10 things in life sciences to read this weekend đź’Š

European agencies published more evidence on the link between antibiotic use and resistance in humans and animals.

The FDA provided a rare glimpse of an internal battle that erupted last year over efforts to modernize the agency’s efforts to approve and regulate new drugs. In emails released by the FDA this week, an FDA official harshly rebuked the top agency official who drove the controversial decision to approve a drug to treat a form of muscular dystrophy.

A report from Pfizer says Britain is falling behind in the prescription of new medicines, despite its prowess in science and a skilled workforce. Fixes suggested include new pricing models such as payment by results and multi-year NHS budgets. A faster path for drugs in the UK would spur investment and jobs.

The global number of blind people increased 18 per cent between 1990 and 2015 to 36m and is forecast to rise to 115m by 2050. The number of those with moderate to severe visual impairment is set to rise from 217m to 588m. The increases are mainly due to growing and ageing populations.

What happens when the industry consolidates? A clue may lie in the injectable generics industry, where mergers, production problems and manufacturing delays have led to shortages.

A rising tide of startups are working on "tele-empathy" devices that mimic the physical limitations of diseases such as Parkinson's or emphysema in order to improve insight into the patient experience.

Evidation Health, launched in 2016 by GE Ventures and Stanford, is teaming up with Sanofi to apply real-world data to the discovery and development of better drugs.

The $5 billion-a-year wound care business booms while some products might prove little more effective than the proverbial snake oil. The vast majority of the studies are funded or conducted by companies who manufacture these products. At the same time, independent academic research is scant for a growing problem.

UC Davis's Dr. Paul Knoepfler has become an unlikely authority—and a dogged voice of caution—on the clinical use of stem cells. The rise of unproven stem cell therapies has turned him into an industry watchdog. Dr. Knoepfler believes that new stem cell treatments will eventually help patients, but he has long fretted about their safety.

A condom alternative could be worth billions. What’s taking so long? Some entrepreneurs say the path forward requires wholly rethinking male birth control.

A short video by Kaiser shows how the U.S. pharmacy benefit managers affect medication costs and patients’ access to treatments.