On May 22, 2025, the FDA approved Bio-Thera Solutions and Hikma Pharmaceuticals’ ustekinumab biosimilar, STARJEMZA® (ustekinumab-hmny) injection, referencing Janssen’s STELARA® (ustekinumab) injection. This approval makes Bio-Thera the seventh company to receive FDA approval for an ustekinumab biosimilar, joining Amgen, Alvotech, Samsung, Fresenius, Accord, Biocon, and Celltrion. Ustekinumab is a human…
On April 18, 2025, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued a complete response letter regarding the supplemental Biologics License Application for EYLEA HD (aflibercept). The supplemental application is for the addition of extended dosing intervals (up to every 24 weeks) of EYLEA HD injection…
On April 10, 2025, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced it will be phasing out the current requirements for animal testing in the development of monoclonal antibody therapies and other drugs, replacing them “with more effective, human-relevant methods.” According to the FDA, the “animal testing requirement will be…
On March 18, 2025, Alvotech and Dr. Reddy’s announced that the FDA accepted their Biologics Licensing Application (BLA) for AVT03 (denosumab), referencing Amgen’s PROLIA® and XGEVA®. After FDA approval, Alvotech and Dr. Reddy’s expect AVT03 to be supplied in a single-dose prefilled syringe containing 60 mg in a 1 mL…
On January 31, 2025, Celltrion announced that the FDA approved its tocilizumab biosimilar, AVTOZMA® (tocilizumab-anoh), referencing Genentech’s ACTEMRA®. Tocilizumab is a monoclonal antibody that can act as an interleukin-6 (IL-6) inhibitor to reduce inflammation in the body. The FDA approved AVTOZMA® for subcutaneous injection or intravenous infusion for treatment of…
On October 22, 2024, Alvotech and Teva announced that SELARSDI™ (ustekinumab-aekn) received FDA approval for a new presentation, 130 mg/26 mL (5 mg/mL) solution in a single-dose vial for intravenous infusion. We previously reported that SELARSDI™ was approved by the FDA for 45 mg/0.5 mL and 90 mg/mL in a single-dose…
FDA’s Purple Book provides a searchable database of licensed biological products and includes the patent information provided to biosimilar applicants during the BPCIA patent dance. Pursuant to a law enacted in late 2020, a reference product sponsor must provide patent information to FDA for listing in the Purple Book once…
In March 2023, the FDA issued a final guidance, titled “Q13 Continuous Manufacturing of Drug Substances and Drug Products” that describes scientific and regulatory considerations for the development, implementation, operation, and lifecycle management of continuous manufacturing (CM).” CM refers to “the continuous feeding of input materials into, the transformation of…
On February 24, the USPTO extended the written comment period for Joint USPTO–FDA Collaboration Initiatives until March 10, 2023. As we previously reported, the USPTO requested public input on areas for USPTO-FDA collaboration and engagement in response to President Biden’s Executive Order to “help ensure that the patent system, while incentivizing…
The US FDA has accepted a Biologics License Application (BLA) from Sandoz for a proposed denosumab biosimilar. In its press-release, Sandoz stated that the “application includes all indications covered by the reference medicines Prolia® (denosumab)* and Xgeva® (denosumab)* for treating a variety of conditions, including osteoporosis in postmenopausal women and…