Delivery technologies

Daiichi Sankyo inks Glycotope ADC deal

31-Oct-2017 By Flora Southey

Daiichi Sankyo Company has signed an option agreement to develop Glycotope’s antibody drug conjugate (ADC) to target various cancers including ovarian, lung and breast tumours.

Novartis to pay $3.9 bn for radiopharma drug & biz

31-Oct-2017 By Flora Southey

Novartis has announced plans to buy radiopharmaceutical firm Advanced Accelerator Applications (AAA), which will add neuroendocrine tumour treatment Lutathera to its portfolio.

Curevac starts work on RNA-based drug plant with capacity for Lilly deal

30-Oct-2017 By Gareth Macdonald

Curevac AG has started building a RNA therapeutics plant in Tubingen, Germany.

InMed’s eye-catching cannabinoid ‘lense’ for drug delivery

30-Oct-2017 By Flora Southey

InMed Pharmaceuticals is developing a gel-based cannabinoid drug for eye diseases such as glaucoma, which it says could be cheaper and more accessible than cannabinoid-based products on the market.

news in brief

STA to open catalyst screening centre in Changzhou in November

19-Oct-2017 By Gareth Macdonald

STA Pharmaceutical Co is setting up a metal catalyst-screening center at its facility in Changzhou, China.

Titan tests implant tech to curb opioid overdose

04-Oct-2017 By Flora Southey

Titan has teamed with Opiant to investigate skin implant technology in the administration of opioid antagonists over extended periods, to combat opioid relapse and overdose in outpatients.

Biotech Week Boston

Shire: Getting smart with delivery tech key in developing orphan drugs

04-Oct-2017 By Dan Stanton

Rare disease therapies need to be administered in a way that suit the patient according to Shire CEO Flemming Ørnskov, who says smart, flexible delivery devices are core to the firm's product development strategy.

Roche Spanish plant becomes eighth solid dose site for Recipharm

20-Sep-2017 By Dan Stanton

Recipharm has acquired a Spanish manufacturing plant and signed a supply deal with former owner Roche for a range of solid dose products worth €35m a year.

Dry powder development: Vectura’s BI alternative backed by Pulmatrix

19-Sep-2017 By Flora Southey

Vectura has advanced plans to develop a dry powder inhaler to treat patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) for the US market.

GSK outlines multi-site plan for new US COPD med Trelegy Ellipta

19-Sep-2017 By Gareth Macdonald

The APIs for the newly US approved three-in-one COPD drug Trelegy Ellipta will be made at facility in Singapore according to GSK.

Update

Single shot in 'tiny coffee cups’ could deliver multiple vaccines, MIT

18-Sep-2017 By Dan Stanton

3-D microparticles which degrade at differing rates in the body could allow multiple doses of drugs or vaccines to be administered in a single injection, say MIT researchers.

BMS inks $105m deal to access Halozyme drug delivery tech

14-Sep-2017 By Dan Stanton

Bristol-Myers Squibb will also make up to $160m in milestone payments for each candidate developed using Halozyme Therapeutics’ large-volume biologics delivery platform.

Oramed looking for commercialisation partner for oral insulin in US

06-Sep-2017 By Dan Stanton

Oramed is eying up commercial partnerships for its oral insulin candidate following a positive meeting with the US FDA to discuss an appropriate approval pathway.

Gilead aims to expand CAR-T manufacturing capabilities post-Kite acquisition

01-Sep-2017 By Dan Stanton

Gilead says it is committed to driving down costs of CAR-T manufacturing after agreeing to buy late-stage cell and gene therapy firm KitePharma for $11.9bn.

‘A new frontier:’ US FDA approves Novartis’ $475,000 CAR-T cell cancer therapy

31-Aug-2017 By Dan Stanton

Kymriah (tisagenlecleucel), made at the former-Dendreon site in New Jersey, has become the first gene modified cell therapy to be approved in the US.

US FDA says Acorda can't file Inbrija NDA and asks for production data

29-Aug-2017 By Gareth Macdonald

The US FDA has refused to let Acorda Therapeutics Inc. file an NDA for Inbrija, its inhalable version of levodopa.

