Behind Spinraza's 95% price drop in China: Desperate or Pre-empted? (Part 2)
In Part 1 of the story we discussed the birth of Spinraza and its market access inChina. Here in Part 2, we will continue the story on the competitive landscape ofSMA drugs and Biogen’s revenue challenges in 2021.
August 25, 2022
Behind Spinraza's 95% price drop in China: Desperate or Pre-empted? (Part 1)
On November 3rd 2021, the Chinese National Healthcare and Security Administration (NHSA) announced updates on the National Reimbursement Drug List (NRDL). Out of the 85 new drugs being negotiated, 67 made it to the NRDL, with an average price drop of 61.7%. Of note was one drug, Spinraza (molecule name Nusinersen), which saw a 95% price slash from CNY 700,000 (US$108,500) to CNY 33,000 (US$5,180) per dose. Treating spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), Spinraza will be the first reimbursed medicine for this rare disease that affects only one in every 8 thousand new-borns in China.
July 25, 2022
What is Personalised Nutrition?
The word 'personalised' in the world of nutrition may have started out as a trendy idea, but it has now started to become a serious reality. Companies have been jumping on board to offer personalised dietary advice, recommendations and even products based on individual characteristics.
July 6, 2022
Solving the data storage problem using genomics
We all produce data every day, either through downloading music, snapping photos, or writing documents, but rarely do we stop and think about where this information is physically stored. The digital universe encompasses all the world’s digital data, and much like the physical universe it is expanding at an exponential rate. Does biology hold the solution to data storage?
Aonghus Topham
May 16, 2022
Can you benefit from cholesterol-reducing products? Science, Regulation and Consumer Impact
After coming across phytosterols and phytostanols during my degree, I was intrigued by the growing evidence indicating therapeutic potential as anticancer agents. However, these compounds are not new and have been long known to help reduce cholesterol. This blog post will summarise the benefits of phytosterols and phytostanols and describe how they are marketed as functional food products. The aim of these products is to reduce cholesterol levels which are a risk factor for heart disease and are designed for those who need help with cholesterol level management.
April 4, 2022
Startup Spotlight: Multus
Multus is revolutionising the way that cultivated meat is grown. By producing low-cost and serum-free cell culture media, it is paving the way for lab grown meat to become a supermarket staple. The company are manufacturing sustainable and ethical replacements for the animal serum-based growth media required in cultivated meat production.
March 14, 2022
Cinference: The Future of Protein Engineering
Cinference are using pioneering technology to design proteins; their platform aims to speed up the drug development process. We interviewed the co-founders to find out more about how Cinference work, what goals they have and what they are planning next…
Caroline Babisz
February 15, 2022
Phycobloom - Creating Biofuel from Algae
Founded by John and Ian, brought together through their mutual love of chasing challenges, Phycobloom is a cutting-edge clean technology start-up, aiming to revolutionise biofuel production by harnessing the power of algae.
Natasha Barrow
January 21, 2022
Startup Spotlight: Hoxton Farms
Hoxton Farms is using a combination of cell biology and mathematical modelling to grow real animal fat in the lab. The company is building a team of interdisciplinary scientists across computational, wet lab and engineering roles – utilising mathematical modelling to develop cost-effective production processes.
January 19, 2022