BUSINESS INSIGHTS, PHARMA TECH
prnewswire | April 28, 2023
Endo International plc announced that its subsidiaries Endo Ventures Limited and Par Pharmaceutical, Inc. have executed an agreement with Slayback Pharma LLC to distribute Slayback's Prevduo™ (neostigmine methylsulfate and glycopyrrolate injection) pre-filled syringe on an exclusive basis in the U.S. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Prevduo™ in February 2023 for the reversal of the effects of nondepolarizing neuromuscular blocking agents (NMBA) after surgery, while decreasing the peripheral muscarinic effects (e.g., bradycardia and excessive secretions) associated with cholinesterase inhibition following NMBA reversal administration.
Endo will commercialize Prevduo™ through its Par Sterile Products business and expects to launch the product in June 2023.
When launched, Prevduo™ will be the first and only FDA-approved neostigmine–glycopyrrolate combination product in the U.S. Both neostigmine methylsulfate and glycopyrrolate have been approved in the U.S. as single, active ingredient drug products. Neostigmine is always administered in conjunction with glycopyrrolate, and currently, its administration requires two syringes.
"Prevduo™ further strengthens our commitment to supporting healthcare providers and their patients through ready-to-use products that streamline operations," said Scott Sims, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Injectable Solutions & Generics at Endo. "We're proud to partner with Slayback to bring this critical care product to market and help hospitals deliver quality patient care."
"Following the development and FDA approval of Prevduo™, we're pleased to partner with Endo and tap into Endo's proven capabilities in commercializing injectable solutions, including ready-to-use products," said Ajay Singh, Founder and CEO of Slayback Pharma.
Ready-to-use, or RTU, products streamline operations for hospitals by eliminating the need to prepare or transfer the product before patient administration. This may reduce waste and costs, optimize convenience and workflow and reduce the chance for preparation error—all of which support quality patient care.
About Endo
Endo is a specialty pharmaceutical company committed to helping everyone we serve live their best life through the delivery of quality, life-enhancing therapies. Our decades of proven success come from passionate team members around the globe collaborating to bring treatments forward. Together, we boldly transform insights into treatments benefiting those who need them, when they need them.
Read More
BUSINESS INSIGHTS, PHARMACY MARKET
PCI Pharma Services | March 20, 2023
PCI Pharma Services (PCI), a leading global contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO), announced plans for a new 200,000-square-foot facility in Rockford, Illinois to enhance the organization’s capacity in injectable drug-device combination product assembly of both biologics and small molecules. Building on PCI’s leadership in this space with its Philadelphia Biotech Center of Excellence, the new facility is the second expansion building off the success in Philadelphia and will house over 20 dedicated customer suites with multiformat machines for the assembly and packaging of vials, pre-filled syringes, auto-injectors, and pen-cartridge combinations. This machinery can be used for the glucagon-like peptide 1 agonists (GLP-1) class of drugs prescribed to treat diabetes and obesity, as well as those needed for oncology treatment and autoimmune diseases.
PCI’s Rockford location will have extensive product testing capability, state-of-the art top-load cartoning technology, and industry leading injector and pen assembly equipment. Additional capabilities include on-site cold storage, high-speed vial labeling, assembly, and packaging of multiformat autoinjectors, serialization, testing, and drug product release.
“We see the tremendous impact that we can make with patients with this investment,” said Salim Haffar, CEO of PCI Pharma Services. “The need for injectable drug-delivery device combination product capacity and expertise is critical, and we are responding with a world-class facility to address the future demands of our global clients so they can focus on developing therapies to improve the lives of patients with serious chronic conditions.”
The $50 million investment in Rockford will amplify PCI’s specialty drug leadership presence in the Midwest, adding to clinical and commercial sterile fill-finish capabilities in Madison, Wisconsin. The new facility will provide a second hub within the U.S., expanding from PCI’s foundation in the Northeast, with Bedford, New Hampshire’s campus growth in aseptic processing. PCI also has sterile fill-finish capabilities at its Leon, Spain; San Diego, California; and Melbourne, Australia locations. The expansion in Rockford is expected to bring 250 jobs to the region in the next two years, with continued growth over three to five years. The site is expected to be fully operational in summer 2024.
“With this new facility, we will be able to serve all clients focused on injectable drug products including biologics with the equipment and capacity to make life-changing medicines,” said Gil Valadez, Senior Vice President, Commercial Packaging Technology, PCI Pharma Services. “We want to help our clients by managing the technical aspects of drug manufacturing, engineering, and delivery, so they can focus on what’s most important: delivering quality products to meet patient needs. That's what PCI is ultimately all about.”
