Pfizer reported first-quarter 2021 revenue of $14.6 billion, an impressive 42 percent operational growth. The company’s Covid-19 vaccine revenue accounted for $3.5 billion of the total.

Germany’s CureVac, which is gearing up to publish results of a key Covid-19 vaccine trial, said U.S. export restrictions on key materials are making it impossible to predict the company’s short-term supply ramp-up in Europe.

BioNTech

BioNTech is working on getting approval for a version of the company’s Covid-19 vaccine which can be stored in fridges of 2 to 8 degree celsius for up to 6 months, Chief Executive Ugur Sahin said on May 4.

Ivy Cohen Corporate Communications (ICCC), eponymously named after founder Ivy Cohen, is celebrating its 20th anniversary in May. Launched in 2001 with Ivy’s belief that a higher level of experience and personal attention from leadership was a formula that was badly needed in the industry, ICCC advises on and executes brand building, public relations and strategic communications (both external and internal) for clients from the Fortune 100 to startups and many growing and pioneering businesses.

The three largest U.S. drug distributors, facing their first trial over claims that they fueled the opioid crisis, said responsibility for ballooning painkiller sales lies with doctors, drugmakers and regulators.

Astellas

One year after Astellas and California-based Cytokinetics extended an agreement to develop Skeletal Sarcomere Activators, the Japanese pharma company is walking away from the deal.

Roivant Sciences is combining with Montes Archimedes Acquisition Corp (MAAC), a particular purpose acquisition company sponsored by Patient Square Capital. 

Passage Bio Inc. and InformedDNA announced a collaboration to provide no-cost genetic counseling and testing for adults who have been diagnosed by their physicians with Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD).

More than 60 U.S. stadiums and other venues are deploying an app from Clear to verify people’s Covid-19 status, placing the New York company known for its airport security fast lanes at the forefront of a national debate over “vaccine passports.”

The submission of U.S. approval for AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine was pushed back to mid-May, with the company citing the massive dataset as the cause.