Respiratory

The FDA has issued an update to its guidance on requiring switching study data for biosimilars to be granted interchangeability, citing new science that shows these studies aren’t needed to establish biosimilar safety.

American and European regulatory agencies have provided companies with good news, with several biosimilar candidates seeing application acceptances or approvals in Europe.

A Chinese company has expressed interest in developing a biosimilar to Ozempic (semaglutide); Celltrion completed its biologic license application for its omalizumab biosimilar candidate.

Boehringer Ingelheim (BI) launches an unbranded version of its adalimumab biosimilar; Alvotech and Kashiv Biosciences partner for an omalizumab biosimilar candidate; the FDA issues a complete response letter (CRL) for Biocon’s insulin aspart biosimilar.

Kashiv Biosciences announced positive phase 1 results for its omalizumab biosimilar; Dongkook Pharmaceutical shared the launch of an insulin glargine biosimilar (Glargia); and Quebec, a province in Canada, said it’s adding a ranibizumab biosimilar (Byooviz) to its reimbursement list.

Celltrion Healthcare shared data from a phase 3 clinical trial confirming that its omalizumab biosimilar had comparable safety and efficacy to the reference product (Xolair).

The proposed omalizumab biosimilar KA (Shanghai Taiyin Biotechnology) demonstrated similar analytical characteristics, in vitro biological activity, and pharmacology and toxicology in animals compared with the originator (Xolair), according to investigators.

A phase 1 study testing Celltrion Healthcare’s omalizumab biosimilar in healthy subjects showed similar safety and pharmacokinetic profiles to the reference product (Xolair), as presented at the American Academy of Allergy Asthma and Immunology’s annual meeting.

Selexis and Generium launched an omalizumab biosimilar on the Russian market; Remsima sales hit a record high for Celltrion Healthcare; Xbrane Biopharma shares long-term results for its ranibizumab biosimilar.

Xolair, the only currently approved product containing omalizumab, was first approved in 2003. AVT23 is an investigational compound and has not received regulatory approval in any country. Current sales of Xolair are estimated at $3.3 billion.

The product would target the lucrative, billion-dollar worldwide market for Xolair.

With positive phase 1 study results and a manufacturing process that may cut costs significantly, BiosanaPharma hopes its omalizumab biosimilar candidate will have an edge on the worldwide market.

Republic of Korea–based drug maker Celltrion announced this week that it is launching its first clinical trial of CT-P39, a proposed biosimilar omalizumab referencing Xolair. The company says that it plans to enter phase 3 trials in the first half of 2020 and has plans to commercialize the biosimilar by 2022.

Biosana Pty Ltd, a subsidiary of BiosanaPharma BV, says it received permission from the Australian Bellberry Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC) to start a phase 1 trial for a biosimilar version of omalizumab.

In October, the FDA granted approval for a pre-filled syringe formulation of the reference product. Additionally, Novartis is looking to expand omalizumab’s indications, as it recently earned FDA’s breakthrough therapy designation in August 2018 as a treatment for food allergies.

A little over a year after having received FDA authorization to commence its clinical program, Glenmark Pharmaceuticals has announced that its phase 1 study of GBR 310 revealed similar pharmacokinetic, pharmacodynamic, safety, and immunogenicity profiles between its proposed omalizumab biosimilar and the reference product, Xolair.