Startup Scout 14 Feb 2020 Novadiscovery Carries out Clinical Trials using AI and Simulations Novadiscovery, based in Lyon, France, is developing AI-based simulation technology to predict clinical trial outcomes and cut their running costs. Mission: To predict the outcomes of clinical trials in silico using a combination of artificial intelligence (AI) and computational models of the biology underlying the disease. Clinical trials cost the healthcare industry billions of euros […] February 14, 2020 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 13 Feb 2020 UK-Swiss Collaboration to Boost Biotech Profits with Automation A partnership between the UK lab automation company Arctoris and Swiss software firm Molecule aims to make it easier to share drug intellectual property in a time of declining returns in pharma. The pharmaceutical industry is struggling with the rising costs of developing new drugs. In fact, the return on investment for drug discovery is […] February 13, 2020 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 12 Feb 2020 Charcoal-Based Treatment Can Protect Gut Microbiome from Antibiotics Ingestible pellets containing a charcoal-like treatment — designed by the French company Da Volterra — can stop the microbiome from being disrupted in hospitalized patients treated with antibiotics. The treatment also showed the potential to reduce the risk of Clostridium difficile gut infections in a phase II trial. When patients are given antibiotics for infections, […] February 12, 2020 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 11 Feb 2020 French Biotech Raises €20M to Make Precision Molecular Diagnostics Stilla Technologies has raised a €20M Series C round to fund its mission to produce next-generation microchips that make molecular diagnostics more precise and user-friendly than currently available lab technology. Contributors to the round included Stilla’s existing investors, such as Illumina Ventures, Kurma Partners and Idinvest Partners. Stilla also added the Chinese company TUS-Holdings to […] February 11, 2020 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 10 Feb 2020 First-in-Class Drug For Inherited Metabolic Diseases Funded with €25M The Dutch startup Azafaros has raised €25M in Series A funding to push its drug for inherited lysosomal storage disorders into phase I. The round was led by the Dutch VC firm Forbion. Other investors participating in the round included the Swiss firm BioMedPartners and the Dutch company BioGeneration Ventures, which was Azafaros’ founding investor […] February 10, 2020 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
Startup Scout 7 Feb 2020 Sigrid Therapeutics Prevents Type 2 Diabetes Using Silica Powder in the Gut In Stockholm, Sweden, Sigrid Therapeutics is developing an ingestible silica powder that can treat type 2 diabetes and obesity without being absorbed in the gut. Mission: To produce the first prophylactic silica-based treatment for type 2 diabetes that does not enter the bloodstream. Some people have higher blood sugar levels than normal, but not high […] February 7, 2020 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 7 Feb 2020 EU Project Set up to Fight Alzheimer’s Disease with Lasers A project has launched with a €3.6M grant to treat neurological conditions such as Alzheimer’s and Huntington’s disease by making brain cells controllable with red light. There are currently no treatments approved that can slow the progression of neurodegenerative conditions, including Alzheimer’s and Huntington’s disease. Treatments approved to alleviate the symptoms only help a small […] February 7, 2020 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 6 Feb 2020 Valbiotis Teams up with Nestlé to Reduce Type 2 Diabetes Risk In a deal worth up to €67M, industry giant Nestlé Health Science will have the global rights to commercialize Valbiotis’ food supplement for lowering the rate of type 2 diabetes in people at high risk of developing the condition. Under the terms of the deal, the French biotech will receive an upfront payment of €4.7M […] February 6, 2020 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
Interview 5 Feb 2020 Harnessing Genetic Suppression to Treat Rare Disease Through quirks of genetics, some people are naturally resilient to heritable diseases. Thijn Brummelkamp, Managing Director and founder of the Dutch startup Scenic Biotech, explains how the company is using this genetic resilience to treat rare diseases and cancer. Heritable diseases result from genetic mutations that cause essential proteins in the body to malfunction. For […] February 5, 2020 - 5 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 4 Feb 2020 Swiss Biotech Raises €16M to Treat Autism Spectrum Disorder Stalicla has bagged €16.3M in a Series A round to test drugs repurposed using AI for the treatment of autism spectrum disorder in phase I. The round consists of a recent €7M (CHF 7.7M) closing and an initial first tranche of €9.3M (CHF 10M) raised last year. The investors in the latest closing were not […] February 4, 2020 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 3 Feb 2020 CureVac Bids to Develop First mRNA Coronavirus Vaccine RNA vaccine developer CureVac will receive a grant of up to €8.3M from a global partnership to develop an mRNA vaccine against the new coronavirus strain from China. The agreement follows on from an existing collaboration launched in 2019, when the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, or CEPI, granted CureVac €30M to develop facilities that […] February 3, 2020 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 1 Feb 2020 Cardior Pharmaceuticals’ Heart Failure Drug Shows Curative Potential German biotech company Cardior Pharmaceuticals’ candidate heart failure drug has the potential to stop the condition in its tracks, according to early studies in animal models. At present, treatments for heart failure, including ACE inhibitors, beta blockers, and diuretics, target the symptoms of the disease, such as high blood pressure, rather than the actual cause. […] February 1, 2020 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email