Will Covid-19 Change the Face of Vaccine Development?
“Significant investment, in both time and money, is needed to advance a vaccine candidate to market,” Thomas Lingelbach, CEO of French vaccine developer Valneva, told me. “In addition to the extensive clinical trial recruitment and separate trials for children and infants, vaccine development takes between 10 to 15 years depending on the disease area and its complexity, and it is not until the final three years of development that efficacy is indicated.”
How to launch a drug in a pandemic with Immunomedics
During the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, the FDA has continued in its normal role of approving safe and effective drugs. But how do pharma companies go about bringing a new drug to market during the pandemic? Immunomedics’ chief commercial officer Brendan Delaney explains how his company has successfully facilitated the treatment of US patients with its first ever drug, Trodelvy, which was approved at the end of April. Immunomedics’ first approved is Trodelvy, an ADC indicated for heavily treated metastatic TNBC. Credit: Shutterstock.
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Saturday Special- Colin speaks with Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong
Colin talks with Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong who is not only a Doctor helping to fight Covid-19 but also owns the LA Times and is a minority owner of the Lakers. Dr. Shiong talks about the things we are learning about the disease and why it is so much more dangerous than previous pandemics
Motus GI receives patent for Pure-Vu’s sensing, suction control
Motus GI has receiving a new United States Patent for the sensing technology and suction control on its Pure-Vu System, a device that fits onto the end of an endoscope to help with real-time cleansing during colonoscopy, according to a company press release. The Pure-Vu system uses pressurized water to loosen debris in the colon before suctioning it out during the procedure. It helps mitigate the challenges presented by poor bowel preparation.
Bill Gates among investors as Cambridge Science Park-based Cerevance raises $45m to fight brain diseases
Bill Gates and GV have joined in a $45million Series B funding round for Cerevance, the pharmaceutical company with a Cambridge Science Park base. The company said it will use the money to continue identifying novel therapeutic targets for central nervous system diseases, such as Alzheimer’s.
Ansun Seeks to Reprise Chinese Covid-19 Drug Trial Results in U.S.
When the coronavirus pandemic shook up Ansun Biopharma Inc.’s clinical-trial plans, company leaders knew they had to change course. San Diego-based Ansun, which has raised $185 million in venture capital since 2018, develops drugs for viral respiratory diseases. One medicine it is testing in late-stage clinical trials could help hospitalized adults with weakened immune systems who have parainfluenza infections, which cause respiratory illnesses.
Funding talks for Scottish production of potential Covid-19 vaccine
A specialty vaccine company is seeking grant funding to ramp up production of a potential inoculation against Covid-19 from its Scottish laboratory. French-headquartered Valneva is in discussions with the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) after partnering with US-listed Dynavax to develop a vaccine candidate in response to the coronavirus pandemic. The project is currently at the pre-clinical stage, but is expected to reach clinical trials before the end of the year.
VIVEX to Expand Footprint in Florida to Support Regenerative Medicine Technologies
Back injuries are no joke. Even minor muscle strains can inhibit activities for some time. More serious injuries create greater challenges and often require more stringent treatments, which is where companies like VIVEX Biologics play a significant role. At the end of April, VIVEX published clinical data assessing VIA Disc as a potential treatment for symptomatic degenerative disc disease. VIVEX’s VIA Disc is a non-surgical, injectable treatment option for patients suffering from chronic lower back pain resulting from DDD. Degenerative disc disease is the most common cause of chronic lower back pain in adults, which is the leading cause of disability across the globe, with a cost of about $87.6 billion. There are few treatment options for DDD, with most patients having to use opioids to manage the pain or surgery for patients who cannot manage their disease with medication.
