💊 The US FDA's regulatory collabs; GSK's new APAC vaccine distribution hub; Gilead's hepatitis grant programme

#396 | Waving goodbye to coronaviruses; Wiping Aβ away; Mental disorders affect every other person

Hello there. Welcome back to The Kable. It's a light dose of life sciences news today, and barring a few stories, not even a tough pill to swallow.

Let’s start with the Americas. While most of the world has left behind and forgotten the pandemic, many countries in the Americas still struggle with disruptions to essential health services. Some are even witnessing reverses in progress made pre-pandemic. Two recently-released PAHO reports address access barriers to primary healthcare and an overview of health system disruptions, respectively.

France’s Roquette is expanding its global footprint. The company has inked an agreement with the Mitsubishi Chemical Group to acquire Japan-headquartered Qualicaps, a manufacturer of hard capsules and pharma processing equipment for oral dosage solutions.

Japan may soon get its first homegrown Covid vaccine, as a panel from the country’s Health Ministry has recommended approval for Daiichi Sankyo’s mRNA-based shot. The company is proposing the use of the shot as a booster post-regular immunisation.

Zuellig Pharma and GSK have entered into an agreement to establish a vaccine distribution hub. Headquartered in Singapore, the hub will serve 13 Asia-Pacific markets. Interestingly, the hub will benefit from Zuellig’s expertise in blockchain and enable greater traceability of GSK’s vaccines.

South Korea also has a new homegrown vaccine to look forward to. LG Chem is beginning clinical trials for APV006, the country’s first homegrown 6-in-one vaccine for infants, designed to prevent diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, polio, meningitis and hepatitis B. The entire programme – from clinical development to related facility construction – is estimated to cost roughly $156 million.

Sanofi and BioNTech had a vision to use mRNA to help the immune system identify and attack cancer cells. But clinical trials didn’t work in favour of this vision. The partners have decided to scrap the development of BNT131 as an intratumoural therapy.

Meanwhile, Gilead has announced the launch of its 2023 ALL4LIVER Grant, with the theme of ‘Test. Link. Prioritise.’ Except in the USA, the grant programme will support initiatives worldwide to improve testing and linkage to care for hepatitis C, B and D patients. Eligible organisations can submit funding applications here before 30 September.

The USA’s sunshine state is becoming a lil less sunshine-y, as the possibility of leprosy becoming endemic to the region emerges.

And finally, India has directed Riemann Labs – remember them? They’ve been linked to the cough syrup deaths in Cameroon – to stop manufacturing activities.