The first-in-class ET-1 receptor antagonist has met the primary endpoint in a pivotal resistant hypertension trial, sparking filing plans that could see the drug establish a stronghold in the multi-billion dollar market.

Private Company Edition: Westlake Village BioPartners’ latest launch 3T Biosciences also licensed a second TCR platform from Stanford University. In other recent financings, Senda raised a $123m series C round, Orna revealed a $221m series B and CPRIT funded several cancer drug developers.

Amidst low growth and a potential rebound in the $9 billion global spine market, the pure-play spine companies, including NuVasive, Globus, K2M and LDR, continue to outperform and grab share from the diversified giants. Medtech Insight founder and former CEO Sharon O'Reilly reports on these companies and more from the 2015 North American Spine Society (NASS) conference in Chicago, where the latest news centered around ancillary approaches to fusion, patient-specific tools, robotics, biologics, expandable cages, MIS and cervical discs.

For much of the device industry, 2011 was marked by continuing change across the medtech ecosystem, most notably in the economy, the regulatory process, and the financing/innovation model. For 2012, we predict more of the same: the only certainty is continuing uncertainty.