacate a 2022 appellate court decision in Joshua Atchley v. Astrazeneca plc, remanding it for reconsideration in light of a related opinion the justices handed down a year ago.
Once-daily insulin treatment is getting a challenge from Novo Nordisk A/S’s once-weekly option. The U.S. FDA’s Endocrinologic and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee meets Friday, May 23, to review the BLA for once-weekly Awiqli (insulin icodec), a human insulin analogue from Novo for adults with type 1 diabetes mellitus.
A woman who allegedly made nearly $300,000 last year on insider trading based on undisclosed information about a pending biopharma acquisition will have to disgorge her profits, along with interest, to the U.S. Treasury, but she will face no other penalties.
In lieu of pending guidance, the U.S. FDA’s approval May 20 of Biocon Biologics Ltd.’s Yesafili and Samsung Bioepis Co. Ltd.’s Opuviz as interchangeable biosimilars to Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc.’s Eylea (aflibercept) provides further insight into how the agency is approaching the market exclusivity the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act awards to the first approved interchangeable for any given biologic.