Day: December 15, 2022

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UK marketing authorisations for IOPIDINE® (apraclonidine) fully transferred to Essential Pharma as change in UK NICE guidelines for glaucoma treatment expected to lead to increase in patients’ need for product

UK marketing authorisations for IOPIDINE® (apraclonidine) fully transferred to Essential Pharma as change in UK NICE guidelines for glaucoma treatment expected to lead to increase in patients’ need for product

Recent change in NICE guidelines indicating laser surgery as first line therapy for glaucoma is expected to increase need for IOPIDINE to control or prevent post-surgical elevations in intraocular pressure

Continuation of global marketing authorisation transfer from Novartis for this important product

Zug, Switzerland & Egham, UK – 15 December 2022 – Essential Pharma, an international specialty pharma group focused on ensuring that patients have sustainable access to low volume, clinically well-established pharmaceutical products across key therapeutic areas, announces that it has completed the transfer of the UK marketing authorisations for IOPIDINE® (apraclonidine) in both available concentrations, IOPIDINE® 0.5% and 1%, following its acquisition of the product from Novartis in December 2021.

IOPIDINE® is a short-term adjunctive therapy for patients with chronic glaucoma to prevent or control intraocular pressure*,1 including after selective laser therapy, a form of laser eye surgery now recommended as the initial treatment for open angle glaucoma.2

A recent change in regulations by the UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), which placed laser surgery as first line therapy for glaucoma, means that IOPIDINE®, especially IOPIDINE® 1% which is indicated to control or prevent post-surgical elevations in intraocular pressure that occur in patients after selective laser therapy (SLT), will continue to be an important treatment for glaucoma patients that require additional intraocular pressure reduction.2

The acquisition of this long-established therapy sold across more than 20 global markets including several countries in the EU plus Canada, Australia and Japan, is in line with Essential Pharma’s commitment to ensure the sustainable supply of essential specialty medicines to patients. The acquisition also demonstrates Essential Pharma’s strong integration capabilities for newly acquired products and underlines the group’s strategy to be a trusted partner to regional and global pharma companies looking to streamline their portfolios across international markets.

Steen Vangsgaard, CEO of Essential Pharma, commented: “We are delighted to have completed the MA transfer, enabling us to ensure the continued supply of IOPIDINE® and fulfilling a vital need for patients, as has been demonstrated by the change in recent NICE guidelines. We are also pleased that Novartis chose us as a trusted partner for its divestment, further underlining Essential Pharma’s expertise and commitment to ensuring long-term, structured supply of established medicines.”

Gus Gazzard, Professor of Ophthalmology (Glaucoma Studies) UCL & Director of Surgery at Moorfields, commented: “Based on a 3-year scientific study, we compared the treatment of glaucoma using continuous daily eye drops with initial selective laser therapy. This study has shown that SLT has favourable cost-effectiveness versus treatment with daily eye drops.3 Followed by a public consultation finalised in 2021, NICE decided to change the guidelines to recommend SLT as a first line therapy for all open angle glaucoma, which is expected to contribute to meaningful savings to the NHS over the coming years.” 2

In the UK, chronic open angle glaucoma (COAG) affects around 2% of people aged over 40 and can rise to almost 10% in people aged over 75. Ocular hypertension (OHT) affects 3-5% of people in the UK over 40 years of age and occurs when pressure inside the eye is higher than normal, which can cause glaucoma. According to latest NICE guidelines which were updated in 2022, SLT is now recommended as a first line option to treat glaucoma and ocular hypertension allowing patients to quickly receive effective treatment to improve their quality of life.2

1.   IOPIDINE® Summary of Product Characteristics. Available from https://www.medicines.org.uk/emc/product/839/smpc. Accessed December 2022

2.   NICE, Press Release 26 January 2022. Selective laser therapy recommended to treat glaucoma and ocular hypertension. Available from https://www.nice.org.uk/news/article/selective-laser-therapy-recommended-to-treat-glaucoma-and-ocular-hypertension#:~:text=News,Selective%20laser%20therapy%20recommended%20to%20treat%20glaucoma%20and%20ocular%20hypertension,(Wednesday%2C%2026%20January). Accessed December 2022

3.   Gazzard G, Konstantakopoulou E, Garway-Heath D, et al. Selective laser trabeculoplasty versus eye drops for first-line treatment of ocular hypertension and glaucoma (LiGHT): a multicentre randomised controlled trial, Lancet. 2019 Apr 13;393(10180):1505-1516. (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30862377/. Accessed December 2022)

About Essential Pharma

Essential Pharma is an international specialty pharmaceutical group dedicated to maintaining access to well-established, “at risk” products essential to patients across multiple therapeutic areas. The group has been an important and valued partner to healthcare providers for over 20 years by giving patients access to medicines that otherwise may not be available.

