Newron Pharmaceuticals S.p.A reported a fall in revenue and a widening of its annual operating loss in 2014 as it prepared to bring its first product to market – an add-on treatment for mid-to-late stage Parkinson’s disease.
A prostate cancer vaccine which has been in development for more than a decade is now the subject of an exclusive option agreement between at Bavarian Nordic A/S of Denmark and Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, the total value of which could reach $975 million.
The Nikon Corporation of Japan has made a strategic move into the healthcare sector with plans to acquire Optos Plc of the UK for £259.3 million. Best known as a producer of cameras, Nikon began a strategic review of its operations as film-based cameras started giving way to the new digital technologies.
A new treatment for polycystic kidney disease, Jinarc (tolvaptan), has been recommended for approval by the European Medicines Agency. Developed by Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co, Jinarc is designed to treat a rare, inherited form of the disorder that affects about four in 10,000 people in the EU.
The European Medicines Agency is recommending a conditional marketing authorisation for Zykadia (ceritinib), a treatment for non-small cell lung cancers which are driven by a mutation of the anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) gene.
A new indication has been recommended for Avastin (bevacizumab) in Europe, setting the Roche drug on course to be registered for a total of six major cancer indications. The new indication, which awaits formal approval from the European Commission, is for advanced cervical cancer.
The 2014 annual report of Circassia Pharmaceuticals Plc shows that the company is making progress towards a goal that very few biotechs have been able to achieve – bringing a product to the market without relying on out-licensing to fund the process.
Belgium-based Cardio3 BioSciences SA has raised €32 million through a private placement of its shares with investors in the US and Europe. The funds will support its cell therapy for the treatment of heart failure as well as recently acquired chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) technology.
Two months into his new job as chief executive of UCB SA, Jean-Christophe Tellier said the plan is to keep the company’s strategy focused on central nervous system disorders and immunology, whilst taking some risks on experimental treatments for Parkinson’s disease and lupus erythematosus.
MorphoSys reported lower revenue and a loss in 2014. But during a briefing with analysts on 26 February, management said it will initiate more clinical trials this year and pursue possible in-licensing opportunities in order to strengthen its in-house antibody portfolio.