Paul Schloesser Associate Editor Sandoz, a generics maker that Novartis plans to spin off later this year, has picked its new headquarters — and it’s only 2.4 miles away from its current digs on the Novartis campus. The Novartis unit said Thursday that it plans to move to an office building in Basel called Elsässertor sometime in mid-2024. Sandoz CEO Richard Saynor said in a news release that the location in the heart of Basel “will allow us to create a working environment that meets our business needs,” citing the talent pool in the Swiss city. Sandoz added that the workspace is designed to allow for “closer collaboration and teamwork.” Sandoz did not immediately respond to queries from Endpoints News. Novartis announced back in August that it planned to spin out Sandoz as its own independent company, which is set to be listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange. Amid concerns ...
Our skin contains specialized long-lived killer cells that protect against intruders. Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have now identified how these cells are formed, and shown that high levels of memory killer cells in cancer tissue correlate with a better survival rate in people with melanoma. The study is published in the journal Immunity. Certain immune T cells called tissue-resident memory cells are formed locally in the skin and other tissue, and protect against infections that they have encountered before. Some of them express proteins that enable them to kill infected cells. These “memory killer cells” can also contribute to the inflammatory skin disorders vitiligo and psoriasis. Recent research has shown that they are also involved in the body’s immune response to various cancers. Varying responses to treatment The memory killer cells have been shown to respond to immunotherapy, a Nobel Prize-winning cancer therapy involving the tweaking/activation of the ...
Survival rate beyond 10 years in children with drug-resistant epilepsy (DRE) was highest after cranial epilepsy surgery and lowest when treated only with antiseizure medications, according to a study published in The Lancet Child and Adolescent Health. This large, retrospective study was the first to compare long-term survival in children with DRE among cohorts treated with medications only, vagus nerve stimulation plus medications, and cranial epilepsy surgery plus medications. Results show that risk of early death was reduced by over 80% after surgery and by 40% after vagus nerve stimulation, compared to medication-only treatment. People with epilepsy have increased mortality rates compared to the age-matched population. Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological conditions, affecting at least 3.4 million people in the United States. Among children with epilepsy, an estimated 20% have DRE. “We provide critical evidence for healthcare decision making for pediatric patients with drug-resistant epilepsy,” said senior ...
After a panel of independent experts endorsed a narrow approval for AstraZeneca and Merck’s Lynparza in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC), the FDA has followed suit.Lynparza can now be used in combination with Johnson & Johnson’s Zytiga and a corticosteroid to treat patients with mCRPC whose tumors have BRCA mutations. The approval limits Lynparza’s use in the mCRPC population to about 10% of patients. The FDA’s decision comes after agency staffers and a committee of outside experts argued that the drug only showed a favorable risk-benefit in that population. Results from the phase 3 PROpel trial showed that the combo cut the risk of disease progression or death by 34% compared with solo Zytiga in newly diagnosed mCRPC patients regardless of mutation status. However, the FDA noted a “significant design flaw” with the trial in its briefing documents ahead of the meeting. Specifically, the FDA argued that the study didn’t ...
eXmoor pharma has received an investment of around $35m in its Series A round to support the expansion of its cell and gene therapy production capability. The fundraise saw the participation of new and existing investors Kineticos Ventures and MVM Partners, respectively. Kineticos Ventures president and CEO Frank Lis is joining eXmoor board as a result of the financing. The investment will allow eXmoor to launch its Cell and Gene Therapy Centre, a 65,000ft2 good manufacturing practice (GMP) facility. The purpose-built facility will help the firm to develop and produce autologous and allogeneic cell therapies in addition to viral vectors. It will see eXmoor leveraging around two decades of in-house facilities design, strategic cell and gene therapy (CGT) process development and transformation of its consultancy experience to become a comprehensive CGT contract development and manufacturing organisation (CDMO). Planned to be opened in Bristol, UK in this July, the facility will ...
Drug pricing crackdowns aren’t the only way lawmakers are looking to reign in pharma’s business practices. With scrutiny of the industry intensifying on Capitol Hill, a Senate committee is now shining a spotlight on how Big Pharma is paying taxes, too. Earlier this month, Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden, D-Ore., released a memo revealing the latest findings of an ongoing investigation into how the industry has used a Trump-era law to reap massive decreases in tax rates. “Big Pharma gets us coming and going — they charge Americans sky-high prices and they pay absolute rock-bottom taxes,” Wyden said in a statement. According to Wyden, the industry has been leveraging a 2017 law that triggered a 40% reduction in the industry’s tax rate since it was enacted. All told, Wyden’s investigation found that in 2019 and 2020, the industry paid an effective tax rate of 11.6%, down from 19.6% on ...
In a new landmark study, University of Minnesota research shows surprising links between human cognition and personality—pillars of human individuality that shape who we are and how we interact with the world. Personality influences our actions, emotions and thoughts, defining whether we are extroverted, polite, persistent, curious or anxious. On the other hand, cognitive ability is the umbrella that reflects our capability for navigating complexity, such as articulating language, grasping intricate mathematics and drawing logical conclusions. Despite the prevailing belief that certain connections exist—for instance, introverted individuals are often perceived as more intelligent—scientists lacked a comprehensive understanding of these intricate connections. The research, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, synthesizes data from over 1,300 studies from the past century, representing more than 2 million participants from 50 countries and integrating data from academic journals, test manuals, military databases, previously unpublished datasets and even proprietary databases of ...
Fresh insights into a protein that causes damage in kidneys and hearts could open up new treatment options for chronic kidney disease, research shows. In a study in mice, scientists found that scarring in kidneys and hearts was driven by a protein called Indian Hedgehog (IHH), which is produced and released by a subset of cells in aged and injured kidneys. Experts say further studies are needed to explore IHH as a potential target for therapies to treat chronic kidney disease (CKD)—a condition that affects 10 percent of the world’s population. CKD is a term used to cover any form of kidney disease that continues for more than a few months. It can affect people of any age, but older people are more likely to experience some level of CKD. While CKD primarily causes damage to kidneys, it is also a major risk factor for accelerated cardiovascular disease and premature ...
IMAGE SOURCE,REUTERS Image caption, An Argentine feminist at a protest (file image) By Oliver Slow BBC News Women in Argentina will no longer require a prescription to get emergency contraception. The government said making the morning-after pill more easily available removed an “important barrier” for those seeking terminations. The move was welcomed by feminist groups, who see it as a sign of progress in the Catholic-majority country. However critics said the move displayed a “failure of pregnancy prevention”. The health ministry said the measure would help avoid unintentional pregnancies by overcoming “difficulties of access to health services, contraception supplies, and education” faced by some. “This removes an important barrier to access,” Valeria Isla, director of sexual and reproductive health at the ministry, told Reuters news agency. “People can have this method of contraception as support before an emergency happens.” Vanessa Gagliardi, leader of the feminist group Juntas y a ...
The European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology (EULAR) has announced the launch of the EULAR Impact of RMDs Survey, an online questionnaire targeted directly at RMD patients. The data collected through this survey will be an important resource for researchers, healthcare professionals, and patients alike, providing a comprehensive database of patient-reported outcomes on their healthcare situation, and how the illness affects their social and occupational lives. By collecting and analysing data from a large number of patients with RMDs on a recurring basis, the survey will provide valuable insights into the burden of disease and help improve the overall care for people living with these conditions. “EULAR is committed to improving the lives of people with rheumatic diseases,” said Dr Anna Molto, chair of the EULAR Research sub-committee of epidemiology and public health and lead of the project. “The launch of this survey is a significant step forward in our ...
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