Biotech CEO sentenced; NIH ends use of human fetal tissue in federally funded research; 6 European countries lose measles-free status – Morning Medical Update

Biotech CEO sentenced in securities fraud case

A biotech executive was sentenced on Friday to 30 months in prison for misleading investors about the development of an experimental drug and then selling his personal shares at inflated prices, federal prosecutors said. According to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Nader Pourhassan, 62, of Oregon, the former CEO of CytoDyn, falsely promoted the company’s investigational drug as a potential treatment for HIV and COVID-19, misleading investors about the drug’s prospects for Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval to boost stock prices between 2018 and 2021. He then sold roughly 4.8 million shares for $4.4 million.

Pourhassan — charged with four counts of securities fraud, two counts of wire fraud and three counts of insider trading — was also ordered to pay more than $5.3 million in restitution and to forfeit more than $4.4 million.

NIH ends use of human fetal tissue in federally funded research

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced a policy change last Thursday ending the use of human fetal tissue from elective abortions in all NIH-supported research, effective immediately. The decision applies to both intramural and extramural research and supersedes prior NIH guidance.

NIH-supported research using human fetal tissue has been on the decline since 2019, according to an agency news release. The shift is reflective of advancements toward alternative solutions, including organoids, tissue chips and computational approaches.

“NIH is pushing American biomedical science into the 21st century,” said NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya, M.D., Ph.D. “This decision is about advancing science by investing in breakthrough technologies more capable of modeling human health and disease. Under President Trump’s leadership, taxpayer-funded research must reflect the best science of today and the values of the American people.”

Six European countries lose measles-free status

Six European countries — Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Spain, the United Kingdom and Uzbekistan — have lost their measles-free status after sustained outbreaks in 2024, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). The resurgence, driven largely by falling vaccination rates, underscores how quickly measles can return once immunity gaps widen — a concern with growing relevance for the United States.

U.S. health officials have warned that the country could lose its measles-free status as early as April 2026 after approximately 2,200 cases were reported across 44 states over the past year — the highest tally since 1991. Together, the European experience and the U.S. outbreaks demonstrate the fragile nature of measles elimination and the importance of maintaining high vaccination coverage to prevent sustained transmission. The Guardian has more.