News & Comment

Following approval of hepatitis C virus protease inhibitors Incivek and Victrelis, companies are partnering to devise all-oral combination antiviral regimens without interferon α. But the virus is a long way from vanquished. Ken Garber investigates.

The current standard of care for asthma leaves large numbers of sufferers at risk for severe exacerbations and even death. But emerging targeted therapies that may provide better treatment options also face obstacles. Sarah Webb reports.

For a century, insulin has been the only drug available to type 1 diabetics. Now a raft of novel drugs are coming through the pipeline. Michael Eisenstein reports.

A new technology for genome editing may put the zinc finger nuclease franchise out of business, some believe. Not so fast, say the finger people. Laura DeFrancesco reports.

Advances in immunology, a focus on human tissue and a dash of luck have given dermatologists several highly effective psoriasis therapies, of which Stelara is the latest. Ken Garber reports.

Companies are trying to translate the burgeoning science of hair into commercially viable treatments. Jill U. Adams reports.

Last year's failure of Eli Lilly's drug semagacestat in late-stage clinical trials was the latest in a long line of setbacks for novel Alzheimer's therapies. But advances in imaging and biomarker identification are providing added impetus to ongoing drug development. Gunjan Sinha reports.

With the economy sputtering toward recovery, federal outlays shriveling and the political scene in upheaval, the US biotech policy picture is more than a little blurred. Jeffrey L. Fox reports.

Applications of crowdsourcing in commercial biotech remain few and far between, but the approach is proving increasingly popular for solving challenges in basic research. Clare Sansom reports.

Apart from a drug produced in rabbits, 2010 was in some ways an unremarkable year for biologic drugs coming onto the market. Emphasis on safety may be keeping the reins on new product registrations for some time to come. Jim Kling reports.

One-size-fits-all intravenous delivery of biologics may be giving way to alternate delivery routes that enable safer and more efficient drug administration. Michael Eisenstein reports.

With information on the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico still coming in, more is being learned about the role of indigenous bacteria in cleaning the spill. Meanwhile, efforts are under way to enlist new genomic technologies to improve outcomes. Jeffrey L. Fox reports.

With the construction of two new manufacturing plants, the bioplastics market emerges. Daniel Grushkin reports.

As oncology drug after oncology drug fails to achieve accelerated approval, sponsors are seeking other ways to speed trials. Malorye Allison investigates.