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Horama Joins Race To Develop Gene Therapies For Eye Diseases

 
• By John Davis

Initial VC and institutional funding from a French syndicate will support further drug development at Paris-based Horama, which aims to put two targeted gene therapies for hereditary retinitis pigmentosa in the clinic by 2018.

Vision

The French company, Horama, which is working with specific serotypes of adeno-associated virus (AAV) that may have potential benefits as vectors for novel gene therapy approaches to retinopathies, has just appointed an experienced CEO Christine Placet and completed a smallish Series A to move two promising gene therapies into clinical studies, and to build up its drug development team.

Previously Placet was CEO of the neurodegeneration-focused Trophos SA, that was acquired by Roche for €470m ($521m) in 2015, and she appears to have the knack of working in hot research areas (Also see "

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UK-India FTA Could Offer ‘Significant Benefits’ For Generics, Biosimilars

 
• By Dave Wallace

A free trade agreement between the UK and India could offer “significant benefits for the generic and biosimilar sectors,” Medicines UK believes. The off-patent industry association has also suggested further avenues for collaboration between the two governments.

Will Other Major MASH Deals Follow GSK/Boston Pharma?

 
• By Joseph Haas

GSK’s $1.2bn payout for Boston Pharma’s efimosfermin is the first billion-dollar-plus MASH deal in nearly nine years, but several other advanced MASH programs could be positioned for takeout.

Most Favored Nation Policy ‘Lazy, Misguided,’ But US Price Reforms Politically ‘Inevitable’

 
• By Cathy Kelly

Policy experts and pharma executives react to President Trump’s executive order on “equalizing” drug prices between the US and comparable nations at the ISPOR 2025 conference.

Merck KGaA Braces For Volatility But Does Not Expect Europe To Budge On Pricing

 
• By Andrew McConaghie

Shares are hit as German conglomerate lowers revenue forecast.

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Leo Roars To A Profit In Q1 As Adbry Grows In US

 
• By Kevin Grogan

The Danish firm's atopic dermatitis drug is holding its own despite strong competition from Sanofi/Regeneron’s Dupixent.

Cipla Leadership’s Early Take On Trump’s Pricing EO And Pipeline Progress

 
• By Anju Ghangurde

Cipla's CEO underlines that US generic prices are already “very significantly comparable” with the rest of the world and expects President Donald Trump's executive order on drug pricing to primarily impact branded pharmaceuticals. The company also shared updates on its US pipeline.

Hengrui Set For Biggest Biopharma IPO So Far This Year

 
• By Dexter Jie Yan

Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals is gearing up for what will be 2025's biggest biopharma IPO so far, hoping to raise up to $1.27bn on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. China's top drug maker by pipeline size plans to use part of the proceeds to reboot its overseas clinical trials ambitions.