It has taken just seven weeks from a cold call to completion and the German major has got its hands on a prized asset in Vividion which was on the verge of listing on the NASDAQ. The companies told Scrip how the deal was done.

After multiple failed attempts to treat rare conditions, Marinus is on the cusp of success with ganaxolone in genetic epilepsy, and has secured a new European partner in Orion.

Amgen reported 5% year-over-year revenue growth to $6.5bn in the second quarter, up 11% from Q1. It did not break out Lumakras sales but detailed upcoming data that may support future indications.

The upcoming filing of Lilly's Alzheimer's antibody donanemab dominated the company's second quarter call. Lilly is also developing a new blood test to confirm diagnosis and a second-generation antibody. 

Taking full control of partner Translate Bio means that Sanofi is the only big vaccine company with a wholly-owned mRNA platform in-house but observers say it is too early to declare that the Paris-headquartered group has bagged itself a bargain.

Has AstraZeneca been able to maintain its R&D productivity, even during a pandemic, and with the huge task of delivering a not-for-profit COVID-19 vaccine to the world?AstraZeneca’s Mene Pangalos believes the company has not missed a beat, and can find new energy from finally working together in its new R&D headquarters.

It has taken just seven weeks from a cold call to completion and the German major has got its hands on a prized asset in Vividion which was on the verge of listing on the NASDAQ. The companies told Scrip how the deal was done.

France’s Ipsen has taken an exclusive option on two neurodegenerative disease programs at US biotech Exicure, whose oligonucleotide nanoparticles are taken up by many tissues, including the brain.

Glenmark hopes to launch SaNOtize’s nitric oxide nasal spray for COVID-19 in India by the fourth quarter of 2021 post Phase III trials, as part of wider deal that covers other Asian markets. Can the self-administered product impact market dynamics positioned as the first line of defense against COVID-19?

Japanese firm again links with an earlier venture capital partner and some familiar faces to progress its norovirus vaccine outside Japan.

Merck's new CEO Robert Davis talked about his vision for business development and how the company might use the $9bn gained from the spinout of Organon.

Ipsen has inked a worldwide collaboration pact with BAKX Therapeutics to research, develop, manufacture and commercialize the biotech’s asset BKX-001 as a potential treatment for leukemia, lymphoma and solid tumors.

Taking full control of partner Translate Bio means that Sanofi is the only big vaccine company with a wholly-owned mRNA platform in-house but observers say it is too early to declare that the Paris-headquartered group has bagged itself a bargain.

Sales of the Swiss drug maker's major plaque psoriasis treatment Cosentyx in China quadrupled in the second quarter, despite its price being slashed by more than 60%.

Despite commercial success in biosimilars, Pfizer said it is more interested in investing in innovative therapeutics.

A surprise surge in Roche's R&D spending this year reflects high quality in-house innovation opportunities as well as high prices for external M&A targets, management said.

The company's pharma chief Marie-France Tschudin does not expect Entresto's "unique position" in heart failure to be threatened by SGLT2 inhibitors such as Jardiance and Farxiga, saying those drugs are add-ons that will be used predominantly in diabetes patients.

Poxel’s shift to new therapeutic areas may be necessary despite Japan’s approval for its diabetes drug. Twymeeg looks set to be hamstrung by placebo-controlled studies without outcomes data.

Scrip and Pink Sheet editors join Datamonitor Healthcare analysts to discuss Biogen's Aduhelm for Alzheimer's disease, including the expected launch trajectory, early commercial barriers to uptake and the Medicare reimbursement environment.

Roche’s Evrysdi debuts in India backed by a patient support program ahead of Novartis’ Zolgensma and Biogen’s Spinraza. Spotlights remains on the price tag for the SMA therapy amid hopes that novel approaches such as crowdfunding could also broaden access.

Management tried to sidestep controversy around the approval of Aduhelm and said it remains confident the drug will be reimbursed.

A potential next-generation, 24-valent, pneumococcal vaccine in development by Affinivax and Astellas has shown strong immunogenicity in a Phase II study and is preparing to enter pivotal Phase III trials; if successful, it will target a growing market currently dominated by big pharma players.

Biogen has warned that uptake for its newly approved Alzheimer’s therapy will be slow in the beginning and doctors confirm it will take time to figure which patients can and should be treated.

The value of the COVID-19 market reached more than $8bn in the first quarter, fuelled by mRNA-based vaccines, but the future growth of the sector depends on the rather unpredictable course of the pandemic, and the response of healthcare providers and countries.