> As the FDA hopes to speed up drug development under its new commissioner Scott Gottlieb, the agency is also looking to find new and speedy ways to fill its employee gap. Gottlieb has put Melanie Keller, currently head of the Office of Management in the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, in charge of the new recruitment push. FDA Voice post
> Ligand Pharmaceuticals has penned an updated commercial license and supply agreement with Amgen, granting rights to use its technology when making up the formulation of Amgen’s experimental blood cancer med AMG 330. Statement
> Ionis Pharmaceuticals has gained a $10 million biobucks milestone payment from partner Biogen “associated with the validation of an undisclosed neurological disease target.” The pair has long worked together on an R&D collaboration across neurological disorders, including the recently approved SMA med Spinraza (nusinersen). Release