Patent infringement: Factor Bioscience sues AstraZeneca, Cellectis over gene-editing technology

Biotech firm Factor Bioscience has filed a lawsuit against Cellectis and AstraZeneca, accusing the companies of allegedly infringing three patents related to its gene-editing technology used in cancer treatments.

The lawsuit, filed in the District federal Court, alleges that Cellectis copied Factor’s technology for designing gene-edited cells for cancer therapies.

Cellectis licenses its gene-editing technology to AstraZeneca for research and development. 

“If large multinational pharmaceutical companies are allowed to illegally exploit the research and innovation of companies like Factor, it will have a chilling effect on future innovations and ultimately delay the development of new therapies,” Factor CEO Matt Angel said in a statement.
As per reuters, the lawsuit said that Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Factor developed novel techniques for using messenger RNA and proteins, called TALENs, to produce cells to fight cancers like leukemia and lymphoma. Factor alleged that France-based Cellectis copied its mRNA TALEN technology to develop its own leukemia and lymphoma treatments.
United Kingdom-based AstraZeneca agreed in 2023 to license Cellectis’ gene-editing technology to help develop therapeutics in fields including oncology, immunology and rare diseases. Factor’s lawsuit accused AstraZeneca of violating its patent rights by using Cellectis’ technology.
Factor requested an unspecified amount of monetary damages for the alleged infringement.
“Since the discovery of the structure of DNA, there has been interest in developing methods to reprogram cells by editing their genetic code to treat disease and improve health,” Factor said in the lawsuit. “There are billions of dollars at stake in being the first company to develop such breakthrough treatments.”
The case is Factor Bioscience Inc v. Cellectis Inc, U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware, No. 1:25-cv-01197

For Factor: Robert Cerwinski, Michael Johnson and Lora Green of Gemini Law; Huiya Wu and Linnea Cipriano of Goodwin Procter

For Cellectis and AstraZeneca: attorney information not yet available

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Telangana Medical Council uses prescription test to identify Quacks

Hyderabad: To eliminate quackery in the state, the Telangana Medical Council has come up with a quick and effective way to identify fake doctors by simply asking them to write a prescription. 

Instead of spending weeks checking forged certificates, TGMC’s anti-quackery team now simply sends decoys to suspected practitioners, asking for a prescription on the spot. After that, they check for possible errors in the prescription.

In this way, the council has exposed hundreds of quacks who fail to write even a basic prescription correctly. In most cases, the prescriptions were vague, incomplete, or illegible. 

Also read- Telangana Medical Council suspends 5 doctors for ethical violations, professional misconduct

This year alone, 117 quacks have been caught across the state, as per a TOI media report. Last year, around 150 were booked.

Recently, members of the council inspected a private clinic running under the name Balaji First Aid Centre and caught the man who was pretending to be a registered medical professional. When the suspected quack was asked to write a prescription, the note turned out to be a messy scrawl without dosage, frequency, or treatment duration.

“Like in many other cases, we first sent a decoy patient to get a prescription. The note used brand names instead of drugs, had no clarity, and did not follow any standard format. It was clear the person had no understanding of treatment protocols,” said a TGMC official.

According to the National Medical Commission’s Ethics and Medical Registration Board, prescriptions must be legible, preferably in capital letters, and use generic names rather than brand names. They should also follow a set format of mentioning dosage strength, frequency, and duration and be based on evidence.

Apart from the prescription tests, TGMC member Dr V Naresh Kumar pointed out another warning sign, including the absence of a letterhead.

“In many cases, quacks write on plain white paper instead of a proper prescription pad. NMC rules mandate that doctors use a letterhead with their name, qualifications, registration number, and contact details. This ensures accountability and makes it easier to track them. Quacks avoid this deliberately to escape scrutiny,” he told TOI.

