Pharma News

The National Institutes of Health launched and is opening enrollment for phase 2 clinical trials that will evaluate at least four potential treatments for long COVID, with additional clinical trials to test at least seven more treatments expected in the coming months. Treatments will include drugs, biologics, medical devices and other therapies. The trials are designed to evaluate multiple treatments simultaneously to identify more swiftly those that are effective.

Merck known as MSD outside of the United States and Canada, announced that the pivotal Phase 3 KEYNOTE-756 trial investigating KEYTRUDA, Merck’s anti-PD-1 therapy, in combination with chemotherapy met one of its dual primary endpoints of pathological complete response (pCR) rate following the neoadjuvant part of the neoadjuvant/adjuvant study regimen in patients with high-risk, early-stage estrogen receptor-positive, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-negative (ER+/HER2-) breast cancer.

Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd. is an integrated, research‐led, global pharmaceutical company, with a presence across Branded, Generics, and OTC segments; with a focus on therapeutic areas of respiratory, dermatology and oncology.

People who contract COVID-19 but never develop symptoms the so-called super dodgers may have a genetic ace up their sleeve. They’re more than twice as likely as those who become symptomatic to carry a specific gene variation that helps them obliterate the virus, according to a new study led by UC San Francisco researchers. 

Additional heartbeats from cardiac chambers, so-called ventricular extrasystoles, may be associated with severe diseases. Researchers at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) use machine learning for their non-invasive localization. This may facilitate and improve future diagnosis and therapy. The researchers use artificial neural networks trained with synthetic data from a realistic simulation model. They report in Artificial Intelligence in Medicine.

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals, Inc, whose mission is to focus on unmet needs and apply proven science and new technology to revolutionize treatment for patients, starting with eye care, announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved XDEMVY (lotilaner ophthalmic solution) 0.25% for the treatment of Demodex blepharitis. XDEMVY, formerly known as TP-03, is the first and only FDA approved treatment to directly target Demodex mites, the root cause of Demodex blepharitis.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved RiVive, 3 milligram (mg) naloxone hydrochloride nasal spray for over-the-counter (OTC), nonprescription use for the emergency treatment of known or suspected opioid overdose. This is the second nonprescription naloxone product the agency has approved, helping increase consumer access to naloxone without a prescription. The timeline for availability and the price of this nonprescription product will be determined by the manufacturer.

Alexion, AstraZeneca Rare Disease, announced that it has entered a definitive purchase and licence agreement for a portfolio of preclinical gene therapy programmes and enabling technologies from Pfizer Inc. (Pfizer). The agreement furthers Alexion and AstraZeneca’s commitment to advancing next-generation genomic medicines with the addition of complementary pipeline assets and innovative technologies.

University of Utah Health researchers have discovered that Metformin, a common drug that’s been used in diabetes treatment for more than half a century, has surprising applications on a cellular level. It can target “zombie-like cells,” called senescent cells, which impact muscle function. Senescent cells secrete factors associated with inflammation that may underlie fibrotic tissue, a hardening or scarring of tissues. Metformin also reduces muscle atrophy. Their findings published in Aging Cell.