Best in Biotech 28 Jan 2020 10 Scientists Behind Modern Biotech You Probably Don’t Know The modern biotech industry is a multi-million euro business, but who are the Europeans behind the science that made the industry what it is today? Here are 10 scientists, engineers and healthcare professionals we think you should know about. Over the last 25 years, biotech has become a burgeoning worldwide industry. It only became the […] January 28, 2020 - 8 minutesmins - By Helen Albert Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 28 Jan 2020 A Future Gene Therapy Could Be Delivered in Tiny ‘Nanocontainers’ A Swiss research group has developed tiny plastic particles that could carry gene therapies to the center of the cell with less risk of getting attacked by the immune system than conventional gene therapies. The majority of gene therapies in use today are delivered to the DNA of target cells using viral vectors. While efficient […] January 28, 2020 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 27 Jan 2020 UK Startup Snaps up Potential Universal Cancer Immunotherapy The cancer vaccine developer Ervaxx has licensed a preclinical-stage ‘universal’ cancer immunotherapy based on the recent discovery of a new strain of immune T-cells at Cardiff University, UK. Last week, a team led by researchers at Cardiff University published research about T-cells capable of hunting a wide range of cancers including leukemia and melanoma. Experiments […] January 27, 2020 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
Expert Advice 27 Jan 2020 Five Reasons Why Biotech Startups Fail: How to Avoid Them Biotech startups are a high-risk venture and many do not reach the final line. Experts explain what the most common reasons for failure are and what can be done to avoid them. You might have heard that only 10% of startups make it. Well, biotech startups can have it even harder. Unlike the typical tech […] January 27, 2020 - 9 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 24 Jan 2020 Broad Institute Loses Appeal on European CRISPR Patent A decision from the Boards of Appeal at the European Patent Office has revoked the claim of the Broad Institute to general patents on CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing technology, strengthening the position of its opponent UC Berkeley in Europe. The Broad Institute in Cambridge, US, is one of the main contenders in the ongoing battle for […] January 24, 2020 - 4 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 24 Jan 2020 €6M Seed Round to Develop First Urine Test for Kidney Cancer The Swedish biotech Elypta has raised a seed round worth €6.1M to fund a clinical trial of a urine test for signs of recurrent kidney cancer, which could improve patient follow-up after surgery. The seed round was led by the Swedish VC firm Industrifonden. Other investors in the round included the VC impact fund of […] January 24, 2020 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
Startup Scout 24 Jan 2020 This Company is Using Moths to Make Vaccines Madrid-based company Algenex is using moths as natural bioreactors to improve the speed and scalability of making proteins used in vaccines and diagnostics. Mission: To harness nature for simple, scalable, and cost-efficient recombinant protein manufacture. While many proteins are manufactured using bacteria, some are made using insect cells because these cells are sometimes better […] January 24, 2020 - 4 minutesmins - By External Contributor Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 23 Jan 2020 Merck Spinout Bags €15M Series A to Tackle Cancer and Fibrosis iOnctura, a spinout from Merck KGaA, has raised €15M to take its cancer and fibrosis drugs to phase I clinical trials. The Series A round was co-led by new investors INKEF Capital and VI Partners. The founding investor of iOnctura, M Ventures — the corporate venture arm of Merck — also contributed to the round, […] January 23, 2020 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 22 Jan 2020 FDA Greenlights First Treatment for Rare Autoimmune Eye Disease An antibody drug developed by the Irish biopharma Horizon Therapeutics has been approved by the FDA for the treatment of adults with the rare autoimmune condition thyroid eye disease. The approval of the drug came ahead of schedule, with the decision originally expected in March. The drug, a monoclonal antibody, is branded as Tepezza. Thyroid […] January 22, 2020 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 22 Jan 2020 Off-The-Shelf Lung Cancer Vaccine Clinical Trial Gets €20M Boost The French-Belgian company PDC*Line Pharma has raised a €20M Series B round to fund an ongoing phase I/II trial of its off-the-shelf therapeutic vaccine for lung cancer. The total €20M consists of €13.9M in equity investments and €6.1M in loans and subsidies from the Walloon Region of Belgium. PDC*Line’s current investors took part in the […] January 22, 2020 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 21 Jan 2020 T-Cell Discovery Could Herald Universal Cancer Immunotherapy An international research team has found a new type of T-cell that could lead to cell immunotherapies able to treat cancers beyond the reach of current CAR T-cell therapies. Market-approved CAR T-cell therapies including Yescarta and Kymriah have revolutionized cancer treatment by modifying immune T-cells to hunt down cancer cells. However, these treatments are only […] January 21, 2020 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
Interview 21 Jan 2020 How Biotech Startups Can Have a Stronger Position When Scaling Up Scaling up the manufacturing process can be a daunting task for any biotech startup. Evelina Vågesjö, CEO of Swedish gene therapy biotech Ilya Pharma, and Jesper Hedberg, Director of the Testa Center facility, explained how testing at innovation facilities such as incubators and biotech accelerators can help avoid big pitfalls in the scaling process later […] January 21, 2020 - 6 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email