House Democrats are investigating Emergent Biosolutions after the company botched 15 million COVID-19 doses. Committees are looking into whether Emergent won the federal contract due to its relationship with a former Trump administration official. (CNBC Weekly)
The Biden administration is weighing a new policy that would require tobacco companies to reduce nicotine levels in cigarettes. Its aim would be to lower levels to a point where cigarettes are no longer addictive. (The Wall Street Journal)
Beam Therapeutics has released results from a study detailing how its CRISPR technology is able to target the sickle cell disease mutation. The key, researchers found, is to place an enzyme called the deaminase inside a CRISPR-Cas9 molecule. (STAT)
Europe’s drug regulator, the European Medicines Agency, linked the Johnson & Johnson COVID vaccine to rare blood clotting problems. But the safety committee also stated that the vaccine’s benefits outweigh the risks. (Reuters)
The Food and Drug Administration has granted Amgen’s bemarituzumab Breakthrough Therapy Designation for gastric cancer. Last fall, Phase II data showed that a combo of bemarituzumab and chemotherapy was more effective than the existing standard of care in extending survival. (Endpoints News)