Essential Pharma operates globally, supplying a portfolio of over 150 essential medicines across multiple therapeutic areas. Essential Pharma’s growth strategy is based around identifying and acquiring mature, at-risk products from larger pharmaceutical groups looking to streamline their product portfolios.

Essential Pharma is a trusted partner to multiple pharma companies of all sizes with a proven history of integrating assets, managing complex technology and product transfers while ensuring continual and sustainable supply to patients.

Essential Pharma maintains strong relationships with partners at multiple manufacturing sites across Europe and the US in order to ensure the continuing manufacture of its products to the highest regulatory standards.

Essential Pharma’s growth strategy is backed by Gyrus Capital, an investment firm dedicated to transformational investments in sectors with long term sustainable growth, including healthcare.

For more information, please visit essentialpharmagroup.com

CONTACTS

Essential Pharma

Steen Vangsgaard, CEO

Tel: +44(0)1784 477 167

Email: info@essentialpharmaceuticals.com

Consilium Strategic Communications

Mary-Jane Elliott / Tracy Cheung / Matthew Cole

Tel: +44 (0) 20 3709 5700

Email: Essentialpharma@consilium-comms.com

GlobeNewswire Distribution ID 1000772445

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VOA Journalist Among Media Suspended on Twitter

VOA Chief National Correspondent Steve Herman was among several journalists to be suspended from Twitter late Thursday.
Followers of the former White House bureau chief’s Twitter account were greeted with a blank screen and message saying, “Account suspended.”
Accounts for journalists from CNN, The New York Times and The Washington Post, as well as some independent journalists, showed similar messages.
It was not immediately clear why those accounts were suspended. VOA’s email requesting comment from the media contact listed on Twitter’s company website was returned with a “delivery failure” message.
Many of the reporters have written articles or posted about changes made to Twitter by its new owner, Elon Musk.
In replies to tweets late Thursday, Musk said on the platform: “Criticizing me all day long is totally fine, but doxxing my real-time location and endangering my family is not.”
Musk added: “Same doxxing rules apply to ‘journalists’ as to everyone else,” a reference to Twitter rules banning sharing of personal information, called doxxing.
Reuters reported that Twitter earlier suspended @elonjet, an account tracking Musk’s private jet in real time, a month after he said his commitment to free speech extended to not banning the account.
While some of those banned had reported on the incident, none had shared location information or content that could be described as doxxing, CNN’s “Reliable Sources” said in a newsletter.
Herman last reported for VOA News about the Twitter platform in September. On Thursday he was tweeting about the @elonjet case.
“I had been tweeting quite a bit on Thursday evening about this building drama, which had started out with the suspension of a so-called bot account that tweets the location of Elon Musk’s private jet,” Herman told VOA.
In his last tweet, Herman posted a link to a Post article and wrote, “More reaction to the Thursday night massacre of journalists on Twitter.”
Shortly afterward, his account was suspended. Herman said he could no longer send direct messages or like other users’ posts.
VOA in a statement late Thursday confirmed Herman’s account had been suspended and called on the social media platform to reinstate it.
“Mr. Herman is a seasoned reporter who upholds the highest journalistic standards and uses the social media platform as a news gathering and networking tool. Mr. Herman has received no information from Twitter as to why his account was suspended,” VOA spokesperson Nigel Gibbs said in an email.
“As Chief National Correspondent, Mr. Herman covers international and national news stories and this suspension impedes his ability to perform his duties as a journalist.”
A spokesperson for the Times said: “Tonight’s suspension of the Twitter accounts of a number of prominent journalists, including The New York Times’ Ryan Mac, is questionable and unfortunate. Neither the Times nor Ryan have received any explanation about why this occurred. We hope that all of the journalists’ accounts are reinstated and that Twitter provides a satisfying explanation for this action.”
CNN in a statement described the suspensions as “impulsive and unjustified” and said it had asked Twitter for an explanation. The broadcaster said it would reevaluate its relationship with the platform based on that response.
Twitter is more heavily using automation to moderate content, over manual reviews, its new head of trust and safety, Ella Iwin, told Reuters this month.
At the time of Herman’s suspension, the veteran broadcast journalist had about 112,000 followers.
Herman told VOA late Thursday that he’d received a notice informing him the account was permanently suspended. The notice included a link for users wanting to appeal the decision. But when he clicked it, a message read: “No results. Please try searching for something else.”
The changes at Twitter are of interest to global audiences, Herman said.
“It is obviously a growing free press story and people are interested in that because it’s involving this huge social media platform, a man who is, I guess now, the second-richest person in the world,” he said. “And this is all happening in America, with our Constitution, First Amendment and democracy.”

