Pearce IP BioBlast w/e 12 Jan 2024

Korea Biomedical Review reported that Celltrion has won bids to supply Yuflyma®, biosimilar to AbbVie’s Humira® (adalimumab) in Friuli-Venezia Giulia (FVG) and Sicily in Italy, as well as in the south eastern region of Netherlands. Celltrion will supply Yuflyma® for four and a half years in FVG, two years in Sicily, and for the next three years in the Netherlands.  Celltrion also won a bid to supply Remsima®, biosimilar to Janssen’s Remicade® (infliximab) in Sicily for two years.

On 18 September 2023, Celltrion won bids to supply Yuflyma® in five other regions of Italy, amounting to 20% of the Italian adalimumab market.

Merck announced that the FDA has approved Keytruda® (pembrolizumab) in combination with chemoradiotherapy to treat patients with FIGO (International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics) 2014 Stage III-IVA cervical cancer.

On 15 December 2023, Keytruda® in combination with Pfizer/Astellas’ Padcev® (enfortumab vedotin-ejfv) was approved by the FDA to treat locally advanced or metastatic urothelial carcinoma.

WuXi Biologics announced that it has signed a research service agreement with BioNTech under which Wuxi will receive a $20M upfront payment, and BioNTech is granted exclusive rights to develop therapeutic candidates from two undisclosed preclinical investigational monoclonal antibodies discovered by WuXi.  WuXi is eligible for additional payments including for R&D, regulatory and commercial milestones, and tiered royalties.

Eisai announced that the Scientific Advisory Group (SAG) will meet to discuss Eisai’s marketing authorisation application (MAA) for Leqembi® (lecanemab) which is under review by the European Medicines Agency (EMA).  The SAG is expected to meet before 31 March 2024.  The SAG is being convened at the request of the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) of the EMA to provide independent advice on scientific or technical matters relating to products under evaluation.

On 9 January 2024, the Chinese NMPA approved Leqembi® as a treatment for mild cognitive impairment due to Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and mild AD dementia.

Celltrion announced in a corporate filing that it applied to the FDA seeking interchangeable status for CT-P17 (Yuflyma®), biosimilar to AbbVie’s Humira® (adalimumab), on 9 January 2024.  On 2 October 2023 the FDA approved Celltrion’s Yuflyma® in 20mg (pre-filled syringe) and 80mg (pre-filled autoinjector and pre-filled syringe) dosages, in addition to the 40mg dose approved on 24 May 2023.

Alvotech and STADA announced the European Commission (EC) has granted centralised marketing authorisation (MA) for Uzpruvo® (AVT04), the first EU-approved biosimilar to Janssen’s Stelara® (ustekinumab).  The marketing authorisation is valid in all European Economic Area countries, including the 27 European Union Member States as well as in Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway.  The announcements state the approval ‘paves the way’ for market entry as soon as possible after expiry of a European Supplementary Protection Certificate (SPC) for Stelara® in July 2024.

The Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) adopted a positive opinion for Uzpruvo® (AVT04) on 10 November 2023.

Biogen and Eisai announced that Leqembi® (lecanemab) has been approved by the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) in China for the treatment of mild cognitive impairment due to Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and mild AD dementia.  Eisai has begun preparation for launch in Q3 2024.

On 22 December 2023, it was reported that Eisai will apply to the US FDA to expand approval for Leqembi® for prevention of AD as soon as April 2026.  Leqembi® was approved in Japan on 25 September 2023, and received traditional approval in the US on 6 July 2023.

GSK and Aiolos Bio announced they have entered into an agreement for GSK to acquire Aiolos, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on addressing respiratory and inflammatory conditions, for $1B upfront and up to $400M in milestone payments.  Aiolos’ AIO-001 is a monoclonal antibody (mAb) ready to enter phase II clinical development for the treatment of adult patients with asthma, with potential for additional indications including chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps.  AIO-001 was exclusively licensed to Aiolos outside of Greater China by Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals.

Bayer announced that the European Commission (EC) granted marketing authorisation (MA) for Eylea® 8mg (aflibercept) to treat neovascular (wet) age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) and visual impairment due to diabetic macular oedema (DMO).  Eylea® 8 mg is approved for administration at extended treatment intervals of up to every four months, following three initial monthly doses, and in patients with stable visual outcomes intervals of up to five months may be considered.  Eylea® 8 mg is the only treatment in the EU approved for extended treatment intervals of up to five months in nAMD and DMO.

Eylea® 8 mg is jointly developed by Bayer and Regeneron.  Regeneron maintains exclusive rights to Eylea® (aflibercept 2 mg) and Eylea® HD (8mg) in the US.  Bayer has licensed the exclusive marketing rights outside the US.

On 18 August 2023, the FDA approved Eylea® 8mg under the brand name Eylea® HD for the above indications, as well as for diabetic retinopathy.  The EMA’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) recommended approval of the 8mg Eylea® for the treatment of nAMD and DMO in November 2023, however Eylea® is not approved for diabetic retinopathy in the EU.