On February 7, 2022 Nordic Pharma reported that they have entered into an agreement with SANOFI to fully acquire the rights to ALTIM (cortivazol), a legacy product in France (Press release, Nordic Pharma, FEB 7, 2022, View Source [SID1234607876]).

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ALTIM contains a 3.75mg/1.5ml cortivazol suspension for injection, presented in a pre-filled syringe, and is approved in France in Rheumatology indications, where a local corticosteroid treatment is required.
See prescribing information: Résumé des caractéristiques du produit – ALTIM 3,75 mg/1,5 ml, suspension injectable en seringue pré-remplie – Base de données publique des médicaments (medicaments.gouv.fr)

This acquisition supports Nordic Pharma’s strategy to grow its proprietary portfolio and to become a key player in Rheumatology in France and beyond.

ALTIM was commercialized in France since the 70’s and subsequently withdrawn from the French market by Sanofi in 2018 due to manufacturing issues. It is the intention of Nordic Pharma to re-engineer the process and the manufacturing for both the active substance and the finished product to allow the product to be re-launched onto the French market at the earliest possibility as the product is still requested by clinicians.

Jean-Michel Quinot, CEO of Nordic Pharma stated:" We are very pleased to have reached an agreement with Sanofi allowing us to re-introduce ALTIM into the French market. Nordic Pharma is dedicated to providing Patients and Physicians with innovative medications addressing significant unmet medical needs. We are very eager to further expand our successful collaboration with Sanofi."

Veronique Rebours-Mory, CSO of Nordic Pharma stated: "Physicians are still demanding this unique treatment option for Rheumatology patients, and despite the challenge and investment needed, we are committed to solving the manufacturing issues that led to the discontinuation of the product."

On February 7, 2022 Biogen Inc. (Nasdaq: BIIB) and Xbrane Biopharma AB (STO: XBRANE) reported that they have entered into a commercialization and license agreement to develop, manufacture, and commercialize Xcimzane, a preclinical monoclonal antibody that is a proposed biosimilar referencing CIMZIA (certolizumab pegol)1 (Press release, Biogen, FEB 7, 2022, View Source [SID1234607852]).

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CIMZIA’s primary indication is for rheumatoid arthritis in adults as well as axial spondylarthrosis, psoriasis and Crohn’s disease. In 2020 global sales of CIMZIA were 1.8 billion Euro2. Under the terms of the agreement, Biogen will gain exclusive global regulatory, manufacturing, and commercial rights to Xcimzane and will be the Marketing Authorization Holder.

"We aim to bring more biosimilars products to more patients and more geographies and we are excited to bring this additional asset to our Biosimilars pipeline," said Ian Henshaw, Head of Global Biosimilars at Biogen. "This preclinical biosimilar candidate has the potential to add another option for patients living with Rheumatoid Arthritis and other indications."

"Given their vast development and commercialization experience, we are convinced that Biogen is the best possible partner we could have for Xcimzane," said Martin Åmark, CEO of Xbrane Biopharma AB. "Today’s announcement confirms Xbrane’s ambition to become a global biosimilar developer."

Under the terms of the agreement, Biogen will make an upfront payment of $8 million to Xbrane. Should certain development and commercial milestones be achieved, Xbrane will be eligible to receive up to $80 million in potential milestone payments. Xbrane is also eligible to receive tiered royalties. Xbrane will be responsible for the completion of pre-clinical development of Xcimzane and Biogen will be responsible for all remaining development activities and costs required to achieve Marketing Authorization in all territories, including those for clinical development.

About Biosimilars
Biosimilars are biologic products that have been demonstrated to be similar in efficacy, safety and immunogenicity to the originator’s approved reference product, with the advantage that they can offer significant cost savings. Biosimilars may lower healthcare system costs broadly, creating headroom for innovation and could enable governments to potentially redirect savings to priorities such as increasing access to transformative therapies.

On February 7, 2022 iBio, Inc. (NYSEA:IBIO) ("iBio" or the "Company"), a developer of next-generation biopharmaceuticals and pioneer of the sustainable, plant-based FastPharming Manufacturing System, reported that it will report its fiscal 2022 second quarter financial results after market close on Monday, February 14, 2022 (Press release, iBioPharma, FEB 7, 2022, View Source [SID1234607812]). iBio management will host a webcast and conference call at 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time to discuss the results and provide a corporate update.

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The live and archived webcast may be accessed on the Company’s website at www.ibioinc.com under "News and Events" in the Investors section. The live call can be accessed by dialing (833) 672-0651 (domestic) or (929) 517-0227 (international) and referencing conference ID: 3527478.

On February 7, 2022 Cerus Corporation (Nasdaq: CERS) reported that the Company will participate in the BTIG Virtual MedTech, Digital Health, Life Science & Diagnostic Tools Conference and the 11th Annual SVB Leerink Global Healthcare Conference (Press release, Cerus, FEB 7, 2022, View Source [SID1234607811]).

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On Wednesday, February 16th at 9:00 a.m. EST, Vivek Jayaraman, Cerus’ chief operating officer, is scheduled to participate at the BTIG MedTech, Digital Health, Life Science & Diagnostic Tools Virtual Conference. BTIG-hosted events are intended for prospective and existing BTIG clients only. To listen to the live event, please contact your BTIG representative.

On Friday, February 18th at 12:00 p.m. EST, Kevin Green, Cerus’ chief financial officer, is scheduled to participate at the 11th Annual SVB Leerink Global Healthcare Conference. To listen to the webcast, please visit the investor relations section of Cerus’ website at: ir.cerus.com.

On February 7, 2022 Immagene, a Dutch biotech company developing transformational next-generation precision immuno-oncology treatments, and Selvita (WSE: SLV), one of the largest preclinical contract research organizations in Europe, reported their cooperation on an integrated drug discovery project (Press release, Selvita, FEB 7, 2022, View Source;utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=immagene-and-selvita-announce-integrated-drug-discovery-cooperation [SID1234607810]).

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Immagene and Selvita have been closely cooperating over the past year on a novel integrated drug discovery project to enhance the clinical benefit of immuno-oncology therapies. In this ongoing effort, Immagene is guiding and tapping into Selvita’s extensive drug discovery capabilities. Selvita is responsible for a broad range of drug discovery activities including medicinal chemistry supported by computational chemistry, in vitro pharmacology, DMPK and recombinant protein production. Immagene and Selvita are now extending their cooperation.

Edyta Jaworska, VP Sales, Drug Discovery Europe and Asia at Selvita Group, comments:
"We are truly delighted with the extension of our close collaboration with Immagene. For Selvita’s team, it is a perfect opportunity to leverage the full scope of our integrated drug discovery capabilities. This project is exceptionally promising in terms of its therapeutic potential and unique chemistry."

Maarten Ligtenberg, PhD, Chief Executive Officer of Immagene, said:
"We are confident that our collaboration with Selvita will help us achieve our aim of generating potent first in class small-molecule immune-oncology assets. The rapid turnaround and effective communication allow for the swift development of our programs. We look forward to a longstanding, joint effort to develop innovative therapeutics."

To date, Selvita has delivered numerous promising compounds for biology and DMPK screening, and the project has entered the lead optimization phase. The ultimate aim of the cooperation is to provide Immagene with a clinical candidate for unmet immuno-oncology needs. The continued collaboration will help accelerate Immagene’s pipeline expansion efforts by leveraging Selvita’s fully integrated R&D platform and unique experience in oncology drug discovery and development.