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New medication improves motor function in children with later-onset spinal muscular atrophy

Children with later-onset spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) were more likely to show gains in motor function when treated with a new medication compared to children receiving a sham procedure, according to a study published today in the New England Journal of Medicine.

15 Feb 2018

Extending dosing intervals makes common multiple sclerosis drug safer to use

A commonly-prescribed multiple sclerosis (MS) infusion medication linked to a rare but serious side effect is safer to use when dosing intervals are extended, according to a new study led by MS specialists NYU Langone Health.

5 Feb 2018

Worsening of anxiety symptoms may be early indicator of Alzheimer's disease

A new study suggests an association between elevated amyloid beta levels and the worsening of anxiety symptoms. The findings support the hypothesis that neuropsychiatric symptoms could represent the early manifestation of Alzheimer's disease in older adults.

12 Jan 2018

New study discovers key brain circuit implicated in social behavior

A new study by researchers at Roche in Basel, Switzerland has identified a key brain region of the neural circuit that controls social behavior. Increasing the activity of this region, called the habenula, led to social problems in rodents, whereas decreasing activity of the region prevented social problems.

11 Jan 2018

Pfizer to stop Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease research

Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer has announced its intention to stop research and development in areas including Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease.

11 Jan 2018

Regeneron forms consortium to accelerate largest widely-available human sequencing resource

By the end of 2019, Regeneron plans to sequence the exomes of all 500,000 people within the UK Biobank resource, all with associated health records, creating an unprecedented resource linking human genetic variations to human biology and disease.

9 Jan 2018

Biogen and Ionis awarded 2017 Prix Galien USA Award for SPINRAZA

Biogen and Ionis have been awarded the prestigious 2017 Prix Galien USA Award for Best Biotechnology Product for SPINRAZA (nusinersen). The Prix Galien USA Award recognizes extraordinary achievement in scientific innovation that improves the state of human health. The award was presented at a ceremony in New York City on October 26, 2017.

30 Oct 2017

Drug puts a $750,000 ‘price tag on life’

Jana Gundy and Amanda Chaffin live within two hours of each other in Oklahoma. Each has a child with the same devastating disease, one that robs them of muscle strength, affecting their ability to sit, stand or even breathe.

2 Aug 2017

Pharma, biotech and healthcare industries gender gap

The pharma and biotech industry continues to struggle to make progress with gender diversity. A recent Credit Suisse report shows that management diversity, as defined by percentage of women in senior management roles, has decreased globally from 18.9 percent in 2014 to 15.5 percent in 2016.

13 Jul 2017

Positive CHMP opinion recognizes efficacy of Biogen’s SPINRAZA for treatment of spinal muscular atrophy

Biogen today announced the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use of the European Medicines Agency adopted a positive opinion recommending the granting of a marketing authorization for SPINRAZA to treat patients with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA).

21 Apr 2017

Clinical trials – how can patients get the most benefit out of them?

Putting patients at the centre of clinical trial research is perhaps something that goes without saying. At the Clinical Innovation and Partnering World congress in London last week, this was much discussed, along with the need to increase efforts into engaging patients to take part in clinical trials, and the fact that patients are sometimes suspicious of research because it is not explained enough and patient engagement is poor.

16 Mar 2017

MRI as a new tool for MS, with the help of Siemens Healthineers and Biogen

Siemens Healthineers and Biogen announced today that the companies plan to jointly develop Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) applications with the intent of quantifying key markers of multiple sclerosis (MS) disease activity and progression. Biogen is a leading biotechnology company with a deep focus on neurological and autoimmune conditions, which for two decades has been at the forefront of delivering therapies to MS patients.

18 Jan 2017

Johns Hopkins researchers identify new biological target for treating spinal muscular atrophy

Johns Hopkins researchers along with academic and drug industry investigators say they have identified a new biological target for treating spinal muscular atrophy.

9 Jan 2017

Ionis announces FDA approval of first SMA drug in the U.S for pediatric and adult patients

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved SPINRAZATM (nusinersen) under Priority Review for the treatment of spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) in pediatric and adult patients.

26 Dec 2016

MDA celebrates FDA approval of new spinal muscular atrophy drug

The Muscular Dystrophy Association today celebrated news of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's decision to grant approval for nusinersen (brand name Spinraza), the first disease-modifying drug to treat the most common genetic cause of death in infants.

23 Dec 2016

FDA approves first drug to treat children and adults with spinal muscular atrophy

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Spinraza (nusinersen), the first drug approved to treat children and adults with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), a rare and often fatal genetic disease affecting muscle strength and movement.

23 Dec 2016

Monoclonal antibody removes brain amyloid plaques in patients with Alzheimer's disease

Scientists at Neurimmune today described results from the Phase 1b PRIME clinical trial of the monoclonal antibody aducanumab.

1 Sep 2016

First investigational treatment for infantile-onset SMA shows promising results in clinical trial

A major milestone was reached when nusinersen, an investigational treatment for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), was shown to significantly improve achievement of motor milestones in babies with infantile-onset SMA, according to an interim analysis of the double-blind, randomized, placebo controlled Phase 3 clinical trial called ENDEAR.

11 Aug 2016

Daclizumab drug offers new treatment option for people living with relapsing forms of MS in the UK

A new, first-in-class treatment which is believed to use a double-action approach to fight MS by rebalancing the immune system, has today been authorised in the UK for people living with relapsing forms (the most common type) of the disease.

7 Jul 2016

Regulus reports net loss of $7.2 million for fourth quarter 2015

Regulus Therapeutics Inc., a biopharmaceutical company leading the discovery and development of innovative medicines targeting microRNAs, today reported financial results for the fourth quarter and full-year ended December 31, 2015 and provided a summary of recent corporate highlights.

23 Feb 2016