Avoiding yesterday’s election and all it means for the UK and Brexit, much of the news this week happened across the pond: Pharma companies have reacted violently to the Republicans’ alleged reneging of drug patent rules in international negotiations, while Bernie Sanders and the Democrats have called on the government to block Gilead from extending its patent on anti-HIV drug Descovy. In other news, Forendo Pharma has teamed up with Novartis on a potential NASH candidate and Sanofi has bought clinical-state biotech Synthorx for $2.5 billion. 

U.S. GOVERNMENT “RENEGES” ON BIOLOGIC PATENT RULES – Drug companies have argued the recent removal of provisions on exclusivity of biologics is a “dangerous precedent” for future trade talks. The policy change will allow Canada and Mexico – and potentially other countries in the future – to decide when a patent expires on biologics. While Democrats celebrated the increased Congressional power as a result, pharma organisations suggested U.S jobs are at risk and innovation will suffer. 

DEMOCRATS CALL ON GOVERNMENT TO BLOC GILEAD FROM EXTENDING DESCOVY PATENT – Democratic heavyweights Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez are calling on the U.S. government to block Gilead’s efforts to extend its patent on anti-HIV drug Descovy, accusing the company of “deceitful and immoral” behaviour after it withheld the drug from market until the patent of another similar drug was finished.

In other news: 

R&D
Forendo Pharma teams up with Novartis to find novel liver disease targets
Gilead to unveil new CAR-T therapy after good patient response rates

Clinical Trial
Abeona’s phase 3 gene therapy trial for RDEB unfrozen by FDA
Sanofi buys clinical-stage biotech Synthorx for $2.5 billion

Manufacturing
Sanofi looking at robotics and AI to reduce manufacturing costs by $2 billion

That’s all for this week. See you next Friday.

Joshua Neil, Editor
Proventa International