Public Company Edition: June has seen 14 initial public offerings by drug developers (and one big biopharma funder) after there were only 15 from January through May – and the month isn’t over yet. Follow-on and other offerings also are hitting the market at a rapid pace.

While the main role of SARS-CoV-2 antibody testing is currently limited to determining exposure to the virus in populations, the scientific community is working hard to define the neutralizing properties of the antibodies detected, and the duration of the immune response. As a result, antibody testing could be here to stay for the long term for monitoring populations, testing vaccines and selecting patients for trials of a variety of new therapies to treat numerous conditions.

Italy must ensure that ongoing efforts to tackle the coronavirus crisis do not rely on single suppliers, the country's medtech industry body said after DiaSorin looked likely to be the sole winner of a major COVID-19 diagnostics tender.

Abbott has launched its first COVID-19 antibody test to help determine if a person has been previously infected with the virus. The diagnostics giant said it intends to ship a total of 4 million tests in April.