Pipeline Watch is a weekly snapshot of selected late-stage clinical trial events announced by pharmaceutical and biotech companies at medical and industry conferences, in financial and company presentations, and in company releases and statements.

New research has identified ApoE as a potential direct regulator of transcription, suggesting a broad role for the molecule in the study of Alzheimer’s disease that could explain why the usual strategies of trying to break up accumulations of amyloid beta or regulate tau hyperphosphorylation have failed to adequately treat symptoms or cure the disease.

Europe needs better pricing systems for so-called value added medicines if the market for such products is to be sustainable or attractive, Warrick Smith, director general of the British Generic Manufacturers Association, the BGMA, told Scrip.

Menlo Park, California-based Corium, a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development, manufacture and commercialization of specialty transdermal products, has appointed Dr Joseph J Sarret to the newly created position of chief business officer. Reporting to Corium's president and CEO Peter D Staple, Dr Sarret will serve as a member of the company's executive leadership team with responsibility for developing and implementing Corium's business strategies, building new alliances and expanding existing ones, and pursuing new business initiatives that leverage Corium's advanced transdermal technologies and product candidates.