UNIVERSITY OF EXETER

Graft Polymer (UK) Plc announces a binding letter of agreement to acquire Awakn Life Sciences Corp., issuing 2,074,378,592 new shares valued at £4.98 million. The acquisition is subject to due diligence, regulatory approvals, and shareholder consent, aiming to strengthen Graft Polymer's position in mental health therapeutics.

Experts criticize David Beckham's wellness brand IM8, calling its supplements 'meaningless nonsense' with 'questionable claims' based on 'limited information from poorly conducted studies'. The products, 'Daily Ultimate Essentials' and 'Daily Ultimate Longevity', are priced at £65 and £61 respectively, and despite claims of boosting energy, digestion, and skin health, experts warn of potential risks due to undisclosed ingredient quantities and possible allergic reactions.

2024 IBD news: 'top down' therapy outperformed 'step up' in Crohn's; 2/3 of Crohn's patients lost TNF inhibitor response; FDA approved risankizumab and expanded guselkumab for ulcerative colitis; intensified infliximab failed in refractory UC; placebos in IBD trials posed higher harm risk; tulisokibart showed extended benefit in IBD.

Authors Daniel E. Coral, Femke Smit, and Ali Farzaneh contributed equally. Affiliations include Lund University Diabetes Centre, Maastricht University, Erasmus MC University Medical Center, University Medical Center Mainz, Novo Nordisk A/S, Université de Lille, George Washington University, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Institut d’Investigació Biomèdica de Girona, University of Girona, CIBER Fisiopatología de la Obesidad y Nutrición, Dr. Josep Trueta University Hospital, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, University of Exeter, and University of Dundee.

Awakn Life Sciences Corp. opens four additional clinical trial sites for its Phase 3 'MORE-KARE' trial of AWKN-001, a novel ketamine-based treatment for severe alcohol use disorder (AUD). The trial, co-funded by the UK's Medical Research Council and the National Institute for Health and Care Research, aims to evaluate the efficacy of AWKN-001 in combination with psycho-social support. The study is the largest of its kind investigating ketamine-assisted therapy for AUD, with a total cost of £2.4 million / CAD 4.2 million.

Chronic pain treatment involves a lengthy trial-and-error process due to individual variability. Advances in biomarkers and AI show promise for personalized pain medicine, potentially revolutionizing treatment matching.

Iterum Therapeutics' oral sulopenem faces FDA approval for uUTIs, with concerns over antibiotic resistance. The drug, a thiopenem antibiotic, previously faced rejection due to insufficient evidence. A Phase III trial showed efficacy in 61.7% of patients, leading to an NDA resubmission. The FDA's PDUFA date is October 25. The approval hinges on responsible use to prevent resistance.

The University of Exeter launches the Centre for Medical Mycology in Latin America (CMM-LATAM Unit) in Brazil, aiming to combat fungal diseases through research and training. The unit, in collaboration with the University of São Paulo, focuses on developing solutions for fungal infections, addressing urgent needs in low-to middle-income countries. Key research themes include microbial evolution, biomarkers, clinical management, One Health, and education.

A new molecular imaging marker, ^99mTc-maraciclatide, could help identify interstitial lung disease progression sooner. The PREDICT-ILD study aims to evaluate this marker for disease prognostication, assessing differences between IPF, non-IPF fibrosing-ILD patients, and healthy controls. The study, led by the University of Exeter in collaboration with Serac Healthcare, hopes to improve patient outcomes and develop new therapies.