News and Trends 15 Mar 2017 France Closes in on an HIV Cure by Detecting Cells with Dormant Viruses French researchers have found a protein only expressed in HIV-infected reservoir cells, paving the way for an HIV cure that completely eliminates the virus. Researchers from the Institut de Génétique Humaine (IGH) at Montpellier University, France, have discovered a protein, CD32a, that is only present on the surface of CD4 T cells infected with dormant HIV. This […] March 15, 2017 - 2 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 15 Mar 2017 Allergan makes a deal with Editas to License CRISPR Programs for Eye Disease Allergan has signed a deal with Editas Medicine to access its CRISPR technology and license up to five of its programs in ocular disease. The Irish Allergan has a certain tendency to go on shopping sprees. Its latest deal is a research and development alliance with the American Editas Medicine, which is on the side of […] March 15, 2017 - 2 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 14 Mar 2017 Huge Successful €103M IPO for the Next European Leader in Bioplastics Avantium has gone public and raised €103M on Euronext Amsterdam and Euronext Bruxelles with Sofinnova Partner as the main shareholder. Avantium, a spin-off from Shell, is developing renewable bioplastics made 100% from plant-based materials with the support of big partners such as Coca-Cola or Danone, for which the Dutch biotech is developing sustainable PlantBottles and yogurt cups, […] March 14, 2017 - 2 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 14 Mar 2017 Can Roche & MorphoSys beat the odds in new Alzheimer’s Phase III Trials? After recent late-stage disappointments from Eli Lilly and Merck, Roche and Morphosys are stepping up with two new Phase III trials in Alzheimer’s. Roche just announced plans to start two new Phase III studies in Alzheimer’s with its antibody candidate gantenerumab, initially developed by the German biotech giant MorphoSys. The trials are expected to begin later this year, but Roche […] March 14, 2017 - 2 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
Interview 14 Mar 2017 Spain’s Biotech Ecosystem is Starting to Rise! Meet the Revolution’s Leaders I interviewed three of the leaders of Spain’s biotech ecosystem: they all agree that the country is at an inflection point for growth and international recognition. This all started when I realized there’s usually far less biotech news coming our way from my home country, Spain, than from the UK, France or Germany. I decided to […] March 14, 2017 - 8 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 11 Mar 2017 You Can Watch Fleming’s Original Penicillin Culture in Oxford! The Museum of the History of Science in Oxford is hosting an exhibition on the history of penicillin and the current challenges of antibiotic resistance featuring the first culture used to extract the antibiotic. The discovery of penicillin by Alexander Fleming in the early 20th century changed the world of medicine. Antibiotics have saved millions […] March 11, 2017 - 3 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 10 Mar 2017 Galapagos finds a Partner to Boost its Pipeline with Drug Combinations Galapagos and Pharnext will work together to develop low-dose drug combinations that improve drug efficacy and target new indications. Galapagos, the biggest biotech in Belgium, has closed an R&D agreement with the French Pharnext to develop drug combinations of the billion-euro biotech’s drug candidates with already approved drugs. While Pharnext’s focus has been neurodegenerative diseases, the […] March 10, 2017 - 2 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 8 Mar 2017 German Biotech closes Largest Series A Fundraising of 2017 So Far Breath Therapeutics has raised €43.5M that will be used to finalize development and launch a therapy to improve survival in lung transplant patients. Sofinnova Partners, one of the top biotech VCs in Europe, and the Belgian Gimv have co-led the Series A round of Breath Therapeutics, a German company focusing on treating pulmonary orphan indications. […] March 8, 2017 - 2 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
More News! 7 Mar 2017 UPDATE: Reproductive Health Biotech starts Phase III after €90M IPO UPDATE (07/03/2017): ObsEva has announced the start of its Phase III trials for nolasiban, an oral oxytocin receptor antagonist. It is under evaluation for improvements in pregnancy and live birth rates following embryo transfer (ET). UPDATE (26/01/2017): ObsEva has disclosed plans to release 6.45M shares at $15 (€14) each, for a total of €90.3M. This large total reflects […] March 7, 2017 - 3 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 4 Mar 2017 Meet the Finnish Bioartist using Yeast to Create Vanishing Photographs Johanna Rotko creates living art with yeast to explore the perishableness of matter and how we interact with nature around us. Johanna Rotko is a visual artist and photographer based in Kotka, Finland, that decided to explore alternative photographic methods. The result were yeastograms, living images made with yeast on petri dishes that disappear over […] March 4, 2017 - 2 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 3 Mar 2017 An HIV Vaccine Eliminates the Virus in a Patient for 7 Months An HIV vaccine developed at the University of Oxford has kept 5 out of 15 patients completely free of HIV. One of the patients has already been clear for 7 months. AIDS affects over 36.7 million people. Antiretroviral therapy (ART) is the most common treatment, which kills those cells in which the virus is active. However, HIV can remain inactive and […] March 3, 2017 - 2 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
More News! 1 Mar 2017 Lab-Grown Meat Could Hit the Market as Soon as 2020 Cultured meat could be a sustainable, healthy and inexpensive food alternative in a future that might be closer than we think. We recently attended the 2nd International Conference on Cultured Meat, where we had the chance to meet the key players in this revolutionary field. There, we learned that cultured meat, grown in the lab without […] March 1, 2017 - 2 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email