Novartis’ Mayzent could preserve mobility in MS patients

PharmaTimes | September 12, 2019

Novartis has announced that Mayzent (siponimod) may preserve mobility and brain volume in patients with secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS). The post hoc data analysis showed that the drug could delay median time to EDSS seven - the point at which wheelchair-dependence is reached - by an average of 4.3 years in patients. These results mean that the average time to when patients require a wheelchair could be extended from 12 years to 16.3 years. The data, presented at the 2019 Congress of The European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis, also found that the treatment significantly reduced the loss of cortical grey matter and thalamic volume at one and two years, demonstrating the potential value of Mayzent as a treatment for the debilitating disorder. “Our purpose at Novartis is to deliver treatments that can make a real difference to people’s lives.These latest data support siponimod’s place as an effective therapy for  some of the estimated 38,000 people in the UK living with SPMS,” said Dr Mark Toms, chief scientific officer, Novartis UK.

Spotlight

Injection systems that are attached to the patient's body (on-body delivery system OBDS) minimize possible risks, that can occur when drugs are administered by conventional needle-based injection systems (NIS). 

Spotlight

Injection systems that are attached to the patient's body (on-body delivery system OBDS) minimize possible risks, that can occur when drugs are administered by conventional needle-based injection systems (NIS). 

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PHARMACY MARKET, PHARMA TECH

Kindeva Drug Delivery, Chiesi Group, and H&T Presspart Announce Strategic Partnership for Dose Counter Technology Production

Businesswire | July 12, 2023

Kindeva Drug Delivery, a global leader in contract drug delivery development and manufacturing services and technology, and H&T Presspart (a division of the Heitkamp & Thumann Group), a market leader in respiratory drug delivery systems design, development, and manufacturing, are partnering with Chiesi Group, an international research-focused biopharmaceutical and healthcare group, for the installation of a production line for dose counter (DC) and dose indicator (DI) devices. Combining the specific expertise of each partner, H&T Presspart will manufacture Kindeva Drug Delivery’s dose counters under license for Chiesi Group for their pressurized metered-dose inhaler (pMDI) portfolio. This partnership is a continuation of the agreement signed in 2014 between Kindeva Drug Delivery and H&T Presspart to accelerate the growth of Kindeva Drug Delivery’s dose counter technology. This technology enhances patient safety by providing real-time information on the remaining doses in inhalers, preventing unexpected shortages. H&T Presspart will expand the cleanroom facilities at their Marsberg, Germany, site to support the dose counter production. As part of this strategic partnership, Chiesi Group will use dose counters in their innovative carbon minimal pMDI portfolio, which uses a low Global Warming Potential (GWP) propellant to minimize the climate impact of the inhalers, while maintaining all the therapeutic options that patients suffering from respiratory diseases need. David Stevens, global chief commercial officer of Kindeva Drug Delivery, stated: “Kindeva is pleased to extend this strategic partnership as it solidifies our core objective of improving the lives of patients around the world. Kindeva embraces the responsibility it has in ensuring that patients who depend upon our device technology are reliably supplied, and we believe that this innovative supply chain collaboration further underscores this commitment.” Roberto Della Valle, head of global direct procurement of Chiesi Group, added: “Chiesi, with its patient-centric approach, is dedicated to delivering therapeutic solutions that enhance patients’ health and quality of life. Collaborating with Kindeva and H&T Presspart exemplifies this commitment, and we are thrilled to take this step forward. By providing an inhaler that reassures patients about the remaining dose count, we aim to enhance their safety and confidence.” Christian Kraetzig, president of H&T Presspart, commented: “With our expertise in device industrialization and manufacturing, this agreement marks another step in our journey to becoming a leading development and contract manufacturing partner in drug delivery devices.” About Kindeva Drug Delivery Kindeva Drug Delivery is a global contract development manufacturing organization focused on drug-device combination products. Kindeva Drug Delivery develops and manufactures products across a broad range of complex drug-delivery formats, including injectables (autoinjector, intradermal, microneedle), pulmonary & nasal, and transdermal patches. Its service offering spans early-stage feasibility through commercial scale drug product fill-finish, container closure system manufacturing, and drug-device product assembly. Kindeva Drug Delivery serves a global client base from its nine manufacturing and research and development facilities located in the U.S. and U.K. About Chiesi Group Chiesi is an international, research-focused biopharmaceuticals group that develops and markets innovative therapeutic solutions in respiratory health, rare diseases, and specialty care. The company’s mission is to improve people’s quality of life and act responsibly towards both the community and the environment. By changing its legal status to a Benefit Corporation in Italy, the US, and France, Chiesi’s commitment to create shared value for society as a whole is legally binding and central to company-wide decision-making. As a certified B Corp since 2019, we’re part of a global community of businesses that meet high standards of social and environmental impact. The company aims to reach Net-Zero greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions by 2035. With over 85 years of experience, Chiesi is headquartered in Parma (Italy), operates in 31 countries, and counts more than 6,500 employees.