“Quacks often prefer brand names because of the commissions they receive from pharmacies. Most quacks have no idea about dosage or duration. Many are just graduates who once worked as ward boys. They later open small centres and start prescribing injections and antibiotics. Instead of writing ‘paracetamol’, they push a specific company’s brand so they get a cut from the pharmacy. They also tend to overprescribe strong drugs for instant relief to impress patients, but this can damage organs in the long run and worsen drug resistance,” said Dr G Srinivas, TGMC vice-chairman.

Also read- 18 Quacks caught during Telangana Medical Council raids

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Aurobindo Pharma arm CuraTeQ Biologics incorporates new wholly owned subsidiary in Malta

Hyderabad: Aurobindo Pharma has announced that CuraTeQ Biologics B.V., a wholly owned step-down subsidiary of the Company, has
incorporated a new wholly owned subsidiary in Malta by the name of CuraTeQ Biologics (Malta) Limited.

The incorporation is aimed at expanding the company’s pharmaceutical products business in Malta.

The new entity has been set up with an initial share capital subscription of EUR 1,200, divided into 1,200 shares of EUR 1 each.

According to the company’s disclosure to the BSE, CuraTeQ Biologics (Malta) Limited will operate in the pharmaceutical sector.

Earlier this month, Helix Healthcare B.V., a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company, also incorporated a new wholly owned subsidiary in Malaysia by the name of Aurobindo Pharma (Malaysia) SDN. BHD.

Read also: Aurobindo Pharma arm incorporates new wholly owned subsidiary in Malaysia

In June, the Company further extended its global presence by incorporating a wholly owned subsidiary in the United States through Aurobindo Pharma USA Inc.

Read also: Aurobindo Pharma arm incorporates new subsidiary in US

Additionally, in May 2025, Curateq Biologics Private Limited, another wholly owned subsidiary of Aurobindo, incorporated a new wholly owned subsidiary in the Netherlands by the name of CuraTeQ Biologics B.V.

Further strengthening its domestic capabilities, in October 2024, Lyfius Pharma, a wholly owned step-down subsidiary of Aurobindo Pharma, inaugurated its state-of-the-art PenG manufacturing facility, at Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh.

Headquartered in Hyderabad, India, Aurobindo Pharma Ltd. is a global pharmaceutical company with operations spanning active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), generics, and biosimilars. CuraTeQ Biologics is its wholly owned subsidiary focused on biosimilars for oncology and other therapeutic areas, enhancing Aurobindo’s footprint in biologics markets in Europe and beyond.

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Health Bulletin 27/September/2025

Here are the top health stories of the day:

NMC releases updated 2025-26 Seat Matrix: 1.24 Lakh MBBS seats available in 809 Colleges

Through a recent notice, the Medical Assessment and Rating Board (MARB) of the National Medical Commission (NMC) has released an updated MBBS seat matrix, which has been prepared considering the recent changes in Renewal of existing UG (MBBS) seats as well as additional seats sanctioned for the Academic Year 2025-26.

Referring to the MARB notice dated 24.09.2025, the Secretary of NMC, Dr. Raghav Langer, wrote to the Deans/Principals of all medical institutes on 26.09.2025 and mentioned, “Kind reference is invited to the Medical Assessment and Rating Board’s (MARB) Notice of even number dated 24-09-2025 regarding updated seat matrix in view of recent changes in renewal of existing UG(MBBS) seats as well as additional seats sanctioned for UG(MBBS) for the Academic Year 2025-26. All the concerned Medical Institutions, Parents, Student and other stakeholders are requested to take note of the same.”

As per the revised MBBS seat matrix, there are a total of 124825 MBBS seats available this year across 809 medical colleges, including the 7375 MBBS seats that the NMC approved this year.

For more details, check out the full story on the link mentioned below:

NMC Releases Updated 2025-26 Seat Matrix: 1.24 Lakh MBBS Seats Available in 809 Colleges

Max Hospital accused of extorting money after infant’s tragic death

A shocking allegation has been levelled against Max Hospital in Vaishali, Ghaziabad, following the death of a one-month-old baby two days ago. The family alleged that even after the baby was declared dead at 4 PM, hospital staff continued to demand money for treatment until 6 PM.