Source: Voice Of America

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China Pushes Vaccines as Retreat from ‘Zero-COVID’ Turns Messy

China raced to vaccinate its most vulnerable people on Thursday in anticipation of waves of COVID-19 infections, with some analysts expecting the death toll to soar after it eased strict controls that had kept the pandemic at bay for three years.
The push comes as the World Health Organization also raised concerns that China’s 1.4 billion population was not adequately vaccinated and the United States offered help in dealing with a surge in infections.
Beijing last Wednesday began dismantling its tough ‘zero-COVID’ controls, dropping testing requirements and easing quarantine rules that had caused mental stress for tens of millions and battered the world’s second largest economy.
The pivot away from President Xi Jinping’s signature “zero-COVID” policy followed unprecedented widespread protests against it. But, WHO emergencies director Mike Ryan said infections were exploding in China well before the government’s decision to phase out its stringent regime.
“There’s a narrative at the moment that China lifted the restrictions and all of a sudden the disease is out of control,” Ryan told a briefing in Geneva.
“The disease was spreading intensively because I believe the control measures in themselves were not stopping the disease.”
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said on Thursday China has “institutional advantages” to fight COVID.
“We will certainly be able to smoothly get through the peak of the epidemic,” he told a regular news briefing in response to White House national security spokesperson John Kirby saying that the U.S. was ready to help if China requested it.
There are increasing signs of chaos during China’s change of tack – with long queues outside fever clinics, runs on medicines and panic buying across the country.
One video posted online on Wednesday showed several people in thick winter clothes hooked up to intravenous drips as they sat on stools on the street outside a clinic in central Hubei province. Reuters verified the location of the video.
The COVID scare in China also led people in Hong Kong, Macau and in some neighborhoods in Australia to go in search for fever medicines and test kits for family and friends on the mainland.
For all its efforts to quell the virus since it erupted in the central city of Wuhan in late 2019, China may now pay a price for shielding a population that lacks “herd immunity” and has low vaccination rates among the elderly, analysts said.
“Authorities have let cases in Beijing and other cities spread to the point where resuming restrictions, testing and tracing would be largely ineffective in bringing outbreaks under control,” analysts at Eurasia Group said in a note on Thursday.
“Upward of 1 million people could die from COVID in the coming months.”
Other experts have put the potential toll at more than 2 million. China has reported just 5,235 COVID-related deaths so far, extremely low by global standards.
China’s stock markets and its currency fell on Thursday on concerns of the virus spread.
China reported 2,000 new symptomatic COVID-19 infections for Dec. 14 compared with 2,291 a day. The official figures, however, have become less reliable as testing has dropped. It also stopped reporting asymptomatic figures on Wednesday.
Concern for elderly
China, which has said around 90% of its population is vaccinated against COVID, has now decided to roll out the second booster shot for high-risk groups and elderly people over 60 years of age.
National Health Commission spokesperson Mi Feng said on Wednesday it was necessary to accelerate the promotion of vaccinations, according to comments reported by state media.
The latest official data shows China administered 1.43 million COVID shots on Tuesday, well above rates in November of around 100,000-200,000 doses a day. In total, it has administered 3.45 billion shots.
But one Shanghai care home said on Wednesday a number of its residents have not yet been vaccinated and considering their underlying medical condition, it has barred visitors and non-essential deliveries while stockpiling medicines, tests kits and protective gear.
“We are racking our brains on how to ensure the safety of your grandparents,” the Yuepu Tianyi Nursing Home wrote in a letter posted on its official WeChat account page.
Beijing has been largely resistant to western vaccines and treatments, having relied on locally-made shots. Pfizer’s oral COVID-19 treatment Paxlovid is one of the few foreign ones it has approved.
The treatment, however, has only been available in hospitals for high-risk patients, but signs have appeared in recent days that it may soon be made more widely available.
China Meheco Group Co Ltd’s stock jumped after it announced a deal to import the U.S. drugmaker’s treatment on Wednesday.
Economic conference
As the virus spreads, President Xi, his ruling Politburo and senior government officials began a two-day meeting to plot a recovery for China’s battered economy, according to sources with knowledge of the matter.
China’s economy lost more steam in November as factory output growth slowed and retail sales extended declines, both missing forecasts and clocking their worst readings since May, data on Thursday showed.
Economists estimate that China’s growth has slowed to around 3% this year, marking one of China’s worst performances in almost half a century.

