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Eli Lilly has signed a deal worth $1.3 billion with privately held Superluminal Medicines to discover and develop small-molecule drugs through AI to treat obesity and other cardiometabolic diseases. Lilly currently dominates the obesity treatment market, which is estimated to be worth $150 billion by the next decade, and is trying to strengthen its foothold in the space through the development of next-generation drugs, acquisitions and partnerships. The deal gives Lilly access to Superluminal's proprietary artificial-intelligence-driven platform to rapidly discover potential drug candidates targeting G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCR) - a class of proteins that can influence a range of physiological processes including metabolism, cell growth and immune responses - the drug developer said on Thursday. In a similar move, Danish rival Novo Nordisk struck a $2.2 billion deal with U.S. biotech Septerna in May to develop oral small-molecule medicines targeting GPCRs for obesity and other cardiometabolic diseases. Lilly has been capitalizing on the overwhelming popularity of the GLP-1 class of medicines, which includes its blockbuster drug Zepbound as well as Novo's Wegovy. It is also developing a keenly watched oral GLP-1 drug, orforglipron, which has failed to meet investors' lofty expectations. The drugmaker teamed up with Hong Kong-listed biotech Laekna last year to develop an...

German pharmaceutical group Bayer (BAYGn.DE), opens new tab announced on Tuesday a deal worth up to $1.3 billion with Kumquat Biosciences to develop the U.S.-based oncology specialist's potential new cancer drug. Under the agreement, Kumquat will be responsible for initiating and completing a phase-Ia study into the drug, a KRAS G12D inhibitor, while Bayer will complete development and commercial activities. Bayer said the deal complements its precision oncology development portfolio in the areas of pancreatic, colorectal and lung cancer. KRAS mutations occur in nearly 25% of human cancers, with the variant targeted by Kumquat's experimental drug still lacking effective treatment options, according to a company statement. Bayer said it has agreed to pay Kumquat up to $1.3 billion, including upfront, clinical and commercial milestones, and additional tiered royalties on net sales. Kumquat, which since its launch in 2019 has also signed agreements with Eli Lilly (LLY.N), opens new tab and Takeda (4502.T), opens new tab, retains an exclusive option to negotiate for participating in profit-loss sharing in the United States under the deal with Bayer. "This collaboration provides Kumquat the financial resources to accelerate its broader clinical pipeline for long-term value," Kumquat CEO Yi Liu said in a statement shared by Bayer.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Insmed's (INSM.O), opens new tab oral drug for a type of lung disease, the company said on Tuesday, making it the first treatment for the chronic condition. Shares of the New Jersey-based drugmaker rose 6% in afternoon trade. Insmed's drug, branded as Brinsupri, targets non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis, a chronic lung condition characterized by permanently damaged airways, leading to persistent cough and excessive mucus production. The condition affects 350,000 to 500,000 adults in the U.S., according to the American Lung Association. Brinsupri works by blocking certain inflammatory enzymes in white blood cells, preventing them from becoming overactive and damaging the lungs. Earlier treatments for the condition focused on controlling symptoms by using antibiotics, surgery or devices such as flutter valves to clear the airways. Insmed's application was based on a late-stage trial involving 1,680 adult and 41 adolescent patients, with the drug significantly reducing the frequency of respiratory symptoms such as chronic cough. The drug was found to be safe and well-tolerated at the two tested doses of 10 milligrams and 25 milligrams. The FDA and the company agreed to make both doses available, leaving the choice to the prescribing physician, CEO William Lewis told Reuters. Both doses will be priced...

Pfizer (PFE.N), opens new tab said on Tuesday its cancer drug Padcev, in combination with Merck's (MRK.N), opens new tab Keytruda, significantly improved survival rates in patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer when administered before and after surgery. The interim results from an ongoing late-stage trial of the combination therapy showed significant improvement in event-free survival – which measures how long a patient remains free from disease recurrence – and overall survival when compared to surgery alone, the company said. "These latest results underscore the practice-changing potential of this combination in earlier stages of bladder cancer, where it has the potential to improve outcomes for even more patients," said Johanna Bendell, Pfizer's oncology chief development officer. In muscle-invasive bladder cancer, the tumor extends beyond the inner lining and penetrates the muscular wall of the organ. It accounts for about 25% of all newly diagnosed bladder cancers and is a particularly aggressive form with a high risk of spreading, according to the National Institutes of Health. Pfizer said it plans to discuss the trial results with global health authorities for potential regulatory filings. The combination therapy leverages anti-PD-1 treatments that block the PD-1 protein to help the immune system combat cancer, where Padcev, an antibody-drug conjugate,...

Drugmaker Abbott India (ABOT.NS), opens new tab reported an 11.5% rise in first-quarter profit on Tuesday, driven by healthy sales in its mainstay pharmaceuticals segment. The company, known for its PediaSure nutrition drink, reported a profit of 3.66 billion rupees ($41.77 million) for the quarter ended June 30, up from 3.28 billion rupees a year ago. Revenue from operations climbed 11.6% to 17.38 billion rupees. KEY CONTEXT Chronic therapies and price-led gains are expected to drive nearly 10% growth in India's pharmaceutical market in the June quarter, analysts said. Abbott, which has a strong presence in chronic treatments such as thyroid and diabetes drugs, is seen leading growth among multinational peers. Peer JB Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals (JBCH.NS), opens new tab last month posted an 8.9% higher quarterly profit, led by healthy domestic demand for its drugs.