According to the family, the hospital behaved insensitively and misled them after the child’s death. They also claimed there were discrepancies in the hospital’s paperwork and records.

For more details, check out the full story on the link mentioned below:

Max Hospital Accused of Extorting Money After Infant’s Tragic Death

Telangana HC permits OCI cardholder to register under NRI Quota for NEET PG

Granting relief to a National Eligibility-Entrance Test Postgraduate (NEET-PG) aspirant holding an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card, the Telangana High Court has recently permitted the student to register for counselling under the Non-Resident Indian (NRI) quota.

However, the HC bench asked the petitioner, Pamula Sushanth Reddy, to submit the requisite certificates under the updated guidelines for availing of NRI seat eligibility, once such guidelines are issued by the Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) under the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), Government of India.

For more details, check out the full tory on the link mentioned below:

Telangana High Court Permits OCI Cardholder to Register Under NEET PG NRI Quota

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8 Indian Microbiologists listed in Stanford University 2025 List of World’s Top 2% Scientists

New Delhi: Altogether 8 Indian microbiologists from prestigious health and medical institutes across India have been recognised among the world’s top 2% of scientists in the database curated by Professor John P.A. Ioannidis of Stanford University, in collaboration with the Elsevier Data Repository.

This honour acknowledges their pioneering research, clinical achievements, and consistent impact on the field. The database of Stanford University for the year 2025 of top-cited scientists provides standardised information on citations, h-index, co-authorship adjusted h-index, citations to papers in different authorship positions and a composite indicator (c-score). The selection is based on the top 100,000 scientists by c-score (with and without self-citations) or a 2% or above percentile rank in the sub-field. 

Here are the details of the Indian microbiologists included in Stanford University’s 2025 list:

1. Dr Sanghamitra Pati

A distinguished physician, laboratory scientist, and public health researcher with over 25 years of experience in the field, Dr Sanghamitra began her academic journey by earning an MBBS in 1992 and an MD in 1998 from MKCG Medical College in Berhampur, Odisha, India. In 2000, she was honoured with the Joint Japan/World Bank Graduate Scholarship (JJ/WBGSP), which allowed her to pursue a Master of Public Health (MPH) at the University of Maastricht in the Netherlands.

She further advanced her education and achieved a PhD from the same university in 2023. Dr Pati’s leadership roles have been impactful, particularly in her tenure as the Director of the ICMR-Regional Medical Research Centre in Bhubaneswar, from August 2016 to December 2024. In December 2024, she took on the prestigious & responsible role of Additional Director General at the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) in New Delhi, continuing her significant contributions to public health research and policy.

In appreciation of her extraordinary contribution to public health and research, she has been conferred with prestigious awards like Samanta Chandrasekhara Award-2018 by Odisha Bigyan Academy, Devi Award-2020 by the honourable Chief Minister, the President’s Appreciation Award by Indian Medical Association (IMA), Times Power Women Award-2021, Madhubabu Odisha Gourav Samman Award -2023, Cuttack, Biswamukti Rashtriya Swasthyasewa Samman-2023, Odisha Women Award-2023 by Ever Green Forum and Chief Minister’s Award for Excellence in Healthcare Services, Govt. of Odisha -2024 and felicited by Odisha CSR Forum-2024 for her extraordinary contribution to Public Health and Reseach, instrumented in co-developing the first Make in Odisha rapidantigen kit for Covid-19 diagnosis.

Dr Pati is a Fellow of the National Academy of Medical Sciences (NAMS), India; the Royal Society of Public Health (FRSPH), UK; and the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC).

Dr Pati has been recognised as one of India’s most influential researchers and is a distinguished Lown Scholar at Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, with 25 years of research experience.

According to the list, Dr Pati holds a rank of 59,069 in the list based on the composite score excluding self-citations, and 55,140 when all citations are included. By the end of 2024, her h-index, excluding self-citations, stands at 20, with altogether 4,781 citations for 2024 (excluding self-citations).