Source: Voice Of America

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Xieng Khuang Games kick off

Thousands of people turned out on Dec 13 at the main stadium of Xieng Khuang Province for the opening of the 11th National Games being hosted in the northern province.
President Thongloun Sisoulith, other government leaders, Governor of Xieng Khuang Bounchanh Sivongphanh, and representatives of relevant authorities also joined the ceremony.
Addressing the launching ceremony, President Thongloun expressed his belief that the national games will play an important role in developing human resources in the country.

Scheduled for Dec 13-22, this year edition of the National Games draws a total of 3,093 athletes from 17 provinces, Vientiane and four ministries. The athletes will compete for 2,598 medals.

“The 11th National Games was originally scheduled to take place in 2018. However, preparations including the construction of sport venues experienced delays. In 2019, major flooding caused the games to be delayed for second time. Meanwhile, in 2020 the games were canceled due to the Covid-19 pandemic,” said Xieng Khuang Vice Governor Sivilay Sengchaleurn.

A total of 15 sports are being competed at the national competition. These include football, maklae (a traditional sport), badminton, muaylao (kick-boxing), table tennis, volleyball and beach volleyball, cycling, judo, shooting, wushu, petanque, tennis, top spinning, golf and sepak takraw.
Of the total, swimming and shooting are being competed in Vientiane.
The 10th National Games were held in Oudomxay Province in 2014, where the Ministry of Defense took the first place with 61 gold medals, while Vientiane ranked second with 55 gold medals.

Source: Lao News Agency

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Nikkiso Clean Energy & Industrial Gases Group Awarded DNV’s Management System Certificate and ISO 9001:2015 Certification

TEMECULA, Calif., Dec. 14, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Nikkiso Clean Energy & Industrial Gases Group (“Group”), a part of the Nikkiso Co., Ltd (Japan) group of companies, is proud to have been awarded DNV’s Management System Certificate and ISO 9001:2015 certification. The award was presented to George Pappagelis, President of Nikkiso Clean Energy & Industrial Gases group’s Process Systems unit. The certificate was issued to Cosmodyne LLC in Seal Beach California.

ISO 9001 is defined as the international standard that specifies requirements for a quality management system (QMS), helps businesses and organizations be more efficient and improve customer satisfaction. By obtaining and implementing the ISO 9001 certification and standardized management system, we can lower operational costs, improve our bottom line, offer a competitive advantage, improve reputation, and deliver better products and services – all of which ultimately benefit our customers!

“We believe that quality is a continuous process that requires us to never stop trying to improve,” according to George Pappagelis, President of Nikkiso Cosmodyne. “Our internal corrective action system helps assure that all of our internal systems, future processes and designs are as trouble-free as possible.”

ISO 9001 certification ensures that quality orientation is lived by each of our employees every day.

ABOUT CRYOGENIC INDUSTRIES
Cryogenic Industries, Inc. (now a member of Nikkiso Co., Ltd.) member companies manufacture and service engineered cryogenic gas processing equipment (pumps, turboexpanders, heat exchangers, etc.) and process plants for Industrial Gases, and Natural Gas Liquefaction (LNG), Hydrogen Liquefaction (LH2) and Organic Rankine Cycle for Waste Heat Recovery. Founded over 50 years ago, Cryogenic Industries is the parent company of ACD, Nikkiso Cryo, Nikkiso Integrated Cryogenic Solutions, Cosmodyne and Cryoquip and a commonly controlled group of 20 operating entities.

For more information, please visit www.nikkisoCEIG.com and www.nikkiso.com.

