Jef Akst

Jef Akst

Managing Editor

Jef (an unusual nickname for Jennifer) is a professional journalist and editor specializing in the life sciences. She earned her master’s degree from Indiana University in April 2009 studying the mating behavior of seahorses and spent the first 13 years of her career at The Scientist, where she edited features and oversaw the production of the publication’s digital and print magazines. In 2022, her feature on uterus transplantation earned first place in the trade category of the Awards for Excellence in Health Care Journalism. She is a member of the National Association of Science Writers. She lives in Fredericksburg, Virginia, with her husband, two young kids, wild coonhound and aging cat. Her hobbies including hiking, camping, and shooting pool. You can reach her at jef.akst@biospace.com.

FDA Commissioner Marty Makary talks about his plans to revamp drug development and reduce ‘conflicts of interest’ between the agency and pharma industry; Roche and Regeneron jump on the U.S. manufacturing train as Trump’s tariffs loom; and Eli Lilly scores a big win for orforglipron while Novo Nordisk reveals it has applied for FDA approval of its oral semaglutide.
Like they say about the weather in Iceland, if you don’t like an action taken by the new administration, wait five minutes; it’ll probably change. The markets, it seems, don’t react kindly to that kind of policymaking.
Donald Trump takes biopharma on a tariff-themed rollercoaster ride; J&J kicks off the Q1 earnings season; experts express concern about the FDA’s future; Pfizer’s obesity setback could be Viking’s gain; and BioSpace reveals the highest paid pharma CEOs.
A consumer-driven weight loss market could put pharma at greater risk if a recession hits; the continued turmoil at FDA and other HHS agencies magnifies the uncertainty facing the industry; Lilly files a lawsuit against a med spa selling its drugs; and more.
While it’s not unusual for certain positions to turn over with a new administration, the number of senior-level FDA staffers who have recently left the agency is unprecedented. The lack of communication, transparency and human decency is as well.
Biopharma leaders react to the forced resignation of CBER Head Peter Marks as RFK Jr.’s promised job cuts begin at the FDA; Novo Nordisk presents mixed results from oral semaglutide in cardiovascular disease; the EU’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use declines to recommend Eli Lilly’s Alzheimer’s drug; and pharma R&D returns grew in 2024.
Sarepta will update Elevidys’ label after a patient died following treatment; the FDA issues flu vaccine recommendations without advisor input; Trump CDC nominee Dave Weldon pulled at last minute; and FDA decisions expected for Alnylam’s Amvuttra in ATTR-CM and Milestone’s etripamil in tachycardia.
BioSpace remembers COVID-19 five years after the pandemic was declared, Novo Nordisk’s CagriSema again misses expectations as the company joins a lawsuit filed by drug compounders against the FDA, Viking secures ample supply of its investigational obesity medication, J&J strikes out in depression, and Makary and Bhattacharya near confirmation.
As we reflect on five years of COVID-19, it’s clear that the impacts are still unfolding. The life sciences—and we as individuals—will never be the same again.
Marty Makary, likely FDA commissioner under President Trump, appeared before Congress this week as the agency he’s set to lead continues to be rocked by sweeping changes and about-faces.
Pfizer reacts to Donald Trump’s tariff threats on big pharma, another regulatory meeting is canceled under RFK Jr., AbbVie and Eli Lilly strike mid-sized deals in obesity and molecular glues, priority review vouchers set to take a hit and immuno-oncology matures.
As FDA seeks to rehire some fired employees, Donald Trump threatens to enact tariffs on pharma companies unless they reshore manufacturing; another lawsuit hits the complex GLP-1 compounding space as Eli Lilly offers expanded Zepbound options; and struggling gene therapy biotech bluebird bio goes private in an attempt to stay solvent.
At the 2025 National Biotechnology Conference, gene therapies, bispecific antibodies and other novel modalities—relative newcomers to medicine—will be much discussed. In this curtain raiser, BioSpace speaks with conference chair Prathap Nagaraja Shastri of J&J about these highly anticipated topics.
The FDA is mired in uncertainty with some staffers losing their jobs over the weekend and more potentially to come, vaccines and psychedelic therapies could be facing very different futures under newly confirmed HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Moderna continues its downward revenue slide and Merck, Regeneron, BMS and more face strong patent headwinds.
Novartis, Eli Lilly and more put on their deal-making caps, Bristol Myers Squibb targets $2 billion in savings through 2027, sales continue to soar for Lilly and Novo Nordisk’s GLP-1s and Regeneron sues Sanofi over an alleged failure to provide adequate information about Dupixent sales.