Health News Roundup: CureVac files expanded patent lawsuit against Pfizer/BioNTech over mRNA technology; AstraZeneca's China boss says drugmaker will seek to "love the Communist Party" and more

Wang Lei, who is also the company's global executive vice president, made the comments at an event in the eastern city of Wuxi which the firm organised to celebrate its 30th year in China, according to a person familiar with the matter and photos shared with Reuters. Thermo Fisher's test to detect pregnancy-related complication gets FDA nod The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has cleared Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc's test, the first of its kind in the country, to detect women with risk of severe preeclampsia, the company said on Friday.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

CureVac files expanded patent lawsuit against Pfizer/BioNTech over mRNA technology

CureVac NV said on Friday it had filed an expanded patent infringement claim against Pfizer Inc and BioNTech over the use of mRNA technology and that a U.S. court had granted its request to transfer the trial. The company said it filed a counterclaim alleging that Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech infringed on nine of its patents, broader than its original claim of three patents.

AstraZeneca's China boss says drugmaker will seek to "love the Communist Party"

Global drugmaker AstraZeneca will seek to be a patriotic company in China that "loves the Communist Party", its China president said at an event on Friday. Wang Lei, who is also the company's global executive vice president, made the comments at an event in the eastern city of Wuxi which the firm organised to celebrate its 30th year in China, according to a person familiar with the matter and photos shared with Reuters.

Thermo Fisher's test to detect pregnancy-related complication gets FDA nod

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has cleared Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc's test, the first of its kind in the country, to detect women with risk of severe preeclampsia, the company said on Friday. Preeclampsia is a leading cause of mortality in pregnant women globally, where they could experience high blood pressure after 20 weeks of pregnancy and during the postpartum period.

Exclusive-India considers policy change after cough syrup deaths - Modi's office

India is considering a change to its pharmaceutical industry policy after cough syrups made in the country were linked to the deaths of children overseas, according to a document from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's office, which noted that "important things" about the industry had been "overlooked". A brainstorming session was held in the southern Indian city of Hyderabad "to find a solution to exported cough syrups that killed children," Modi's office said in the document dated May 15 and reviewed by Reuters.

London court throws out lawsuit against Google over medical records

Google on Friday defeated a lawsuit brought on behalf of 1.6 million people over medical records provided to the U.S. tech giant by a British hospital trust. The Royal Free London NHS Trust transferred patient data to Google's artificial intelligence firm DeepMind Technologies in 2015 in relation to the development of a mobile app designed to analyse medical records and detect acute kidney injuries.

WHO recommends new COVID shots should target only XBB variants

A World Health Organization (WHO) advisory group on Thursday recommended that this year's COVID-19 booster shots be updated to target one of the currently dominant XBB variants. New formulations should aim to produce antibody responses to the XBB.1.5 or XBB.1.16 variants, the advisory group said, adding that other formulations or platforms that achieve neutralizing antibody responses against XBB lineages could also be considered.

US FDA panel backs Pfizer's maternal RSV vaccine for protecting infants

Advisers to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Thursday backed the safety and effectiveness of Pfizer Inc's experimental respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine, boosting its chances of becoming the first available maternal shot to protect babies from the illness. The FDA's advisory committee voted unanimously that available data supported the vaccine's efficacy for giving the shot to women in their second or third trimesters of pregnancy to prevent lower respiratory tract infection and severe disease in infants up to 6 months of age.

Amputees could feel warmth of human touch with new bionic technology

Fabrizio Fidati, who lost his right hand in an accident 25 years ago, had not experienced the sensation of temperature in his missing digits until trials for a bionic technology unlocked the cool of iced water and heat of a stove burner for him. Eventually, the researchers hope it could lead to a more natural feeling of loved ones when he is wearing his prosthetic.

Brazil investigates suspected bird flu case in human

Brazil is investigating a suspected case of avian influenza A (H5N1) in a person living in the southeastern state of Espirito Santo, where this week the first ever confirmed cases in wild birds were detected, the Health Ministry said. A 61-year-old man, who worked at the park where three wild birds tested positive for Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI), is being monitored and in isolation after he showed mild flu symptoms, the ministry said in a statement.

Amgen agrees not to seek quick close to Horizon acquisition

Amgen Inc has agreed not to quickly close on its $27.8 billion acquisition of Horizon Therapeutics after the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed suit to block the deal. A U.S. district court judge issued a temporary restraining order late on Wednesday after the two companies and the FTC reached an agreement that both sides said in a joint filing would permit a full briefing and "less-compressed consideration" by the court of the FTC request.