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

chemical burns manchester cornea stem cells

News and Trends 3 Apr 2019

UK Scientists Activate Stem Cells to Heal Corneal Injuries

A group of researchers in the UK has developed a potential treatment for corneal injuries, such as those caused by chemical burns, by making surrounding tissue softer and letting stem cells regenerate damaged tissue. The cornea is a transparent tissue that is important for focusing light onto the retina and guarding entry into the eye. […]

April 3, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

llama leo pharma argen x skin milestone inflammatory

More News! 3 Apr 2019

€21M Series A to Finance Belgian Biotech’s Regenerative Antibodies

The Belgian biotech AgomAb has raised €21M and partnered with the Dutch biotech argenx to develop antibody treatments that could regenerate damaged tissue. The round was led by the Belgian investor V-Bio Ventures and Advent France Biotechnology. AgomAb will use the big Series A funding to test antibody treatments for fibrosis in clinical trials, as […]

April 3, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

synbio genome artificial C eth2.0 bacteria 1

More News! 2 Apr 2019

Swiss Scientists Make Synthetic Bacterial Genome Using Computers

Synthetic biology researchers at ETH Zurich are the first to construct a simplified artificial bacterial genome with the help of computer algorithms, which could lead to better-engineered microorganisms for the production of therapeutics and other chemicals. Back in 2008, US researchers led by the famous biologist John Craig Venter made headlines for synthesizing the genome […]

April 2, 2019 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

cambridge innovation capital fund university

News and Trends 1 Apr 2019

Cambridge Fund Raises €175M to Supercharge Local Life Sciences Ecosystem

The UK venture capital fund Cambridge Innovation Capital, backed by the University of Cambridge, has raised €175M (£150M) to spend on life science and technology companies in the Cambridge area. The money will support the 25 companies in the fund’s portfolio, including the biotech Bicycle Therapeutics, whose peptide-toxin molecules are in clinical trials for the […]

April 1, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

som biotech huntingtons disease repurpose amyloidosis

Startup Scout 29 Mar 2019

This Biotech Repurposes Drugs to Fight Huntington’s Disease

Barcelona-based SOM Biotech is developing treatments for incurable diseases such as Huntington’s disease with drugs that are already on the market for other diseases. Mission: To repurpose commercially available drugs for the treatment of neurological diseases lacking effective treatments. Using existing drugs to treat these rare, orphan diseases lets the company get the treatments to […]

March 29, 2019 - 4 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

orchard therapeutics cell therapy stem cell rare disease

News and Trends 28 Mar 2019

Gene Therapy Exceeds Expectations in Treating Children’s Neurological Disease

A gene therapy developed by the UK company Orchard Therapeutics has greatly improved the motor symptoms of children with an incurable neurological disease. The 20 children in the phase II trial suffered from metachromatic leukodystrophy, a rare genetic disease caused by the mutation of a protein that breaks down sulfur-containing molecules in cells. This leads […]

March 28, 2019 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

polyneuron anti mag peripheral neuropathy autoimmune disease nerve

News and Trends 28 Mar 2019

Swiss Biotech Raises €20M to Develop Decoy Drugs in Autoimmune Disease

The biotech Polyneuron has raised a Series A round of €20.1M (CHF 22.5M) to start human testing with a treatment for a rare autoimmune disease. Based in Basel, Polyneuron is developing drugs to treat anti-MAG peripheral neuropathy. This debilitating disease is caused by the immune system producing autoantibodies that attack nerve support cells, which stops […]

March 28, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

Heptares AstraZeneka AZD4635 checkpoint inhibitor

News and Trends 27 Mar 2019

Artificial Intelligence Could Beat Tumors Resistant to Immunotherapy

The French company OSE Immunotherapeutics has signed a partnership to use artificial intelligence to develop treatments for tumors that don’t respond to checkpoint inhibitor drugs. In the last five years, checkpoint inhibitor drugs have become a potentially life-saving option for people that don’t respond to traditional cancer treatments. These antibody drugs have shown promise in […]

March 27, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

bioarctic alzheimers disease plaques amyloid beta neurons Edited

More News! 25 Mar 2019

Swedish Biotech’s Stock Severely Hit by Failure of Biogen’s Alzheimer’s Drug

The failure of Biogen’s Alzheimer’s disease drug in a phase III trial last week caused BioArctic’s stock price to plummet by 35% on Nasdaq Stockholm. The Swedish company has just begun a phase III trial of its own Alzheimer’s treatment. Last week, Biogen and its pharma collaborator Eisai discontinued the phase III development of an […]

March 25, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

Startup Scout 15 Mar 2019

This Biotech Wants You to Age Well

Age is a risk factor in many diseases, such as cancer and heart disease. The UK biotech Samsara Therapeutics thinks that it can make drugs that can prevent multiple conditions at once by targeting the aging process itself. Mission: To develop drugs that target the biological mechanisms underlying aging. Slowing the aging process seems like […]

March 15, 2019 - 4 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

microsoft synthace oxford biomedica gene therapy cell therapy

News and Trends 14 Mar 2019

Microsoft Aims to Make Cell Therapies Cheaper with Artificial Intelligence

Microsoft has launched a collaboration with the UK company Oxford BioMedica to use Microsoft’s artificial intelligence technology to make gene and cell therapy manufacturing easier and cheaper. Genetically programming cells and viruses to make cell and gene therapies is not as simple as programming a computer. Organisms have many layers of complexity and unpredictability, sometimes […]

March 14, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

arthritis pediatric juvenile idiopathic Leuven

News and Trends 13 Mar 2019

Artificial Intelligence Detects Juvenile Arthritis in the Blood

Using artificial intelligence, a Belgian research group can diagnose juvenile arthritis from blood samples with almost 90% accuracy and identify different forms of the disease, something that is not currently possible. Juvenile idiopathic arthritis causes joint pain, swelling and stiffness in children under the age of 16. The disease is hard to treat because there […]

March 13, 2019 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

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