Catalent looking to parenteral dosage form capability for future expansion

29-Aug-2017 By Dan Stanton

Catalent says it will focus its M&A strategy to fill the injectables capability gap in its CDMO offering.

AZ confirms Macclesfield plan but says “wait to see” Brexit strategy unchanged

29-Aug-2017 By Gareth Macdonald

AstraZeneca has said it will wait to see how Brexit negotiations progress before deciding whether to make mid-to-large scale manufacturing investments in the UK.

Being for the $11.9bn benefit of investors of Kite: Gilead jumps into CAR-T

28-Aug-2017 By Dan Stanton

Gilead will add a late-stage CAR T-cell candidate and a facility in California capable of treating 5,000 patients per year through the $11.9bn deal.

Lonza expands Swiss drug product site, adds 50 jobs

25-Aug-2017 By Flora Southey

Lonza will feed demand for its drug quality testing and formulation capabilities through an expansion at its Drug Product Services site in Basel, Switzerland.

AstraZeneca ups its mRNA stake through €25m Ethris deal

22-Aug-2017 By Dan Stanton

AstraZeneca has entered a five-year collaboration to develop therapies for respiratory diseases based on Ethris’ messenger RNA (mRNA) technology.

Aerie Pharma to use DSM polymers to develop eye drug delivery tech

16-Aug-2017 By Staff reporter

Aerie Pharmaceuticals Inc will use a DSM polymer technology to develop an implant to deliver AR-13154, its wet AMD drug candidate.

Alexion ends Moderna mRNA pact

28-Jul-2017 By Flora Southey

Alexion Pharmaceuticals says it is reducing R&D operations and terminating mRNA-focused preclinical partnerships.

Recipharm installs dedicated production line for prostate cancer depot

26-Jul-2017 By Dan Stanton

Recipharm has installed a dedicated production line to make prostate cancer drug Liproca Depot for Swedish pharma firm LIDDS AB.

Mitsubishi Tanabe to pay $1.1bn for Parkinson's drug formulator Neuroderm

25-Jul-2017 By Gareth Macdonald

Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma has agreed to pay $1.1bn (€943m) to acquire Parkinson’s disease focused formulation and drug-device developer Neuroderm Ltd.

Glenmark selects Cyndea to make gel capsule drugs

19-Jul-2017 By Flora Southey

Cyndea Pharma and Glenmark Pharmaceuticals have partnered to make generic soft-gelatin capsule products for multiple markets.

US FDA reaffirms hold on oral Proellex trials prompting Repros rethink

19-Jul-2017 By Gareth Macdonald

The US FDA has told Repros Therapeutics Inc. a new trial is needed to prove oral Proellex is safe, prompting the firm to consider refocusing on a vaginally-delivered formulation of the endometriosis candidate.

Nanoparticle delivery tech targets rare lung disease

10-Jul-2017 By Flora Southey

Researchers at London, UK-based Imperial College are developing a technology to transport drugs directly to the lungs of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) patients.

Bayer ends methamphetamine abuse deterrent partnership with Acura

06-Jul-2017 By Dan Stanton

Bayer has pulled-out of a development and licensing deal for a pseudoephedrine containing product based on Acura Pharmaceuticals’ methamphetamine resistant technology, Impede.

Pump up the volume: Cellnovo adding insulin device line in Romania

04-Jul-2017 By Flora Southey

French technology firm Cellnovo has selected Flex Ltd to build a production line in Romania, to manufacture insulin cartridges for its diabetes management system.

Microneedle patch stable, painless and simple say researchers

29-Jun-2017 By Flora Southey

The team behind a microneedle patch designed to administer influenza vaccines say it has increased thermostability compared to needle and syringe immunisation methods.

Opiant has new Narcan nasal spray patent listed in US FDA orange book

29-Jun-2017 By Gareth Macdonald

Opiant Pharmaceuticals says it has strengthened its IP position for the emergency opioid overdose treatment Narcan nasal spray.

Pfizer starts work on Missouri biotherapeutics R&D hub

28-Jun-2017 By Gareth Macdonald

Pfizer is building a $200m (€179m) R&D centre in Chesterfield, Missouri at which it will consolidate biotherapeutics process development operations in the region.

