Author: Biotech Express

Sanofi India (SIL) announced on Monday that its Board of Directors has appointed Rodolfo Hrosz as the Company’s new Managing Director with effect from June 1, 2022, subject to regulatory approvals. He will transition from being Sanofi’s General Manager, Consumer Healthcare business in Brazil to his new role in India as soon as the applicable regulatory approvals are in place. “Rodolfo joined Sanofi as General Manager of the Consumer Healthcare business in Brazil in 2017 and has successfully led the organization through several transformative stages, right from the business unit’s inception to it becoming a top growth contributor and a…

Moderna enjoyed $5.9 billion in product sales this quarter, with the majority of these occurring outside of the U.S. The company anticipates that sales will become even larger in the second half of 2022 as it introduces its COVID-19 boosters and SARS-CoV-2 becomes endemic. With its capital, Moderna chiefly plans to reinvest in its 46 research and development programs which include its pipeline vaccine programs for COVID-19 and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and development-stage vaccine programs which include trials in Zika virus and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV). Notably, Moderna is full speed ahead for COVID-19 boosters despite growing concerns from the scientific community…

According to U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data, more than 1 million excess deaths — that is, deaths in excess of the historical average — have been recorded since the COVID-19 pandemic began two years ago, and this cannot be explained by COVID-19. Deaths from heart disease, high blood pressure, dementia and many other illnesses rose during that time. “We’ve never seen anything like it,” Robert Anderson, CDC’s head of mortality statistics, told The Washington Post in mid-February 2022. According to University of Warwick researchers, “the scale of excess non-COVID deaths is large enough for it to be…

Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Mandi have discovered a drug molecule that can be used to treat diabetes. In a press release issued recently, IIT Mandi said that the molecule, named PK2, is able to trigger the release of insulin by the pancreas and can potentially be used as an orally administered medicine for diabetes. According to the press statement the details of the research have been published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry. Dr. Prosenjit Mondal, Associate Professor, School of Basic Sciences, IIT Mandi has authored the paper. Dr Prosenjit Mondal, said “Current drugs such as…

No one can be forced to take the vaccine, the Supreme Court said in a landmark decision on India’s Covid vaccine policy, also directing the central government to publish reports on the adverse effects of vaccination. “Bodily integrity is protected under the law and nobody can be forced to be vaccinated,” the Supreme Court said. The court asserted, however, that “certain limitations on individual rights” could be imposed in the interest of community health. “Barring Covid-appropriate behaviour, we suggest no curbs on unvaccinated individuals in access to public places, services and resources if cases are low,” the Supreme Court said.…

State-run energy large NTPC has invited bids from the nation’s startups for the manufacturing of torrefied biomass pellets. Through its analysis and growth wing NETRA, the NTPC intends to present a platform to startups to allow them develop a sophisticated know-how for producing torrefied biomass pellets which might be well-suited for decentralised small-scale customers. The deadline for the submission of the proposals titled ‘torrefied pellet manufacturing plant for agri-waste‘ is May 19, 2022, NTPC stated in an announcement. The transfer is predicted to reinforce NTPC’s dedication in the direction of growing the biomass ecosystem within the nation, and can present…

Dr. Ritu Trivedi, Senor Principal Scientist at Central Drug Research Institute (CDRI), Lucknow has been selected for the National Women Scientist Award for Excellence in Translational Research (National Tech Excellence Award for Women-2022) by Department of Science and Technology (DST). Dr. Ritu is being awarded for her contribution in the development of Reunion as a rapid fracture healing and for management of post-menopausal osteoporosis. To recognize outstanding contribution of women scientists and entrepreneurs in commercializing innovative indigenous technologies, Technology Development Board under DST gives away the National Tech Excellence Award under the two categories i.e., first as National Women Scientist…

Pharma exports have touched Rs 1,83,422 crore in 2021-22 against Rs 90,415 crore in 2013-14, the commerce ministry said on Sunday. Amidst the pandemic, the Indian Biopharma Industry, with over 300 companies, has witnessed a good growth of 13 per cent, 2 per cent less than the previous year’s 15 per cent growth rate. This growth was largely driven by performance of the Indian biopharma companies which have done very well as against multinational companies. As a result, the Indian Biopharma Industry has crossed the Rs 33,000 crore mark for the year 2020-21 over the previous year’s figure of Rs 29,176 crore.…

AstraZeneca topped off a very busy week with its first-quarter financial report, citing a total of $11.390 billion in revenue, a whopping increase of 60%. That was driven by the acquisition of Alexion and several contracts for Vaxzevria, its COVID-19 vaccine developed with the University of Oxford. The company also announced plans to open a new location in Cambridge, Massachusetts. This site will act as a strategic R&D center for the company in addition to being Alexion’s new corporate headquarters. It will house about 1,500 R&D, commercial and corporate staffers into a “single purpose-built space in Kendall Square, Cambridge, MA.” AstraZeneca closed its deal with Alexion in 2021,…

A new study found a correlation between an increase in emergency cardiovascular events among people under 40 years of age and the early months of Israel’s COVID-19 vaccine program. Published in the Nature journal, researchers utilized data from the Israel National Emergency Medical Services between 2019 and 2021 that evaluated emergency, or EMS, calls among 16- to 39-year-olds across Israel “with potential factors including COVID-19 infection and vaccination rates.” They found that there was a 25 percent increase in EMS calls between January 2021 to May 2021, as compared with the years 2019 and 2020. Israel, which primarily uses Pfizer’s…