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

arvelle therapeutics SK Biopharmaceuticals Axovant epilepsy

More News! 18 Feb 2019

Enormous Series A to Help Bring Epilepsy Drug to Market

One of the biggest Series A rounds in European biotech, €159M ($180M), has been raised by the Swiss company Arvelle Therapeutics to help commercialize its epilepsy drug. Formed just this month, Arvelle plans to submit an application for EMA approval for the small molecule drug cenobamate, which it has licensed from the South Korean company […]

February 18, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

medical university of vienna kidney transplant genomics

News and Trends 15 Feb 2019

Genetic Testing Improves Success of Kidney Transplants

Genetic variations in cell surface proteins are able to predict kidney transplant success, shows Austrian research, serving as a potential screening tool for improving future transplants. Many kidney transplants fail over time because the patient’s immune system rejects the organ. This rejection happens because the immune system recognizes that particular proteins on the cell surface, such […]

February 15, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

biomillenia microbiome lab on a chip workflow paris scene

Startup Scout 15 Feb 2019

This Lab-on-a-Chip Can Screen Millions of Bacteria in Parallel

Our French biotech of the week, Biomillenia, is developing a lab-on-a-chip that can screen millions of strains of bacteria in a fraction of the time it takes for traditional methods. This technology can identify previously unculturable strains for use in agriculture, animal health, or microbiome-based therapies. Mission: To use lab-on-a-chip technology to culture and screen […]

February 15, 2019 - 4 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

london biotech hub medcity british library

More News! 14 Feb 2019

London’s Biotech Ecosystem Boosted with €900M Expansion

The British Library has greenlit the construction of a new research hub on its property in North London, increasing the business potential for the biotech ecosystem in the southeast of England. The new site, costing up to €900M (£800M), will expand premises held by the British Library, which is next to King’s Cross and the […]

February 14, 2019 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

News and Trends 14 Feb 2019

Hair Loss Biotech Ventures into Diabetes Market

The Swedish biotech Follicum has added drugs for type 2 diabetes into its pipeline, which focuses on treatments for hair loss. The market for type 2 diabetes treatments is huge, and competitive. While many approved treatments help to control blood sugar in type 2 diabetes, fluctuating blood sugar levels can damage vital insulin-producing beta cells. Many diabetics […]

February 14, 2019 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

glanbia ireland agrichemwhey dairy whey biorefinery 1

News and Trends 13 Feb 2019

First Plant in the Works to Turn Dairy Byproducts Into Plastics

The company Glanbia Ireland is planning to construct the first industrial biorefinery that transforms dairy waste products into lactic acid, a building block for biodegradable plastics. Supported by the EU project AgriChemWhey, Glanbia Ireland plans to scale up biorefinery technology that ferments dairy waste, like whey permeate, into lactic acid, using a group of bacteria […]

February 13, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

More News! 12 Feb 2019

First Industrial Plant to Turn Waste into Chemicals Will Open in France

The French company Afyren has received up to €60M to commercialize a technology that uses bacteria to produce industrial chemicals from recycled plant waste instead of fossil fuels. Afyren takes sugars from the waste byproducts of agriculture, food, and other industries, and ferments the sugars into industrial chemicals using bacteria. With this new funding, the […]

February 12, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

grey wolf therapeutics cancer immunotherapies

News and Trends 11 Feb 2019

Series A to Fund Therapy That Exposes Cancer to Immune System

The UK biotech Grey Wolf Therapeutics has raised €11.4M (£10M) to fuel the development of a cancer therapy that flushes tumor cells out of hiding from the immune system. Many approved cancer immunotherapies, such as CAR-T cell therapy and checkpoint inhibitors, have made a big difference for many people with cancer. However, a common problem with […]

February 11, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

equi nom israel genomics selective breeding legume

Startup Scout 8 Feb 2019

This Biotech Uses Genomics to Breed Super Peas

This week’s biotech, Equi-Nom, is based in Israel. With its genomics and computer modeling technology, the company helps plant producers to breed pulses that contain more protein without any genetic modification. Mission: To boost the protein content in pulses, such as peas, without editing their DNA. Instead, the company speeds up traditional breeding by […]

February 8, 2019 - 4 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

CRISPR Cas9 bacteriophage anti CRISPR gut microbiome 1

News and Trends 8 Feb 2019

Anti-CRISPR Proteins Could Improve Gene Editing Precision

A research group in Denmark has found proteins in gut and soil microbes that can inhibit the action of CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing, a finding that could help to control the technology with more precision and less risk. Bacteria and viruses have fought an evolutionary arms race for millions of years. Bacteria evolved CRISPR systems to […]

February 8, 2019 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

breast cancer metformin klefstrom checkpoint inhibitor thumbnail

News and Trends 6 Feb 2019

Combo of Immunotherapy and Diabetes Drug Could Beat Breast Cancer

A Finnish research group has combined two cancer drugs with the diabetes drug metformin, making mice with breast cancer survive for longer than when given the treatments individually. The combination therapy included metformin, which can inhibit tumor growth; the cancer drug venetoclax, which causes cancer cells to commit suicide; and a checkpoint inhibitor antibody, which […]

February 6, 2019 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

elypta renal cell carcinoma kidney blood cancer

News and Trends 4 Feb 2019

Swedish Biotech Receives EU Grant for High-Accuracy Kidney Cancer Test

The Swedish biotech Elypta has received a Horizon 2020 grant of €2.4M to fund a clinical trial of a blood and urine test that provides an accurate diagnosis of renal cell carcinoma. The clinical trial aims to validate Elypta’s technology as a monitoring tool in patients who have been treated for the kidney cancer renal […]

February 4, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

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