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Today's Rundown

AHA: AstraZeneca, Moderna shine early light on mRNA potential in heart failure
AHA: Bristol Myers' $13B MyoKardia heart drug gets along with beta blockers as clock ticks down to FDA decision
2021's Fiercest Women in Life Sciences
Sponsored: Tips on building a resilient cGMP chemical supply chain
Protagonist posts phase 2 hormone replacement data, pitching for lead role in genetic iron overload disease
Sponsored: Considerations for Laboratory-Related Operational and Patient Burden in Decentralized Clinical Trials. Clinical Lab Testing in Your Home: Fact or Fiction?
Twist spins out COVID-19 antibody program, forming startup to advance variant-busting candidate
Scientific co-founder of Blueprint Medicines launches Recludix with $60M, 15-year Seagen exec steering the ship
Abbott's retrievable, leadless pacemaker clears trial hurdle as FDA continues review
CMS rescinds Trump-era rule expediting Medicare coverage of breakthrough devices
Injectable 'dancing molecules' repair spinal cord injury, restore mobility in paralyzed mice

Featured Story

AHA: AstraZeneca, Moderna shine early light on mRNA potential in heart failure

By Ben Adams

Although AstraZeneca and Moderna are archrivals in the COVID-19 vaccine space, the two have an interesting mRNA pact that has been operating largely under the radar.

AHA: Bristol Myers' $13B MyoKardia heart drug gets along with beta blockers as clock ticks down to FDA decision

By Annalee Armstrong

Turns out Bristol Myers Squibb’s targeted heart drug mavacamten gets along pretty well with traditional beta blocker therapies that are often used to control blood pressure. This is key as BMS pads the case for an approval of the therapy picked up through the $13 billion acquisition of MyoKardia just over a year ago.

2021's Fiercest Women in Life Sciences

By Annalee Armstrong

“It took a village to make me.” These words spoken by WeiQing Zhou, who is the cofounder of two biotechs, could apply to almost any of the women on the 2021 Fiercest Women in Life Sciences list.

Protagonist Therapeutics wants to take the lead in a genetic iron disease, delivering midphase data on a hormone replacement therapy it envisages offering an alternative to blood draws.

Twist Bioscience has found a path forward for its COVID-19 antibody program, spinning the project out to form startup Revelar Biotherapeutics and committing to invest up to $10 million in seed funding.

Scientific co-founder of Blueprint Medicines launches Recludix with $60M, 15-year Seagen exec steering the ship

By Kyle LaHucik

Recludix Pharma wants to launch a class of STAT inhibitors that are more selective and more effective than JAK inhibitors in treating cancers and inflammatory diseases. The new biotech gets $60 million to start and 15-year Seagen executive Nancy Whiting in the CEO perch.

Abbott's retrievable, leadless pacemaker clears trial hurdle as FDA continues review

By Conor Hale

The company’s Aveir system aims to provide ventricular pacing on-demand—triggering an electrical pulse only when needed to get a slowing heart back on track, instead of a constant cadence.

CMS rescinds Trump-era rule expediting Medicare coverage of breakthrough devices

By Dave Muoio

The rule aimed to cut down the time between regulatory authorization and Medicare coverage determination for innovative technologies. It was finalized days before Biden took office.

Injectable 'dancing molecules' repair spinal cord injury, restore mobility in paralyzed mice

By Arlene Weintraub

A Northwestern team developed an injectable liquid containing modified peptides, which form nanofibers similar to the spinal cord’s extracellular matrix. In mouse models of spinal cord injury, the therapy promoted the regrowth of axons and restored walking ability, they said.