2. Dr Manoj Murhekar

A director at the National Institute of Epidemiology, Indian Council of Medical Research, Chennai, Dr Murhekar obtained his MBBS and MD in community medicine from Government Medical College, Nagpur, Maharashtra, India. He is currently the director of the National Institute of Epidemiology (NIE), Chennai, a permanent institute of the Indian Council of Medical Research. His research interests include Infectious disease epidemiology, vaccine-preventable diseases, and disease surveillance and outbreak investigations. He is also the course director for the field epidemiology training program (FETP) that the institute has conducted since 2001.

Prior to joining NIE, Dr Murhekar worked at the Regional Medical Research Centre in Port Blair on the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. He was awarded the Major General Saheb Singh Sokhey Award of the Indian Council of Medical Research for his contribution to the field of viral hepatitis among the tribal population of Andaman and Nicobar. Dr Murhekar also worked with the World Health Organisation (WHO) Western Pacific Regional Office as a consultant and professional staff member in Papua New Guinea and the Philippines. He has 140 publications in peer-reviewed journals to his credit. He is the associate editor of the journal BMC Infectious Diseases.

As per the list, Dr Murhekar holds a rank of 67,994 in the list based on the composite score excluding self-citations, and 68,093 when all citations are included. By the end of 2024, his h-index, excluding self-citations, stands at 12, with a total of 2,418 citations for 2024 (excluding self-citations).

3. Dr. Surendra Kumar Sharma

He is a distinguished physician and academician with expertise spanning Environmental Medicine, Infectious Diseases, Internal Medicine, Pulmonary & Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine. He earned his MD from PGIMER, Chandigarh, and PhD from AIIMS, New Delhi, and went on to serve as Professor and Head of the Department of Medicine at AIIMS, New Delhi.

Elected as a Fellow of the National Academy of Sciences, India (FNASc) in 2010 under the Medicine section, he has also been recognised as FNA and FASc for his significant contributions to medical research and clinical practice. Throughout his career, Dr Sharma has been widely respected for his pioneering work and leadership in advancing healthcare and medical education in India.

As per the list, Dr Sharma holds a rank of 79,544 in the list based on the composite score excluding self-citations, and 86,744 when all citations are included. By the end of 2024, his h-index, excluding self-citations, stands at 11, with a total of 704 citations for 2024 (excluding self-citations).

4. Dr Sanjeet Bhagchi

Specialising in international health and medical news, features and reviews, Dr Sanjeet Bhagchi is a physician and medical journalist. He is a regular international correspondent (news) for The BMJ, The Lancet group of journals, and the CMAJ.

He has professional medical writing experience of 15 years with publications (news/features/reviews) including The BMJ, The Lancet, The Lancet Oncology, The Lancet Neurology, The Lancet Infectious Diseases, The Lancet Respiratory Medicine, The Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology, The Lancet Psychiatry, JAMA, the CMAJ, Health Care News, PLOS Medicine, PLOS Biology, Science in Africa, scidev.net, Down to Earth, The Telegraph and The Statesman.

As a journalist, he was a part of the news team awarded best science journalism on the world wide web” in 2006 by the Association of British Science Writers (ABSW).

As per the list, Dr Bhagchi holds a rank of 93,769 in the list based on the composite score excluding self-citations, and 109,682 when all citations are included. By the end of 2024, his h-index, excluding self-citations, stands at 5, with a total of 152 citations for 2024 (excluding self-citations).

5. Dr Manojit Bhattacharya

Dr Manojit Bhattacharya is working as an Assistant Professor at Fakir Mohan University, Balasore. Dr. Bhattacharya completed his M.Sc. and PhD from Vidyasagar University, West Bengal. He served as National Post Doctorate Fellow at ICAR-Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute, Ministry of Agriculture, Govt. of India (2017-2019). He also worked as a Visiting Research Trainee at the Institute for Skeletal Ageing & Orthopaedic Surgery, Hallym University, Gangwon-do, Republic of Korea, in the year 2014-2015 (QS World University Ranking 571-580 in the year 2023), INSA-Visiting Scientist at National Institute Virology, ICMR-Govt. of India (2024).

