Pipeline Watch is a weekly snapshot of selected late-stage clinical trial events announced by pharmaceutical and biotech companies at medical and industry conferences, in financial and company presentations, and in company releases and statements.

Investments in private pharmaceutical and biotech companies slumped by 24% in April, with the market being once again dominated by US companies, a Scrip analysis has found.

A preview of the emerging health care companies profiled in the current issue of Start-Up. This month's profile group, "A Brighter Outlook for Cystic Fibrosis Drugs," features profiles of APT Pharmaceuticals, Aridis, and BioMarck Pharmaceuticals. Plus these Start-Ups Across Health Care: Cannasat, Nanobiotix, Reveal Sciences, and Vertebration.

BioMarck Pharmaceuticals is studying the role of the MARCKS protein (myristoylated alanine-rich C kinase substrate) in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and diseases like asthma and cystic fibrosis. In each of these diseases, excessive amounts of mucus are secreted, which leads to obstruction of the lung airways. Experiments in mice showed that inhibiting the protein led to decreased mucus secretion, reduced inflammation in the lungs, and improvements in lung air flow.