Vertex Pharmaceuticals reported the company’s Phase II proof-of-concept trial of VX-147 in patients with APOL1-mediated focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS), with the drug hitting a statistically significant and clinically meaningful decrease of 47.6% in the urine protein to creatinine ratio (UPCR) at Week 13 compared to baseline. 

Sanofi

Sanofi is expanding the company’s research into skin therapies after agreeing to acquire the Australian firm Origimm Biotechnology, which specializes in treatments for various types of skin diseases.

BioNTech and Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine will likely offer strong protection against any severe disease from the new Omicron virus variant, BioNTech’s Chief Executive told Reuters, as the firm weighs the need to upgrade its commonly used shot.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said on November 30 the regulatory agency was evaluating the effectiveness of authorized Covid-19 vaccines against the Omicron coronavirus variant and expects to have more information in the next few weeks.

One day after Bay Area-based Olema Pharmaceuticals announced that falsified information regarding its Phase I/II breast cancer data was circulating across the Internet, the company released topline data for OP-1250, a potential best-in-class complete estrogen receptor antagonist (CERAN).

Moderna

BioNTech, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson are working on vaccines that specifically target Omicron in case their existing shots are not effective against the new coronavirus variant, the companies said on November 29.

The New York Times profiled the success story of a type 1 diabetes patient who was dosed with Vertex Pharmaceuticals’ experimental fully differentiated pancreatic islet cell replacement therapy, and after an infusion of VX-880, he began to produce his own insulin.

Pfizer Inc. now expects to manufacture 80 million treatment courses of the company’s experimental COVID-19 antiviral drug, up from a previous forecast of 50 million, Chief Executive Officer Albert Bourla said in a CNBC interview on November 29.

Merck

The latest data from Merck and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics’ MOVe-OUT trial on the use of molnupiravir to treat COVID-19 in adults has shown a lower efficacy than previously reported. 

BioNTech SE said on Monday the company had started work on a vaccine tailored to Omicron, the worrying new coronavirus variant detected in South Africa.