Antiparasitic

The Swiss major’s global health chief Lutz Hegemann tells Scrip on a trip to Rwanda that being a profitable enterprise while helping to improve access to new and older therapies for those who need it most is the real measure of a successful business.

Lotilaner, the active ingredient in Tarsus’s Demodex blepharitis drug Xdemvy, showed significant ability to kill ticks in a small Phase IIa study. Analysts call the Lyme program a likely out-licensing opportunity for Tarsus.

Gains from its COVID-19 vaccine made Serum Institute’s founder the world’s richest healthcare billionaire. But the demand for boosters hasn’t materialized as expected, leading to a deal with Biocon being tweaked. Meanwhile, gains from India’s first indigenously-developed HPV vaccine and Oxford-partnered malaria vaccine seem imminent.

Immix collaborates with Israeli research institutions on BCMA-targeted CAR-T therapy. NeoImmuneTech/NIAID alliance could pave way for “animal rule” approval in acute radiation syndrome.

GSK will invest over $1bn over the next decade to develop medicines that combat malaria, neglected tropical diseases and antibiotic resistance, while Novartis is putting in $250m over the next five years.

Sanofi is the latest drugmaker to announce a major initiative aimed at improving access to medicines in poorer countries, the type of move that should continue to lift the reputation of big pharma above the likes of big oil and big tobacco.

Chagas is in the spotlight with Novartis, Bayer and DNDi running different trials designed to tackle the neglected tropical parasitic disease.