News

ReViral gets series A funding

Country
United Kingdom

The UK-based antiviral drug discovery company ReViral Ltd has raised $21 million in a Series A funding round to support development of a new treatment for infections caused by the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) that affects infants and older adults.

Laboratoris Sanifit gets venture funding

Country
Spain

Laboratoris Sanifit SL, which is developing products for calcification disorders, has raised €36.6 million in a Series C financing from venture capitalists to advance its lead product to protect against the risk of cardiovascular events associated with haemodialysis.

Shield Therapeutics plans UK IPO

Country
United Kingdom

Shield Therapeutics, a UK-based specialty pharmaceutical company, plans to raise up to  £110 million in an initial public offering of its shares on the London Stock Exchange to support the development of two late-stage products for the hospital market.

FDA extends indication for Brilinta

Country
United Kingdom

The US Food and Drug Administration has extended the approved indication for the blood-thinning drug Brilinta (ticagrelor) to include the long-term use in patients with a history of heart failure. The approval was announced on 3 September.

New cholesterol drug is approved

Country
United States

Repatha (evolocumab), a new drug for lowering cholesterol in patients with cardiovascular disease or familial hypercholesterolemia, has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Developed by Amgen, the drug received a positive opinion from the European Medicines Agency in May.

US footprint for Immatics

Country
Germany

Germany-based Immatics Biotechnologies GmbH has launched a subsidiary in the US with the support of the MD Anderson Cancer Center in order to develop adoptive cellular therapies for the treatment of a range of cancers.

Merus obtains financing

Country
Netherlands

Merus BV of the Netherlands has entered into an agreement with investors to sell up to €72.8 million in Series C preferred shares to support the development of its bispecific antibody therapeutics which are based on the company’s own transgenic mouse technology.

Valeant to acquire Sprout for $1 billion

Country
United States

Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc has announced plans to acquire Sprout Pharmaceuticals Inc - just two days after Sprout received US regulatory approval to launch a new drug for low sexual desire in premenopausal women.

New drug for sexual desire disorder

Country
United States

A new drug intended to treat low sexual desire in women has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration. Addyi (flibanserin) is the first pharmaceutical for this condition, which is known as hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD).

Lundbeck restructuring overshadows sales report

Country
Denmark

H. Lundbeck A/S produced some promising sales figures in its report for the first half year but this was overshadowed by another, more severe, cost cutting exercise by its newly appointed chief executive, Kåre Schultz.