News and Trends 14 Oct 2020 Spatial Transcriptomics Landscape Shifts With Two Major Acquisitions The Swedish firm Cartana and US-based ReadCoor have recently been snapped up by the US giant 10x Genomics to get hold of their spatial transcriptomics technology. What impact will these acquisitions have on the burgeoning field going forward? Last week, 10x Genomics took over ReadCoor for a smooth €298M ($350M). This followed the acquisition of […] October 14, 2020 - 4 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 9 Oct 2020 2020 Chemistry Nobel Prize Awarded to CRISPR-Cas9 Pioneers The biotech community is raving about the long-anticipated recognition of the groundbreaking CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing tool, with the Nobel Prize in Chemistry awarded to two of its leading developers this week. The Prize in Chemistry went to Emmanuelle Charpentier, Director at the Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology in Berlin, and Jennifer Doudna, a Professor […] October 9, 2020 - 4 minutesmins - By Victor Kotsev Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 7 Oct 2020 Investment Is Pouring Into Neuromodulation Treatments The last month has seen several big investments in European neuromodulation and neurostimulation companies, which aim to treat neurological conditions by zapping nerve cells. What’s the reason for this funding peak? Last week, the Italian firm WISE announced the closing of a €15M Series C round to fund the development of a device that blocks […] October 7, 2020 - 6 minutesmins - By Helen Albert Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 5 Oct 2020 Galapagos’ Arthritis Drug Approved in EU and Japan Amid US Rejection The recent EU and Japan approvals of the rheumatoid arthritis drug filgotinib contrast with the FDA’s rejection in August. What does this signal for Galapagos, Gilead, and other biotechs working in inflammatory disease? For Galapagos and Gilead, it’s been a rollercoaster few months. In August, the FDA decided against approving their drug filgotinib for treating […] October 5, 2020 - 5 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 2 Oct 2020 Huge €62M Series B Boost for Mosa Meat’s Cell-Based Burgers The Netherlands-based food technology company Mosa Meat has raised €62M in a Series B round that will be used to bring its cultured beef products a step closer to the market. The funding round was led by the Luxembourg firm Blue Horizon Ventures in collaboration with the Bell Food Group, M Ventures, and others. Of […] October 2, 2020 - 3 minutesmins - By Laura Cowen Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 1 Oct 2020 Medicxi to Shake up the Biotech VC Investment Model with €200M Fund UK-based investment firm Medicxi aims to attract more investors to the life sciences with a new fund that lets them cash in on their investments earlier than conventional funds. Last week, Medicxi closed a €200M fund called Medicxi Secondary 1 (MS1), which was co-led by the UK’s Pantheon and Switzerland’s LGT Capital Partners. The aim […] October 1, 2020 - 4 minutesmins - By Victor Kotsev Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 25 Sep 2020 Roche Confirms Pharma Appetite for Inflammatory Disease Treatments Roche’s acquisition of the Irish biotech Inflazome is a vote of confidence for emerging inflammatory disease drugs. How could other companies in the field benefit from this takeover? The inflammation process is essential for our survival, as it helps the body to clear up damage after injury. However, uncontrolled inflammation can also harm us, causing […] September 25, 2020 - 4 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 17 Sep 2020 3D Bioprinting Gains a Foothold in Biomedicine 3D printing has revolutionized manufacturing by reducing costs and giving designers and engineers immense flexibility. Could 3D bioprinting do the same for biotechnology? The 3D bioprinting field is still quite young, but it is developing rapidly. In fact, the 3D bioprinting market is expected to grow from €700M ($820M) in 2019 to a massive €4B […] September 17, 2020 - 5 minutesmins - By Kostas Vavitsas Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 14 Sep 2020 T-Cell Therapy Firm Wins Massive €93M Series A to Treat Solid Tumors The Dutch startup Neogene Therapeutics has become the second T-cell therapy developer to raise a spectacularly large Series A round in Europe this year. The Series A round was co-led by the VC firms EcoR1 Capital, Syncona, and Jeito Capital. Neogene Therapeutics will use part of the €93M proceeds to advance its T-cell therapy immuno-oncology […] September 14, 2020 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 14 Sep 2020 The Funding Flow Between European and US Life Sciences Funding is the lifeline of innovative ventures. In an increasingly uncertain environment, looking at the records of past investments can be essential for making sense of the future and getting closer to discovering what’s next for the life sciences industry. Exploring the differences between the two major groups of life sciences investors and the funding […] September 14, 2020 - 11 minutesmins - By External Contributor Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 1 Sep 2020 Microbiome Therapies Threatened by Covid-19 Restrictions Providers of microbiome therapies worldwide have been hit by pandemic restrictions on the harvest of stool samples. Though these measures are now loosening in France, key safety challenges remain for companies using fecal microbiota. Fecal microbiota transplants — procedures where healthy individuals donate their gut microbes to a patient — have changed how we treat […] September 1, 2020 - 5 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 25 Aug 2020 What Does Unity’s Phase II Fail Mean for European Anti-Aging Research? A drug developed by the US firm Unity Biotechnology — designed to slow the aging process — recently proved a dud in phase II for the treatment of osteoarthritis. How is this high-profile setback affecting European biotechs developing anti-aging treatments? Aging is a complex, multi-faceted process that makes people vulnerable to a wide range of […] August 25, 2020 - 6 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email