News and Trends 29 Nov 2019 Bioplastics Consortium Granted €25M EU Funding The PEFerence consortium, coordinated by Avantium Renewable Polymers, has received reconfirmation of a €25M Horizon 2020 grant from the Bio-based Industries Joint Undertaking to develop plant-based, recyclable plastics. The grant was originally awarded in 2017 when the PEFerence consortium was under coordination of Synvina, a joint venture between Avantium and BASF. This venture was dissolved […] November 29, 2019 - 3 minutesmins - By External Contributor Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 28 Nov 2019 Personalized Vaccine Could Delay Onset of Pancreatic Cancer A personalized vaccine developed by researchers in the UK and China extended the survival of mice with pancreatic cancer, opening the door to the first treatments to prevent rather than treat one of the most aggressive forms of cancer. “Pancreatic cancer remains one of the most challenging tumors to treat,” said Yaohe Wang, professor at […] November 28, 2019 - 3 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 27 Nov 2019 Scientists Turn Crop Waste into Fragrances with Microbes A team of researchers in Brazil and the UK has developed a fermentation technique to turn plant waste, such as wheat straw, into a valuable chemical used in the fragrance industry. In a study published in the journal Green Chemistry, the scientists used engineered Escherichia coli bacteria to break down sugar cane and wheat straw, […] November 27, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 25 Nov 2019 Novartis Enters RNA Therapeutics with Medicines Company Merger Novartis is to acquire The Medicines Company and its late-stage RNA interference drug designed to protect against cardiovascular disease in twice-yearly shots. Novartis will pay €8.8B ($9.7B) to acquire The Medicines Company, which is based in the US and focuses on developing the RNA drug inclisiran for the treatment of cardiovascular disease and renal impairment. […] November 25, 2019 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 22 Nov 2019 ViiV Healthcare Licenses Long-Acting Antibody to Attack Hidden HIV The UK company ViiV Healthcare will begin a phase IIa trial of an antibody licensed from the National Institutes of Health in the US that could block HIV transmission for longer than current antiretroviral therapies. The antibody is currently in an ongoing phase I trial run by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, […] November 22, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 21 Nov 2019 €37.4M Invested in Azeria Therapeutics’ Cancer Treatment Program UK-based Azeria Therapeutics has raised a Series B investment round of €37.4M to fund development of novel breast cancer drugs targeting proteins called pioneer factors. The series B financing includes a €34.5M commitment from leading UK healthcare VC firm Syncona. The remainder was provided by the CRT Pioneer Fund — a specialist UK fund dedicated […] November 21, 2019 - 3 minutesmins - By External Contributor Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 21 Nov 2019 Update: Swedish Medical Device Fails to Treat Spinal Cord Injury Update (21/11/2019): The Swedish biotech BioArctic has terminated the clinical development of a biodegradable implant that is designed to treat spinal cord injury by encouraging the regrowth of nerve cells. The decision was made when an interim analysis in BioArctic’s phase I/II trial concluded that the treatment was ineffective. BioArctic will instead focus on developing […] November 21, 2019 - 3 minutesmins - By Alexander Burik Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 19 Nov 2019 CRISPR Cell Therapy Shows Early Promise for Treating Blood Disorders CRISPR Therapeutics and its US partner Vertex Pharmaceuticals have released the first clinical results for a cell therapy made using the gene editing tool CRISPR/Cas9 in patients with genetic blood disorders. The interim results concern two patients enrolled in different phase I/II clinical trials testing the same therapy in two blood disorders: transfusion-dependent beta-thalassemia and […] November 19, 2019 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 19 Nov 2019 US-French Deal to Tailor Ultrasound Therapy to Brain Cancer Patients The French company CarThera has teamed up with the US firm Kiyatec to study the effects on individual patients of an ultrasound therapy to deliver brain cancer drugs to the brain. Under the agreement, Kiyatec will test the effects of chemotherapy on cells taken from CarThera’s ongoing phase I/II trial in patients with brain cancer. […] November 19, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 18 Nov 2019 Update: Single-Shot Vaccine for Chikungunya Lasts for a Year in Phase I Update (18/11/2019): French biotech Valneva has revealed additional phase I results concerning its experimental chikungunya vaccine; all 68 patients that were given a single injection of the vaccine showed sustained protection after 12 months. The company is currently running a phase II study and plans to launch a pivotal phase III trial next year. Update […] November 18, 2019 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 15 Nov 2019 UK Spinout Secures Over €3M to Develop Novel Anticoagulants LUNAC Therapeutics has spun out of the University of Leeds with €3.09M of funding from the university and the VC firm Epidarex Capital for the development of anticoagulants with a lower risk for bleeding than those currently available. The new anticoagulants will target activated factor XII, a protein which company founders Helen Philippou and Richard […] November 15, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By External Contributor Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 14 Nov 2019 Cellectis’ Off-the-Shelf CAR T-Cell Therapy Shows Solid Tumor Potential An off-the-shelf, gene edited CAR T-cell therapy, developed by the French biotech Cellectis, could be used to tackle solid tumors, which have so far been beyond the reach of other CAR T-cell therapies. The approved CAR T-cell therapies Kymriah and Yescarta contain genetically modified immune T-cells that can fight certain types of blood cancer. However, […] November 14, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email