Lonza’s $5.5bn Capsugel takeover cleared by regulators

27-Jun-2017 By Gareth Macdonald

Lonza expects to complete its $5.5bn (€5.2bn) takeover of Capsugel SA in the next few days having secured approval from competition authorities around the world.

Zynerba starts Ph I study of cannabinoid pain patch

26-Jun-2017 By Gareth Macdonald

Zynerba Pharmaceuticals Inc has begun a Phase I trial of cannabinoid patch it is developing for fibromyalgia and peripheral neuropathic pain.

Corning life science focus: '21st century glass for 21st century drugs'

21-Jun-2017 By Dan Stanton

Corning says it is on the brink of capturing an increased share of the $12bn glass quality and packaging markets through material advancements in the space.

Takeda inaugurates €100m German oral solid dose plant

20-Jun-2017 By Staff Reporter

Takeda has completed a €100m ($112m) oral solid dosage production facility in Germany.

Adamis has not set US price for newly approved rival to Mylan's $600 EpiPen

19-Jun-2017 By Gareth Macdonald

The US FDA has approved Symjepi, a rival to Mylan’s emergency anaphylaxis treatment EpiPen made by Adamis Pharmaceuticals Corporation.

US FDA lifts hold on Inovio's cancer vaccine trials after firm answers device questions

15-Jun-2017 By Gareth Macdonald

Inovio Pharmaceuticals has started Phase III trials of its DNA-based human papillomavirus therapy VGX-3100 after the US FDA lifted a clinical hold imposed list year.

'Talking' smart pill looks to overhaul prescription opioid space and stop abuse

08-Jun-2017 By Dan Stanton

Pop Test Abuse Deterrent Technologies has received a patent for an opioid drug delivery and abuse deterrent ‘smart pill’ it says can prevent death, theft, diversion and counterfeiting.

Takeda breaks ground on $45m Ninlaro plant in Ireland

06-Jun-2017 By Staff Reporter

Takeda has begun construction of an Irish facility to support production of its orally delivered blood cancer peptide Ninlaro (ixazomib).

Vetter inks ‘pain-free’ needle deal to meet alternative drug delivery demand

05-Jun-2017 By Flora Southey

Vetter Pharma has signed a strategic agreement to develop Microdermics’ microneedle drug delivery technology.

Cure Pharma’s API delivery tech on the tip of the tongue

30-May-2017 By Flora Southey

Cure Pharmaceutical has submitted a patent application for an oral film delivery technology it says can combine several active pharmaceutical ingredients without negative interaction.

Consolidated vaccine sector urgently needs a workforce booster shot, Sanofi

16-May-2017 By Dan Stanton

Long life-cycles and significant consolidation in the manufacturing space have led to a lack of skilled workers in the vaccine space, says Sanofi Pasteur.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc to buy Patheon NV for $7.2bn

15-May-2017 By Gareth Macdonald

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc has announced its intention to buy Patheon NV in a deal agreed by both firms’ boards.

Aptar Pharma continues its North American expansion

11-May-2017 By Melissa Fassbender

Aptar Pharma has acquired 20% of the US-based company, Kali Care, less than two months after inaugurating its first facility outside of France as it aims to expand globally.

Medherant hires Laboratoires Plasto Santé to make ibuprofen pain-patch for trials

09-May-2017 By Gareth Macdonald

Ibuprofen patch developer Medherant Ltd. has hired France-based contractor Laboratoires Plasto Santé (LPS) to make the product for clinical trials due to start this year.

BioMarin defends US FDA-approved Brineura’s $702k price tag

04-May-2017 By Flora Southey

Brineura's $702,000 (€640,000) a-year price tag reflects production costs and investment in tech used to administer the enzyme replacement therapy to the brain says BioMarin Pharmaceuticals.

BPI Europe 2017

Cost-cutting oral vaccine tech will make Vaxart less reliant on CMO

04-May-2017 By Dan Stanton

Vaxart says its tablet delivery platform has simplified vaccine production so significantly it may bring manufacturing currently contracted to Lonza back in-house.