💊 Gilead takes a shot at multiple myeloma; The WHO takes AMR advice to an app; Drug trials on lab cells in India soon

#235 | Global regulations for Ayurveda?

Hello, and welcome back to a brand new week with The Kable. 

The 9th World Ayurveda Congress opened in Goa, India, over the weekend, where the WHO Technical Officer for Traditional Medicine said that the agency is looking to set up a regulatory platform for Ayurveda practitioners worldwide.

GSK may be one of the rare outliers dialling back on cell therapy. Others, however, are forging ahead with Gilead's Kite being the latest to strike a deal. It is partnering with clinical-stage Arcellx Sciences in a $325 million deal to develop cell therapy for multiple myeloma. 

J&J is also seeking regulatory clearance for its novel target to treat multiple myeloma. The company presented clinical data supporting its application with the new molecule during the annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology last weekend. 

One of the challenges with AMR is presenting data to clinicians in an absorb-able format. The WHO has announced a new partnership with clinical decision support platform Firstline to enable this. Frontline will deliver antimicrobial guidance from the AWaRe Antibiotic Book to clinicians via an app.

In a radical departure from its traditionally staid social media posts, Pfizer looks to jump into the meme war against disinformation.

Pfizer Inc. @pfizer

Wouldn't it be great if a few internet searches could land you a PhD? Thank goodness for real scientists

Digital health accelerator PharmStars has just named 11 new digital health startups in its second graduating batch of the year. The theme for this cohort of startups was finding new ways to use real-world evidence in healthcare. PharmStars is now taking applications from startups for its first batch of 2023, themed around innovations in women's health and health equity. Applications close on January 14, 2023.

The calendar and the clock both keep moving forward. The date and the time both keep changing. What doesn't change much is the outcome of US FDA inspections at drug making plants in India. In the latest rehash of the same old story, Glenmark gets a warning letter for lapses at its plant in Goa.

And finally, the planet may now have 8 billion humans, but the rate of human population growth is dropping. What is going up, though, is the rate of STIs. France plans to counter this: make condoms accessible for everybody under 25.