MEDIA CONTACT:
Anna Quigley
+1.951.383.3314
aquigley@cryoind.com

GlobeNewswire Distribution ID 8714983

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India Next Destination as VERZUZ by Triller Goes Global

VERZUZ by Triller kicks off #VerzuzDESI: A Celebration of Emerging Artists; First In series debuts December 22 at 9.30 PM IST/ 4.00 PM GMT/ 11.00 AM EST

Delhi, NCR, India, Dec. 14, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Global trendsetter Triller, an AI-powered open garden technology platform for creators; today announced the global expansion of their most successful live streaming IP, VERZUZ by Triller– created by legendary Hip-Hop producers Timbaland and Swizz Beatz. VERZUZ by Triller is a celebratory battle between musical artists, ranging from legends, contemporaries and emerging talent and will now expand its celebration of global music audiences with a special series called #VerzuzDesi. Putting a spin on the iconic VERZUZ format, #VerzuzDesi is partnering with Big Bang Music and highlighting rising hip-hop artists Panther and Gravity. The event will live-stream across multiple social media platforms and audiences both in person and watching online will experience the first of its kind hip-hop music battle from India. The first event in the series is set to launch on 22nd December 2022 in Delhi, India at 9.30 PM IST/ 4.00 PM GMT/ 11.00 AM EST live on Triller Facebook, Instagram and Youtube from Social Saket, DLF Avenue.

“2022 has been a banner year for VERZUZ and expanding the property to India where Triller has seen immense growth is exciting for the company. Making industry inroads to highlight emerging talent and creators is a key pillar for the Triller brand and the VerzuzDesi platform will spotlight India’s rising talent to a global audience,” says Mahi de Silva, CEO of Triller.

More about the Artists performing at #VerzuzDesi:

Panther – Coming from a small village of Uttar Pradesh, India, Panther has set his foot in the Indian Music Industry by his lyrical and musically rich performances in MTV Hustle 2.0. He has given Classics like Bus Ek Baar, Loriyaan, Bhasad, Vande Mataram, Kaha Hai Tu, etc during his Hustle performances. Earlier to that, he has released quite a few singles independently and also with labels like Kalamkaar, an EP and a 17 songs mixtape called Jungle and Animals Within. The journey has just begun, he aims to bring a revolution through music and that seems to be going in a very right direction! #buildingpanther

Gravity – Akshay Jagdish Poojary, better known as Gravity, represents the evolution of the Indian hip-hop sound. Having mastered the art of delivering the best acts including ‘Jalaluddin & Maut ka Manzar’ on national television through MTV Hustle 2.0. Gravity has been part of the evolution of hip-hop culture in India through every milestone. Known for delivering conceptual albums & EPs like Prashna Chinha (2018), Putrapaksh (2019),  Walls of Jericho & Walls of Jericho (Deluxe) (2021) & 3:16 (2022). Gravity is the co- founder of multiple hip-hop collectives including Bombay Lokal, Lokal Gang & his first crew Death Clutch Music.

VERZUZ was launched in March of 2020. What started as a battle between two friendly rivals has grown into a global phenomenon celebrating some of the greatest artists of our time, highlighting their careers and generating powerful surges in sales and streams. VERZUZ by Triller has taken its celebration of culture beyond music with successful collaborations in sports, comedy, and more. For more information, visit www.verzuztv.com and follow @verzuztv on Instagram.

Tune-in on 22nd of December at 9:30 PM IST/11 AM EST to watch the live-stream of the exclusive event and be part of the #VerzuzDesi conversation:

Triller India Instagram
Verzuz Intl
Triller India Facebook
Triller Global Facebook
VerzuzTV Youtube
FITE

Follow @VerzuzIntl and @TrillerIndia for more updates.

About Triller
Triller is the AI-powered open garden technology platform for creators. Pairing music culture with sports, fashion, entertainment, and influencers through a 360-degree view of content and technology, Triller encourages its influencers to post the content created on the app across different social media platforms and uses proprietary AI technology to push and track their content virally to affiliated and non-affiliated sites and networks, enabling them to reach millions of additional users. Triller additionally owns VERZUZ, the live-stream music platform; combat sports brands Triller Fight Club, Triad Combat and BKFC; Amplify.ai, a leading customer engagement platform; FITE.tv, a premier global PPV, AVOD, and SVOD streaming service; Thuzio, a leader in B2B premium influencer events and experiences; Fangage, a platform for creators to engage fans and monetize content and Julius, a platform for brands and agencies to harness creators for social engagement and social commerce.

About Big Bang Music
Big Bang Music is a new age pop culture company, building powerful music stories for artists, platforms, and brands. The label is a joint venture of Sony Music & Collective Artists Network, India’s largest talent management agency. Over the past three years, Big Bang Music has been cracking new codes for artist discovery, pop culture crossovers, and integrating music with Bollywood, gaming, social and more.

Media Contact:

Triller

press@triller.co

Media Contact:
Triller

press@triller.co

GlobeNewswire Distribution ID 8714829