LONDON – Controversy has erupted over COVID-19 vaccines dosing after the U.K. said it is to prioritize giving as many people as possible a single dose of the two currently approved products, rather than two doses three or four weeks apart, as scheduled on their labels. The move prompted a sharp rebuke from FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn and Peter Marks, director of FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation, who said any such change “is not rooted in the science.”
HONG KONG – India’s conditional approval on Jan. 3 of a COVID-19 vaccine developed domestically by Bharat Biotech International Ltd. but still in phase III trials has sparked concerns about its safety. The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) gave emergency authorization to the product, Covaxin, along with the Astrazeneca plc and Oxford University vaccine Covishield. The DCGI said the conditional approval granting “restricted use in emergency situation” for Covaxin was done in “clinical trial mode” to account for the fact that the shot is still being tested. But the rush to approve it has created controversy and confusion.
The latest global regulatory news, changes and updates affecting medical devices and technologies, including: GAO says wound care spending dropped between 2016 and 2018; FDA updates COVID testing data; May 2019 Q-sub guidance appears in final form.
Regulatory snapshots, including global submissions and approvals, clinical trial approvals and other regulatory decisions and designations: Accuray, Bioserenity, Nirmidas Biotech, Spark Biomedical, Trinity Biotech.
COVID-19 vaccines have taken most of the limelight lately, but therapies are making progress, too, with San Diego-based Atyr Pharma Inc. and Cerecor Inc., of Rockville, Md., separately offering favorable phase II news.
Relief spread across the world in December when the first two mRNA COVID-19 vaccines received emergency use approvals, although that deep sigh was short-lived as a highly-transmissible SARS-COV-2 mutation began to make its rounds, highlighting the need for continued research to strengthen the arsenal.
The exceptional and speedy response in bringing safe and effective vaccines and therapeutics to combat COVID-19 has kept investors engaged and supportive. As a result, not only have companies involved in this research and development benefited, but so has the sector as a whole. Those biopharma companies have enjoyed significant jumps in their share values, with the BioWorld Drug Developers index closing up 4.6% in December and up 29% for 2020.
Regulatory snapshots, including global drug submissions and approvals, clinical trial approvals and other regulatory decisions and designations: Antengene, Arcturus, Ascentage, Atriva, Chipscreen, Cure, Genentech, Marius, Marker, Moderna, Ovoca, Precigen, Roche, Zosano.
RSS