Sanofi (SASY.PA), opens new tab said on Tuesday it had stopped supplying Praluent, a popular cholesterol drug jointly developed by the French pharmaceuticals firm and its partner Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, in China due to limited availability. "The surge in demand has led to limited availability in China, and some other countries," Sanofi said in a statement sent to Reuters, adding "at the moment Praluent's supply in China has already stopped." It didn't say when supply would resume. Sanofi said it had "invested to strengthen global production of Praluent, to meet a rising global demand which accelerated sharply over the past two years". The company said clinical experts had found there were other medicines on China's National Reimbursement Drug List that were "safe and appropriate" for patients currently being treated with Praluent and it was working with healthcare providers in China to "ensure a smooth transition for patients". Sanofi is the latest foreign drugmaker to stop supplying popular medications to China. Merck (MRK.N), opens new tab suspended shipments of its blockbuster human papillomavirus vaccine Gardasil to the country in February, citing weak discretionary spending.

Cardinal Health said on Tuesday its unit would buy Solaris Health and the company would provide about $1.9 billion in cash for the deal, as the drug distributor looks to expand its specialty business. Cardinal's specialty business includes costly medicines to treat complex conditions such as cancer and rheumatoid arthritis, and the deal gives it access to a network of community urologists spread across 14 states. Solaris Health provides administrative and management support services to healthcare providers in the urological field. Cardinal said it would buy Solaris from private equity firm Lee Equity Partners and the deal is expected to close by the end of the year.

-Danone is introducing an Oikos brand drink targeting U.S. consumers using weight loss medications such as Wegovy, pledging the dairy-based beverage helps address the common concern of retaining muscle. Patients on GLP-1 medications like Zepbound often shed valuable muscle rather than fat, worrying doctors and requiring diet changes, such as eating more protein. Danone's new drink, called Oikos Fusion, has nutrients such as vitamin D and whey protein that the French company says help build and maintain muscle. Danone is the latest food maker seizing the opportunity to sell new products to consumers dropping weight with GLP-1s, which users usually inject and are sometimes called "the shot." The market is set to grow as drug makers look to develop the appetite-suppressing medication in pill form. U.S. packaged food maker Conagra started labeling its Healthy Choice frozen meals "GLP-1" friendly, while rival Nestle launched Vital Pursuit to serve those on the medicine. The frozen pizzas and pasta bowls generally offer higher amounts of protein and come in smaller portions. Danone earlier this year introduced another high-protein Oikos smoothie to compete with Coca-Cola's wildly popular Fairlife. PepsiCo is also getting into "liquid protein" as Americans add more to their diet. Danone's sales in North America grew more than 2%...

IO Biotech (IOBT.O), opens new tab said on Monday its experimental combination vaccine for a type of skin cancer helped slow the disease's progression in a late-stage study, but narrowly missed the main goal as the results did not show statistical significance. Shares of the drug developer, which had surged as much as 50% before the bell, were down 22.4% in morning trading. Keep up with the latest medical breakthroughs and healthcare trends with the Reuters Health Rounds newsletter. Sign up here. IO Biotech was testing the vaccine, in combination with Merck's (MRK.N), opens new tab Keytruda, in 407 patients having advanced melanoma. The company said patients who received the combination vaccine Cylembio lived without their disease getting worse for a median of 19.4 months, compared to 11 months for those who received Keytruda alone. The result, however, did not meet the margin of statistical significance of 0.045, the company said. "This was a very narrow miss, just by a hair," CEO Mai-Britt Zocca said on a conference call. The company said the combination vaccine was well tolerated with no new safety signals. It also observed a trend toward an improvement in overall survival. IO Biotech plans to meet with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration this...

-Eli Lilly raised its full-year profit and sales forecast on Thursday, betting on surging demand for its blockbuster weight-loss drug, Zepbound, as it targets new markets and looks to grab more share from Novo Nordisk's Wegovy. However, shares of the U.S. drugmaker fell over 10% to $671.54 in premarket trading after data from its oral weight loss drug, orforglipron, disappointed investors. Orforglipron helped patients lose 12.4% of their weight on average after 72 weeks, less than the 14.9% weight loss seen in a previous trial of Novo's Wegovy over 68 weeks and below what analysts were expecting. Lilly competes with Danish drugmaker Novo Nordisk in the fast-growing market for weight-loss drugs known as GLP-1 agonists. These drugs are expected to bring in $150 billion in industry-wide revenue over the next decade. Novo said on Wednesday that it expects continued competition from copycat versions of its blockbuster obesity drug this year and could face layoffs as it battles rising pressure from its main U.S. rival Lilly. Weekly U.S. prescriptions were at 418,597 for Zepbound and at 281,725 for Wegovy for the week ended July 25, according to IQVIA data provided by analysts. Lilly said its share of the U.S. market for incretins, the class of drugs...