Novartis signs new initial agreement with BioNTech to support fill and finish of the mRNA Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine
Novartis announced that it has signed an initial agreement to leverage its manufacturing capacity and capabilities to address the COVID-19 pandemic by expanding its support of the fill and finish of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. Novartis will use its sterile manufacturing facilities at its Novartis Technical Operations site in Ljubljana, Slovenia, to fill at least 24 million doses in 2022. 
Petrovax Pharm, the Russian biopharmaceutical company, will participate in CPhI Worldwide-2021 - the international specialized pharmaceutical industry exhibition. This year, it will be held from 9 to 11 November in Italy (Milan) on the territory of the largest exhibition complex Fiera Milano. 
Roche (SIX: RO, ROG; OTCQX: RHHBY) announced that gantenerumab, an anti-amyloid beta antibody developed for subcutaneous administration, has been granted Breakthrough Therapy Designation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of people living with Alzheimer's disease (AD). 
Interim results from the first co-administration descriptive study of Sanofi's Fluzone® High-Dose Quadrivalent vaccine with Moderna's COVID-19 mRNA investigational booster dose show that the administration of the vaccines at the same visit had similar immunogenicity responses and a similar safety and tolerability profile compared to each vaccine administered individually. 
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) plc welcomes and applauds the WHO recommendation for the broader deployment of GSK's RTS,S malaria vaccine to reduce childhood illness and deaths from malaria in children living in sub-Saharan Africa and other regions with moderate to high transmission as defined by WHO. 
Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE, "Pfizer") and BioNTech SE (Nasdaq: BNTX, "BioNTech") announced that the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) issued a positive opinion on the administration of the companies' COVID-19 vaccine as a booster dose at least six months after the second dose in individuals 18 years of age and older.