Jonathan Smith, Author at Labiotech.eu

About

Reporter for Labiotech. I hail from the UK. I was born in Bristol, studied Neuroscience in the University of Bristol, and trained mice in Eisai, Hertfordshire, for one year. I then tickled locusts for my Ph.D. at the University of Leicester, before eventually ending up here!
Out of the office, I travel, play video games and board games, drink beer and play the piano.

Articles by Jonathan Smith

oncimmune liquid biopsy lung cancer test

News and Trends 10 Sep 2019

Blood Test Increases Early Lung Cancer Diagnosis in UK Trial

A blood test for anti-cancer antibodies, developed by the UK diagnostics company Oncimmune, detected more early cases of lung cancer than standard clinical monitoring procedures in a trial with more than 12,000 patients. Oncimmune’s trial recruited 12,209 patients with a high risk of developing lung cancer through smoking and family history, and monitored them for […]

September 10, 2019 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

gene therapy cell therapy advanced therapy 4BIO

News and Trends 9 Sep 2019

4BIO Capital Raises €45M Fund to Invest in Advanced Therapies

The London-based life sciences investor 4BIO Capital has raised €45M in the first close of a fund to nurture companies developing advanced therapies such as gene and cell therapies. This is the first closing of 4BIO’s second fund, called 4BIO Ventures II, which is expected to total €136M ($150M) by late 2020. The fund will […]

September 9, 2019 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

Startup Scout 6 Sep 2019

This Biotech Regenerates Bone Tissue to Treat Tooth Loss

In the university town of Umeå, Sweden, the biotech company Omnio is developing treatments for tooth loss in conditions such as periodontitis. Mission: To promote wound healing by enhancing the action of plasminogen, a protein in the blood that is important in the healing process. Enhancing the action of this molecule could allow the company […]

September 6, 2019 - 4 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

cardiology astrazeneca novartis cardiovascular disease

News and Trends 5 Sep 2019

Top Cardiology Biotech News from the ESC Conference 2019

Many cardiology companies and academics gathered in Paris earlier this week to showcase their latest research into cardiovascular diseases. Read on for a roundup of the most exciting cardiology news from the biotech scene. The European Society of Cardiology teamed up with the World Heart Federation this year to arrange a conference themed on global […]

September 5, 2019 - 4 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

News and Trends 4 Sep 2019

US Genomics Firm Combines with Curetis to Tackle Antibiotic Resistance

The German biotech Curetis has been combined with the US genomics company OpGen to pool their molecular diagnostics expertise in the fight against antibiotic resistance. “After more than one year of intensive discussions and negotiations for many months, it feels great to be able to announce the transaction today,” Oliver Schacht, the CEO of Curetis, […]

September 4, 2019 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

Interview 4 Sep 2019

Overcoming Clinical Setbacks to Fight Insect-Borne Diseases

Sometimes things don’t go your way in the biotech industry. The CEO of Valneva, Thomas Lingelbach, shared his experience of migrating from big pharma to biotech, and how his first biotech company weathered phase III failures to develop vaccines for neglected diseases. Once confined to the less developed regions of the world, many insect-borne diseases […]

September 4, 2019 - 9 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

cancer cell therapy immunotherapy achilles therapeutics

News and Trends 3 Sep 2019

UK Biotech’s Personalized Immunotherapy gets €110M Series B Boost

The UK company Achilles Therapeutics has raised €110M (£100M) to test its personalized cancer cell immunotherapies in humans for the first time. The large Series B round will fund two phase I/IIa clinical trials of Achilles’ preclinical immunotherapy which are expected to start this year: one in non-small cell lung cancer and the other in […]

September 3, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

Startup Scout 30 Aug 2019

This Biotech Develops Epigenetic Drugs to Fight Brain Cancer

Nestled in the historic city of Uppsala, Sweden, Beactica is fighting the brain cancer glioblastoma by targeting mechanisms controlling the expression of cancer cell genes. Mission: Develop first-in-class drugs for brain cancer that block a protein called lysine-specific demethylase 1 that helps cancer cells to divide and grow. Beactica targets glioblastoma, a highly aggressive brain […]

August 30, 2019 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

News and Trends 29 Aug 2019

HiFiBiO’s €60M Series C to Fund Cancer and Autoimmune Disease Antibody Drugs

The French biotech HiFiBiO has raised €60M in a Series C round to finance the development of antibody drugs for cancer and autoimmune diseases based on its single-cell screening technology. HiFiBiO will use the money to accelerate the progress of its drugs to clinical trials, though it has not specified when it plans to begin […]

August 29, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

dendritic cell immunicum cancer immunotherapy cell therapy

News and Trends 29 Aug 2019

Off-the-Shelf Kidney Cancer Immunotherapy More Than Doubles Recovery in Phase II

An off-the-shelf cancer immunotherapy developed by the Swedish biotech Immunicum has eradicated kidney tumors in 11% of treated patients compared with just 4% of patients given standard treatments in a phase II trial. Immunicum is developing a cell immunotherapy to treat metastatic renal cell carcinoma. This advanced form of kidney cancer is particularly hard to […]

August 29, 2019 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

imcyse type 1 diabetes insulin immunotherapy

News and Trends 28 Aug 2019

Type 1 Diabetes Immunotherapy Shows Promise in Phase I

An immunotherapy designed by the Belgian biotech Imcyse to prevent type 1 diabetes has shown signs of clinical benefits and no major safety issues in a phase I trial. The phase I trial recruited 41 patients newly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. Imcyse injected the patients with different doses of its treatment and monitored the […]

August 28, 2019 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

celgene immatics cancer cell immunotherapy

News and Trends 28 Aug 2019

Celgene and Immatics Sign Deal Worth Over €1.35B to Develop Cancer Immunotherapies

The US company Celgene has obtained options to three cancer immunotherapy programs from the German biotech Immatics in a deal worth more than €1.35B ($1.5B). Immatics is to receive an upfront payment of €67.5M ($75M), along with up to €455M ($505M) in developmental milestones and royalties for each immunotherapy program. In each program, Immatics will […]

August 28, 2019 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

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