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VIEWS AND ANALYSIS, PHARMACY MARKET

Altro Pharmaceuticals Teams Up With LSPedia to Provide Cutting-Edge Technology for FDA DSCSA Compliance

PRNewswire | July 31, 2023

LSPedia, a leading SaaS provider specializing in product traceability solutions for the pharmaceutical industry, has partnered with Altro Pharmaceuticals, enabling Altro customers to easily comply with the Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA) ahead of the FDA's final deadline on November 27, 2023. Altro provides expertise and services to pharmaceutical manufacturers and wholesale distributors, helping them expand their businesses, streamline supply chain operations, increase efficiency, and more. Now, its services include proven, worry-free turnkey DSCSA compliance, thanks to LSPedia's easy-to-use, comprehensive OneScan software suite. Sandy Greco, President of Altro Pharmaceuticals, noted, "Getting DSCSA right is essential to the smooth flow of business in the pharma supply chain, so we take it incredibly seriously, and we absolutely want our customers to succeed with it. LSPedia has the industry's best track record for user experience, scalability, and success – we can say for sure we're offering the best service available." LSPedia's OneScan Suite enables manufacturers and wholesalers to quickly achieve full compliance with all DSCSA requirements, including serialization, sending and receiving EPCIS data, verification, and interoperability. Further, the solution includes access to LSPedia's Investigator for Exceptions Management, the industry's gold standard for alerting, resolving, and preventing EPCIS transaction errors. "Altro is a perfect partner for LSPedia," said LSPedia CEO Riya Cao. "With so little time left before the compliance deadline, access and convenience are essential. Altro supports its customers with a deep service portfolio, and there's every reason it should include easy, complete DSCSA compliance." About LSPedia LSPedia is a leading provider of turnkey DSCSA compliance and SaaS solutions in the pharmaceutical industry. CMOs, manufacturers, 3PLs, wholesale distributors, dispensers, and healthcare providers use LSPedia's OneScan solution to make, move, track, verify, ship, and receive serialized products at every point in the supply chain. As the largest processor of serialized data in the industry, LSPedia builds solutions with workflow, automation, and data security at their core. OneScan delivers flexible integrations, high-performance product verification, and state-of-the-art EPCIS data exchange; LSPedia's Investigator platform is the gold standard for serialization exceptions management, as the first collaborative platform to resolve EPCIS errors and supply chain issues in real time.

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Pharmacy Market

Baudax Bio Acquires TeraImmune, Inc.

Globenewswire | July 03, 2023

Baudax Bio, Inc. a pharmaceutical company focused on innovative products for acute care and related settings, announced the acquisition of TeraImmune, a privately held a biotechnology company focused on discovery and development of novel Treg-based cell therapies for autoimmune diseases. “This combination blends the world class scientific expertise of the TeraImmune team with the Baudax team’s proven ability to execute clinical development programs, which we believe is a win for the shareholders of both companies,” said Ms. Henwood. “This merger adds TeraImmune’s TI-168 asset to the Baudax portfolio—a promising next-generation, autologous FVIII TCR-Treg cell therapy candidate to eliminate clotting factor VIII (FVIII) inhibitors in Hemophilia A patients. Hemophilia A is a rare genetic bleeding disorder that is caused by a lack of FVIII, with an Investigational New Drug (IND) application already FDA-cleared. We believe this combination can enable, with a modest initial budget, activating the Phase 1/2a Clinical Trial of TI-168 for Treatment of HA. We believe this is an attractive therapeutic area, with established preclinical proof of concept in TI-168 through successes observed in hemophilic animal models. We believe this platform, with customization to the target condition, has potential for clinical application in management of Myasthenia Gravis, Pemphigus Vulgaris and combination therapies for other conditions such as Organ Transplantation, MS and other auto-immune disorders.” “Concurrently, we intend to continue to progress the development of our existing Neuromuscular Blockade (NMB) portfolio at a prudent pace,” continued Ms. Henwood. “With the positive data obtained from our Phase 2 trial of BX1000, we continue to believe that when combined with our reversal agent BX3000 our NMB regimen may provide improved control of neuromuscular paralysis for surgical patients and deliver the first innovation in NMB in decades.” “With IND clearance from the FDA already in hand for TI-168, this transaction permits the continued development of this promising asset,” said Yong Chan Kim, PhD, Co-Founder of TeraImmune. “We are looking forward to working with Gerri Henwood and the excellent clinical development team at Baudax to advance this asset to its full potential,” said Jihoon (Jay) Park, PhD, Co-Founder of TeraImmune. Daniel Chai, former Board Member of TeraImmune and managing partner of Turret Capital Management said, “We are very excited to see the results that will be driven by the combination of an impressive leadership team and how many lives that can be impacted by the development of this platform technology.” Gerri Henwood, President and Chief Executive Officer of Baudax Bio, will continue as CEO of the combined entity. In conjunction with the transaction, Yong Chan Kim, Ph D, former Chief Executive Officer of TeraImmune, will be appointed to the Board of Directors of Baudax. About the Transaction The acquisition of TeraImmune was structured as a stock-for-stock transaction whereby all TeraImmune outstanding equity interests were exchanged for a combination of shares of Baudax common stock, shares of newly designated convertible Series X Non-Voting Convertible Preferred Stock. Subject to shareholder approval of the conversion, each share of Series X Non-Voting Convertible Preferred Stock will automatically convert into 1,000 shares of common stock, subject to certain beneficial ownership limitations set by each holder. On a pro forma basis and based upon the number of shares of Baudax common stock and preferred stock issued in the acquisition, Baudax equity holders immediately prior to the acquisition will own approximately 18% of the combined Company (on an as-converted, fully-diluted basis and excluding certain out-of-the-money warrants held by Baudax’ equity holders) immediately after these transactions. The acquisition was unanimously approved by the Board of Directors of Baudax and the Board of Directors of TeraImmune. The closing of the transaction was not subject to the approval of Baudax shareholders. Nobel Capital provided a fairness opinion to the Baudax Board of Directors. About Baudax Bio Baudax Bio is a pharmaceutical company focused on innovative products for acute care and related settings. The Company has a pipeline of innovative pharmaceutical assets including two clinical-stage, novel neuromuscular blocking (NMBs) agents, one that recently completed a Phase II clinical trial and an additional unique NMB undergoing a dose escalation Phase I clinical trial, as well as a proprietary chemical reversal agent specific to these NMBs, which is currently undergoing nonclinical and manufacturing studies to prepare for an expected IND filing in the summer of 2023.

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