Trends in COVID-19 Vaccine Development: Vaccine Platform, Developer, and Nationality.

Various vaccine platforms, including emerging platforms, have been applied in the development of COVID-19 vaccines. Biotechnology startups often lead the development of new medical technologies, whereas major pharmaceutical companies and public institutions have long contributed to vaccine development. In this study, vaccine platforms and developers involved in COVID-19 vaccine development were analyzed, elucidating the trends of vaccine platforms used, the country distribution of the developers, and differences in the profiles of developers by vaccine platform technologies and country.

Increased contribution of small companies to late-entry drugs: a changing trend in FDA-approved drugs during the 2020s.

Small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have significantly boosted innovative drug discovery, whereas large pharmaceutical companies have focused on incremental drug innovation. I explored the evolving role of SMEs in late-entry drug discovery. A comparative analysis of new drugs approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) during the 2020s with those approved previously revealed that SMEs have expanded their role to late-entry drug discovery while maintaining their contribution to first-in-target drug discovery.

mRNA and Adenoviral Vector Vaccine Platforms Utilized in COVID-19 Vaccines: Technologies, Ecosystem, and Future Directions.

New technological platforms, such as mRNA and adenoviral vector vaccines, have been utilized to develop coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines. These new modalities enable rapid and flexible vaccine design and cost-effective and swift manufacturing, effectively combating pandemics caused by mutating viruses. Innovation ecosystems, including universities, startups, investors, and governments are crucial for developing these cutting-edge technologies.

The evolving impact of engaging in leisure activities towards life quality: A longitudinal study of elderly in the UK.

We examine the evolving impact of leisure activities (LA) on three key measures of the elderly's life quality: cognitive functioning (CF), psychological well-being (PWB), and life enjoyment (LE). Using four waves of the English Longitudinal Studies of Ageing between 2008 and 2014 with 7097 respondents, we investigate how the elderly's LA influence their CF, PWB, and LE. Building on the theoretical perspective of being active in promoting psycho-mental health, we confirm the positive impact of engaging in LA, such as going to the cinema/theatre and eating out, on the elderly's life quality.

Chronological Analysis of First-in-Class Drugs Approved from 2011 to 2022: Their Technological Trend and Origin.

The discovery and development of first-in-class (FIC) drugs are becoming increasingly important due to increasing reimbursement pressure and personalized medication. To investigate the technological trends and origin of FIC drugs, the FIC drugs approved in the U.S.

Advancements in Drug Repurposing: Examples in Psychiatric Medications.

Because there are a limited number of animal models for psychiatric diseases that can be extrapolated to humans, drug repurposing has been actively pursued. This study was aimed at uncovering recent trends in drug repurposing approaches and new technologies that can predict efficacy on humans based on animal models used in psychiatric drug development. Psychiatric drugs that were approved by the FDA between 2002 and 2022 were listed, and the method of how the drug repurposing has been applied was analyzed.

Strengthening the Competitiveness of Japan's Pharmaceutical Industry: Analysis of Country Differences in the Origin of New Drugs and Japan's Highly Productive Firm.

Improving the new drug discovery and development capability of the Japanese pharmaceutical industry, which shows a huge trade deficit, is an urgent issue. To tackle this issue and propose remedies, this study analyzed the originators and characteristics of new drugs approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) from 2017 to 2022 and examined the contributions of Japanese companies. Analysis of the establishment year of the companies that created the approved drugs showed that bio-ventures established in the 1990s and 2000s highly contributed to the creation of the approved drugs in regions other than Japan (particularly in the US), whereas, in Japan, all approved drugs were created by old incumbent pharmaceutical companies.

Nurturing Deep Tech to Solve Social Problems: Learning from COVID-19 mRNA Vaccine Development.

In mRNA vaccines against COVID-19, a new technology that had never been used for approved drugs was applied and succeeded in rapid clinical use. The development and application of new technologies are critical to solving emerging public health problems therefore it is important to understand which factors enabled the rapid development of the COVID-19 mRNA vaccines. This review discusses administrative and technological aspects of rapid vaccine development.