1. A non-profit group filed petitions against Gilead Sciences with the U.S. Patent Trial and Appeal Board, challenging the patents that the drugmaker has for its blockbuster hepatitis C drug Sovaldi. The Initiative for Medicines, Access & Knowledge alleged that Sovaldi’s main active ingredients aren’t new and that the patents are being used to raise prices and limit access. (Bloomberg)
2. The Medicines Company plans to cut its workforce to fewer than 60 staff after it finds a buyer for its infectious disease unit. The biotech had 410 employees in February. (Endpoints News)
3. Amgen ended its R&D efforts for an experimental cholesterol drug, which was part of a $300 million acquisition of biotech company Dezima in 2015. Eli Lilly, Pfizer, Roche, and others have ended R&D efforts for similar experimental CETP drugs, which failed in Phase-III studies. (Endpoints News)
4. Sanofi filed a patent infringement suit against Mylan, alleging that it infringed on 18 patents covering insulin glargine injection Lantus and SoloStar pen. (The Pharma Letter)
5. FDA commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb proposed the use of less harmful opioid drugs, such as methadone and buprenorphin, in the treatment of addiction. The proposal is part of the agency’s efforts to address opioid abuse. (Reuters)