About the Rockford, IL Facility
Rockford is the largest of PCI’s 30 locations across the U.S., European, and Asia Pacific regions, providing industry-leading services for the clinical and commercial packaging of a diverse portfolio of products and specialized delivery forms destined to reach more than 100 countries across the world. The gated secured facility is classified by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) as Schedule 3. It features temperature and humidity control, an approved Foreign Trade Zone (FTZ) and offers TF1 and Uhlmann blistering, vibratory and slat filler bottling, powder filling, cartoning, carding, kitting and serialization capabilities. Warehouse storage includes freezer storage -15°C to -30°C and cold storage 2°C to 8°C.
About PCI Pharma Services
PCI is a leading global CDMO, providing clients with integrated end-to-end drug development, manufacturing and packaging capabilities that increase their products’ speed to market and opportunities for commercial success. PCI brings the proven experience that comes with more than 50 successful product launches each year and over five decades in the healthcare services business. We currently have 30 sites across seven countries (Australia, Canada, U.S., Ireland, Wales, Germany and Spain) and over 5,000 employees that work to bring life-changing therapies to patients. Leading technology and continued investment enable us to address global drug development needs throughout the entire product life cycle – from manufacturing capabilities through the clinical trial supply chain and into commercialization. Our clients view us as an extension of their business and a collaborative partner with the shared goal of improving patients’ lives.
Read More
PHARMA TECH
PRNewswire | May 17, 2023
Sony Corporation and Astellas Pharma Inc. announced that they have entered into a collaborative research agreement to discover a novel Antibody-Drug Conjugate (ADC) platform in oncology based on Sony's unique polymeric material, "KIRAVIA™*2 Backbone." ADC is expected to selectively deliver anti-cancer drugs to target cells, thereby increasing efficacy and reducing side effects caused by anti-cancer drugs attacking normal cells. The technology to create linkers which conjugates antibodies and drugs, is considered to be a key to development of a better-performing ADC. This collaborative research leverages the flexibility in design and resulting properties such as high capacity and solubility of KIRAVIA Backbone as a linker of ADC, to effectively deliver anti-cancer drugs to targeted cells in a stable manner, aiming to further enhance therapeutic efficacy by achieving high Drug-to-Antibody Ratio (DAR) etc.
The two companies jointly began exploratory research of new linker technology aimed at creating a new ADC platform in July 2022, and the expected profile was obtained in feasibility studies using human cancer cells. Under this agreement, Sony and Astellas will jointly develop and optimize a new ADC platform using the KIRAVIA Backbone as a linker. In addition, Astellas will conduct non-clinical trials of development candidates. Furthermore, in order to build a drug discovery platform not limited to ADC, the two companies have agreed to continue discussions on expanding research partnerships to create new value by combining Sony's cutting-edge technology with Astellas' renowned pharmaceutical capabilities.
"Sony's life science business has accumulated substantial knowledge in the field of cell analysis," said Katsunori Ogawa, Head of Life Science & Technology Business Unit at Sony Corporation. "Through this collaboration, Sony is striving to contribute to the medical and drug discovery fields and provide further social value by leveraging Sony's technological capabilities in the development of anti-cancer drugs therapy, which are expected to grow."
"We are pleased to enter into a joint research agreement with Sony," said Yoshitsugu Shitaka, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer (CScO), Astellas Pharma Inc. "Astellas is working to create innovative drugs from a multifaceted perspective called the Focus Area approach*4, which identifies combinations of biology, therapeutic modality or technology and diseases with high unmet medical needs. The partnership will further strengthen our ability to utilize suitable modalities. It is our expectation that the collaboration will lead to the continuous creation of innovative drugs for patients around the world."
ADC is a modality that combines an antibody and a small molecule such as an anti-cancer drug via a linker. It is expected to selectively deliver anti-cancer drugs to target cells, thereby reducing side effects caused by anti-cancer drugs attacking normal cells.
KIRAVIA™ and KIRAVIA Dyes™ are registered trademarks or trademarks of Sony Group Inc. or its affiliates.
KIRAVIA Backbone is created using the organic polymer technology cultivated in KIRAVIA Dyes™, which Sony independently developed and licensed to reagent manufacturers. It features a high degree of freedom in design, as the three-dimensional structure is programmed and polymerized using an automatic synthesizer. While increasing the number of drugs to be added and cleaving by reacting with intracellular enzymes. Synthesis of linkers with functional properties and selective drug release is expected.
About Astellas
Astellas Pharma Inc.is a pharmaceutical company conducting business in more than 70 countries around the world. We are promoting the Focus Area Approach that is designed to identify opportunities for the continuous creation of new drugs to address diseases with high unmet medical needs by focusing on Biology and Modality. Furthermore, we are also looking beyond our foundational Rx focus to create Rx+® healthcare solutions that combine our expertise and knowledge with cutting-edge technology in different fields of external partners. Through these efforts, Astellas stands on the forefront of healthcare change to turn innovative science into VALUE for patients.
Read More