Dr Bhattacharya holds more than 13 years of Research & Development experience in the fields of advanced Molecular biology and Computational biology., he has published 146 research articles in reputed international journals. In 2019, he was selected as Junior Scientist of the Year by the National Environmental Science Academy (NESA), New Delhi. Currently, Dr Bhattacharya’s research interest is Medical bioinformatics/immunoinformatics, noncoding RNA, COVID-19, Therapeutics, Infectious diseases, etc. He has developed 07 technologies ( designing peptide-based vaccines) and filed patent applications for these technologies. Dr Bhattacharya published more than 146 SCI/SCIE and Scopus index papers, one book, and two edited books.

As per the list, Dr Bhattacharya holds a rank of 104,800 in the list based on the composite score excluding self-citations, and 98,093 when all citations are included. By the end of 2024, his h-index, excluding self-citations, stands at 14, with a total of 1,035 citations for 2024 (excluding self-citations).

6. Dr Ameer Khusro

Involved in Bacteriology research, Dr Ameer Khusro is an Assistant Professor and Researcher at the Department of Research Analytics, Saveetha Dental College and Hospitals, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences, Saveetha University. He gained his PhD in Biotechnology fromthe  University of Madras. 

His main area of interest is also related to Bacteriology, Enzyme Technology, Nanobiotechnology, and Environmental Microbiology. He has published several research articles in journals as a main author/co-author.

As per the list, Dr Khusro holds a rank of 124,432 in the list based on the composite score excluding self-citations, and 114,956 when all citations are included. By the end of 2024, his h-index, excluding self-citations, stands at 12, with a total of 1,546 citations for 2024 (excluding self-citations).

7. Dr Valliappan Muthu

Dr. Valliappan completed his MBBS from Stanley Medical College, Chennai, India, in 2009 and MD (Internal Medicine) from PGIMER, Chandigarh, India, in 2013. He then joined the DM (Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine) fellowship at PGIMER, Chandigarh, India, which he completed in 2016.

He worked as a Senior Research Associate from 2016 till Aug 2019, when he joined as an Associate Professor in the Department of Pulmonary Medicine, PGIMER, Chandigarh.

His areas of interest include allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis, pulmonary mucormycosis, critical care, and interventional pulmonology. He has over 100 publications to his credit.

As per the list, Dr Muthu holds a rank of 188,031 in the list based on the composite score excluding self-citations, and 126,405 when all citations are included. By the end of 2024, his h-index, excluding self-citations, stands at 12, with a total of 626 citations for 2024 (excluding self-citations).

8. Dr Gopal Nath

With 37 years of teaching experience in medical microbiology, Dr Gopal Nath is a pioneer in the field of clinical Bacteriophage Therapy. He is a Professor at the Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine at the Institute of Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu University. He is the founder and secretary of the Society for Bacteriophage Research and Therapy. He has established for the first time that chronic Salmonella Typhi infection may lead to malignant transformations in the hepato-biliary tract. S. Typhi is the second bacterium implicated in carcinogenesis after Helicobacter pylori. He has published 290 research articles with an H factor of 55 and a total citation of more than 11412.

Dr Gopal Nath got his M.B.B.S. from Allahabad and M.D. & PhD (Microbiology) degrees from Banaras Hindu University. His research area is Salmonella, Gut Microbiome, and Bacteriophage Therapy. He has screened several synthetic and natural compounds for their antimicrobial activity. He has been a visiting Professor at S.K.C.C., San Diego, U.S.A. He was a jury member selected for the prestigious International King Faisal Award, Saudi Arabia, 2015.

Currently, he is carrying out different aspects of clinical applications of Bacteriophage therapy, especially chronic wound healing, safe dose determination in cases of septicaemia and treating auto-brewery syndrome/obesity. He has been rated in the top 3% of Indian scientists.

