News

John Reed, the global head of research and development at Sanofi SA, has left the France-based multinational and will be replaced on an interim basis by Dietmar Berger, currently chief medical officer and global head of development. Dr Reed led R&D at Sanofi since joining the company in 2018. His departure was announced by Sanofi on 13 February. Shortly thereafter, Johnson & Johnson Inc announced his appointment as executive vice president for pharmaceutical R&D.

The UK medical research charity, LifeArc, is one of three donors of a £1 million award to researchers at University College London, UK, who are pioneering new therapies for motor neuron disease. This is a neurodegenerative disease that affects the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord resulting in a person’s loss of voluntary movement. The two other donors are the Motor Neuron Disease Association and the My Name’5 Doddie Foundation.

Rewind Therapeutics SA of Belgium has recruited a new investor to support its programme for treating neurological diseases by restoring the remyelination function of the central nervous system. Sunstone Life Science Ventures A/S, an independent European investment firm, has joined the syndicate supporting Rewind which includes Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund, M Ventures and others.

Finland-based TILT Biotherapeutics Ltd has raised €22 million to advance its pipeline of oncolytic viruses to treat cancer. The immunotherapies have been equipped with molecules, including cytokines, that can be delivered locally and systemically to modify the tumour microenvironment and prevent the suppression of immune responses to cancer. The funding will enable the company to advance a group of candidate therapies, including the lead asset TILT-123, in clinical trials. This will be done in combination with immune checkpoint inhibitors.

Scenic Biotech BV of the Netherlands is to work with a unit of the US National Institutes of Health to advance its therapeutic programme for the treatment of Niemann-Pick Type C (NPC) disease, a severe, progressive neurological disorder. Scenic is developing a small molecule compound for the disorder by identifying genetic modifiers. These are naturally occurring genes that compensate for mutations that are responsible for severe diseases. The goal of the collaboration is to get clinical insight into genes that might reduce the severity of NPC in patients.

In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, CEPI, a public-private partnership working to improve global access to new vaccines, is investing in manufacturing capacity in Africa. On 19 January, it announced an agreement with Institut Pasteur in Dakar, Senegal to invest up to $50 million over 10 years to expand capacity. This will include capacity to produce routine immunisation vaccines across multiple technologies, and reserve capacity to supply new vaccines in the event of an emergency. The countries covered by the agreement are in Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean.

AstraZeneca Plc continued to diversify its portfolio in 2022 with medicines for rare diseases contributing 16% of total revenue – the third largest component after oncology and drugs for cardiovascular and renal diseases. This followed the company’s $39 billion acquisition of Alexion Pharmaceuticals in July 2021, a deal that broadened its product profile and gave it a new footprint in the US. Work is underway to set up a new research site in Kendall Square, Cambridge, US, which would complement the company’s new facilities in Cambridge, UK.

Lundbeck A/S delivered revenue of DKK 18.2 billion ($2.62 billion) in 2022 supported by double digit growth for its four main products for neurological disorders. At the same time, it outlined plans for multiple investments, taking advantage of a period during which it expects a limited financial impact from patent expiries.

Long-term data from two Phase 3 trials of Cosentyx (secukinumab), an approved drug for plaque psoriasis and other inflammatory indications, have shown sustained efficacy and symptom improvement in patients with hidradenitis suppurativa (HS). HS is a recurrent skin disease causing abscesses that can lead to wounds and scarring. The two trials enrolled more than 1,000 patients in 40 countries.

The Roche Group has reported positive data from a Phase 3 programme of the monoclonal antibody crovalimab in people with paroxysmal nocturnal haemoglobinuria (PNH), a rare and life-threatening blood condition. PNH occurs when red blood cells are destroyed by the complement system, part of the innate immune system. Participants in the second of two studies had not been previously treated with complement inhibitors.