After losing Novartis and Biogen agreements, Sangamo cut 120 jobs and announced a prioritized pipeline to extend the cash runway another year. Andrew Ramelmeier, EVP of technical operations, will also be leaving the company in July. (Endpoint News)
The Food and Drug Administration approved the first pill for fecal transplants, made from healthy bacteria in human waste. The pill offers an easier way to perform fecal transplants. Currently, most rely on a network of stool banks at medical institutions and hospitals. (NBC News)
Early findings in a gene therapy death suggested CRISPR was not the cause. In February, four months after the first patient in the trial of a designer CRISPR therapy suddenly died, around 100 researchers gathered in a Tucson, Ariz., conference hall to hear investigators in the study walk through the results of an autopsy. (STAT News)
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure said Medicare will cover Leqembi if the FDA fully approves the Alzheimer’s treatment in July. Brooks-LaSure faced pointed criticism from Democrat and Republican members of the House Subcommittee on Health over Medicare’s controversial coverage policy for new Alzheimer’s treatments. (CNBC)
The U.S. Capitol said it is shutting down its on-site COVID testing centers at the end of May. It’s the latest signal of a turning point in the government’s approach to the coronavirus pandemic. (Axios)
