Pharmaceutical Technology Editors

Merck will acquire Themis Bioscience and collaborate with IAVI and Ridgeback Bio on COVID-19 vaccines and therapies.

The company has received a $288,000 grant from the COVID-19 Therapeutics Accelerator, part of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, to support a clinical study in Sub-Saharan Africa to find a treatment for COVID-19.

The new facility in County Mayo includes an ISO class 7 cleanroom for the manufacturing of single-use systems.

CordenPharma and Moderna extended a strategic manufacturing services agreement for the supply of lipid excipients to be used in Moderna’s vaccine against SARS-CoV-2.

Advent manufactured the vaccine doses for the Phase 2/3 clinical trial.

The 60,000-ft2 facility will work in conjunction with the company’s Kakegawa, Japan, clinical supply facility to serve local and global biotech and pharmaceutical companies.

The companies have entered into a partnership worth more than $231 million to provide GSK with added capacity to manufacture and supply its biopharmaceutical therapies.

The company announced that participants have enrolled in a Phase 1/2 clinical trial of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate, NVX‑CoV2373, a prefusion protein made using Novavax’s proprietary nanoparticle technology.

All ReFIBE wipes are laser-cut with heatsealed edges and cleanroom laundered to lessen the amount of releasable particles and fibers.

Funding from the US government could lead to 300 million coronavirus vaccine doses by October 2020.

The companies have formed a collaboration to develop a novel human recombinant protein as a therapeutic candidate against COVID-19.

CanSinoBIO will license-in Precision NanoSystems' proprietary RNA vaccine platform technology while the latter leads the development of the RNA vaccine formulation.

This latest round of funding adds 14 new technology projects, workforce development, and Global Health Fund projects to NIIMBL's portfolio.

HHS announces $354 million in funding for private industry to manufacture generic drugs in the US from raw materials to finished product.

Evonik opened a new facility for GMP manufacturing of bioresorbable polymers and excipients for pharmaceutical and medical applications in Birmingham, AL.

Participants in two dosing cohorts in Moderna’s mRNA-1273 study reached or exceeded neutralizing antibody titers generally seen in convalescent sera.

Leadership was announced for the US government’s Operation Warp Speed program, which aims to deliver COVID-19 vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics.

The European Medicines Agency is emphasizing the need for the research community to pool resources to determine which COVID-19 treatments and preventions are safe and effective.

Ori Biotech is partnering with manufacturers and materials suppliers to develop an automated system for cell and gene therapy manufacturing.

The International Coalition of Medicines Regulatory Authorities held a virtual meeting of regulators from around the world to discuss policy issues and regulatory requirements to respond to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

The EU Executive Steering Group on Shortages of Medicines Caused by Major Events met on May 13, 2020 to discuss measures the European Union is taking to ensure the availability of medicines during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Vibalogics is contracted to manufacture Janssen's COVID-19 candidate vaccine at its GMP-accredited facility in Cuxhaven, Germany.

Michelle McMurry-Heath will assume the role of BIO president and CEO on June 1, 2020 after Jim Greenwood, who has led the organization since 2005, retires from the positions.

A temporary restraining order was entered against Xephyr LLC, doing business as N-Ergetics requiring the company to immediately stop distributing colloidal silver products.

The CHMP has issued a recommendation that the compassionate use of remdesivir be expanded in the treatment of more patients with severe COVID-19 symptoms.

The Center for iPS Cell Research and Application Foundation and the Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult have announced the launch of a new collaborative research project that will focus on induced pluripotent stem cell characterization.

Santen Pharmaceutical has concluded a licensing agreement with jCyte for the development, registration, and commercialization rights to jCell, an investigational retinitis pigmentosa therapy, in Japan, Asia, and Europe.

The company will invest $180 million to construct a new 290,000-ft2 facility in Plainville, MA.

Hitachi Chemical Advanced Therapeutics Solutions and apceth Biopharma entered into long-term development and manufacturing services agreements for the clinical and commercial supply of multiple bluebird bio therapies.

Under the terms of the agreement, Catalent will develop a powder-in-capsule formulation of Ennaid’s ENU200 program at its site in San Diego, CA.