He was conferred Fellow of the National Academy of Medical Sciences in 2016. He has also been awarded Prof. U.C. Chaturvedi and Dr P.N. Chuttani Orations. He has been awarded the Earnest Hanbury Hankin Life Time Achievement Award for 2021 by the Society for Bacteriophage Research and Therapy. He has completed 13 government-funded projects, guided 112 MD and 16 PhD scholars, and organised seven national and international conferences.

As per the list, Dr Nath holds a rank of 222,047 in the list based on the composite score excluding self-citations, and 240,227 when all citations are included. By the end of 2024, his h-index, excluding self-citations, stands at 13, with a total of 743 citations for 2024 (excluding self-citations).

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NMC grants conditional approval to Swaminarayan Medical College Kalol

Gujarat- The Swaminarayan Medical College in Kalol, Gujarat, has been granted conditional approval for 150 MBBS seats.

This move comes after the National Medical Commission (NMC) earlier declared the MBBS seat matrix at several medical colleges across the country, including Kalol College, “zero,” citing serious deficiencies. Therefore, the college had previously faced cancellations of its admissions.

Following the declaration of the “zero” seats, the college management challenged the NMC’s decision in court. After hearing the case, the court ordered a reconsideration, paving the way for temporary relief. As a result, authorities have now restored 150 MBBS seats at the institution, but only under strict conditions.

Also Read: Gujarat: Amit Shah inaugurates Swaminarayan Institute of Medical Science

This decision has provided relief to hundreds of aspiring medical students, as the sudden withdrawal of recognition left their future uncertain. With approval restored, the admission process at Swaminarayan Medical College can proceed for the new academic session.

According to officials, the NMC inspection flagged multiple shortcomings in infrastructure, faculty strength and clinical facilities at the Kalol-based institute. The conditional approval requires the management to rectify all deficiencies within the next three months. Failure to comply with the stipulated timeline could once again put the college’s recognition at risk, reports TOI.

In this regard, Medical Dialogues reported that in a major setback to Gujarat, the National Medical Commission (NMC) slashed 250 MBBS seats in three medical colleges across the State. The Commission has reduced the MBBS intakes in these three medical colleges after finding serious irregularities during recent inspections. The Commission reportedly noted issues including a lack of infrastructure, a shortage of faculty, and mismanagement.

The Commission’s decision to reduce the number of MBBS seats in these three medical colleges was reflected in the MBBS seat matrix earlier published by the Medical Counselling Committee (MCC). 

Also Read: NMC cancels 250 MBBS seats in Gujarat, Kalol’s Medical College faces total seat wipeout

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Sprout Organics widens recall of baby food pouches for possible lead

Sprout Organics has widened its recall of 3.5-ounce Sweet Potato, Apple & Spinach pouches because some lots may contain elevated levels of lead.

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Sprout Organics widens recall of baby food pouches for possible lead

Sprout Organics has widened its recall of 3.5-ounce Sweet Potato, Apple & Spinach pouches because some lots may contain elevated levels of lead.

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mRNA vaccine shows promise for treating age-related macular degeneration

An mRNA vaccine developed by researchers from Japan suppressed abnormal blood vessel growth or neovascularization in the retina of mouse models. Neovascularization is a condition that is caused by age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a leading cause of vision loss for elderly people. The vaccine can be delivered intramuscularly and is as effective as current therapies that require frequent eye injections, offering a more comfortable and easier-to-administer alternative for treating AMD and other neovascular eye diseases.

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mRNA vaccine shows promise for treating age-related macular degeneration

An mRNA vaccine developed by researchers from Japan suppressed abnormal blood vessel growth or neovascularization in the retina of mouse models. Neovascularization is a condition that is caused by age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a leading cause of vision loss for elderly people. The vaccine can be delivered intramuscularly and is as effective as current therapies that require frequent eye injections, offering a more comfortable and easier-to-administer alternative for treating AMD and other neovascular eye diseases.

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