Vijaya Iyer, PhD,  —

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued a permanent billing code (B4105) to Alcresta Therapeutics’ in-line digestive enzyme cartridge Relizorb, making it easier for insurance payers and potentially more accessible to patients. The code, effective on Jan. 1, should now enable coverage for Relizorb…

Vertex Pharmaceuticals has announced its intention to submit an application to the Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC) to review the clinical and cost-effectiveness of the company’s cystic fibrosis (CF) medicines, Orkambi (lumacaftor/ivacaftor), as well as Symkevi (tezacaftor/ivacaftor) in combination with Kalydeco (ivacaftor). Following the appraisal of data submitted by…

Positive data from preclinical and Phase 2a studies evaluating the investigational cystic fibrosis (CF) treatment RPL554 were presented at the 2018 North American Cystic Fibrosis Conference (NACFC) in Denver, Colorado (Oct. 18-20). RPL554, developed by Verona Pharma, is an inhaled potential therapy for CF and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

Galapagos and AbbVie agreed that AbbVie will now have full control of the cystic fibrosis (CF) drug discovery portfolio the two companies have developed together. This means that the exclusive global rights to the investigational therapeutic candidates for CF will be held by AbbVie alone. This decision comes after months…

Corbus Pharmaceuticals has received a patent from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office covering all compositions that comprise lenabasum and might be used to treat any fibrotic disease, including cystic fibrosis (CF), the company announced in a press release. This patent (No. 10,085,964) also covers lenabasum in potentially treating dermatomyositis…

Antibiotics lessen the diversity of microbes in the lungs of cystic fibrosis (CF) patients, and make these people more susceptible to infections with bacteria that are highly resistant to antibiotics, researchers reported. The study “Antibiotic multidrug resistance in the cystic fibrosis airway microbiome is associated with decreased diversity”…

Blocking superoxide dismutase, the enzyme that responds to stress, in Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteria improves antibiotics’ efficacy, a Canadian study reported. The study, “Superoxide dismutase activity confers (p)ppGpp-mediated antibiotic tolerance to stationary-phase Pseudomonas aeruginosa,” was published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). “We identified a new function important…

Vertex Pharmaceuticals has completed enrollment for two Phase 3 studies testing the triple combination therapy of its new CFTR corrector VX-659 together with tezacaftor (VX-661) and Kalydeco (ivacaftor) in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF). The studies focus on patients with two F508del mutations in the CFTR gene (the…

Vertex Pharmaceuticals and Genomics announced a three-year collaboration to better understand genetic variations and their effect on clinical outcomes of diseases with unmet therapeutic needs, including cystic fibrosis. The collaboration also will promote the development of precision medicine, an approach to customize treatment based on each patient’s genetic…

In addition to mutations in the CFTR gene, cystic fibrosis (CF) patients with pancreatitis also have a high prevalence of mutations in genes regulating pancreatic function, according to researchers. Conducted by a research team in Italy, the study, “Trans-heterozygosity for mutations enhances the risk of recurrent/chronic pancreatitis…