News and Trends 31 Jul 2019 French Biotech’s Insulin Resistance Treatment Boosted by €67M Series A The French company Alizé Pharma III has raised a Series A round of €67M to push two peptide drugs into phase I, including a drug treating rare genetic conditions causing insulin resistance. The money will advance Alizé Pharma III’s two preclinical drugs into clinical trials, with phase I trials expected to begin in 2020. One […] July 31, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 30 Jul 2019 Belgian Biotech Raises €35M to Develop Eco-Friendly Pesticides The Belgium-based company AgroSavfe has raised a Series C round of €35M to develop an environmentally friendly crop pesticide inspired by llama antibodies. AgroSavfe will use the funds to develop and manufacture its lead protein fungicide on a commercial scale. The company aims to get approval from the US Environmental Protection Agency and launch the […] July 30, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 29 Jul 2019 €43M Series C to Launch UK Company’s Home Hemodialysis Kit Quanta Dialysis Technologies has raised €43.2M ($48M) to fund the commercial launch of a device that makes home hemodialysis more straightforward and economical for kidney failure patients. The UK-based Quanta will use the money to launch its technology in the UK later this year, and also apply for FDA approval. The technology previously obtained a […] July 29, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 25 Jul 2019 French Biotech Aims for Chikungunya Vaccine First with €21M Fundraise The French vaccine developer Valneva has received a €21M ($23.4M) grant to catch up with the competition in commercializing the first potential vaccine for the chikungunya virus. Coming from the nonprofit Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), the grant will boost the manufacturing and development of Valneva’s vaccine for the tropical disease chikungunya, which causes […] July 25, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 23 Jul 2019 HIV Drug Suppresses Virus for Almost Two Years When Other Treatments Fail A first-in-class HIV treatment developed by the UK company ViiV Healthcare has suppressed the virus in people who have become resistant to other antiretroviral drugs, providing protection for at least 96 weeks. The phase III trial tested ViiV Healthcare’s first-in-class drug fostemsavir in 272 HIV-infected people who had failed to respond to approved antiretroviral drugs. […] July 23, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 18 Jul 2019 Genmab’s Huge IPO Raises €450M to Develop Antibody Drugs The Danish biotech Genmab has made a big splash on the Nasdaq, raising a €450M ($506M) IPO to fuel its antibody drug programs in cancer, autoimmune diseases, and more. This IPO is one of the biggest in biotech history, behind the whopping €530M Nasdaq entry from US mRNA biotech Moderna last year. It’s also to […] July 18, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 16 Jul 2019 Boehringer Ingelheim Acquires Cancer Vaccine Biotech in €325M Deal The German giant Boehringer Ingelheim has acquired the Swiss company AMAL Therapeutics and its cancer vaccine technology in a deal worth up to €325M. The deal includes €225M in upfront and developmental milestone payments, as well as up to €100M in undisclosed commercial milestone payments. AMAL’s vaccine development pipeline includes five preclinical programs. The lead […] July 16, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 15 Jul 2019 Dutch-US Scientists Use Bacteria to Produce Graphene for Electronics An international group of researchers has made graphene more affordably and with a lower environmental impact than current chemical methods by using bacteria. Graphene is a very strong and conductive material that could revolutionize electronics and engineering. However, producing graphene in large quantities requires lots of energy and involves toxic chemicals, such as hydrazine, which […] July 15, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 15 Jul 2019 Gilead Pays Billions for Access to Galapagos’ Pipeline Gilead has launched a 10-year collaboration with the Belgo-Dutch biotech Galapagos, paying at least €4.5B ($5.1B) for commercial rights to Galapagos’s whole pipeline, including a phase III drug for pulmonary fibrosis. As part of the deal, Gilead will pay Galapagos €3.5B ($3.95B) upfront, with a further €1B ($1.1B) in equity investment. In return, Gilead gets […] July 15, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 10 Jul 2019 French Startup’s Universal Flu Vaccine Development Boosted by €8M Series A The French biotech Osivax has advanced in the race to develop a universal flu vaccine, raising €8M to achieve clinical proof-of-concept. Osivax will use most of the funding to progress its lead candidate vaccine towards market approval. Targeting all strains of influenza A viruses, the vaccine is currently in a phase I trial, with results […] July 10, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 10 Jul 2019 Anti-Aging Gene Therapy Treats Cardiovascular Disease in Mice A research group in Italy has reduced cardiovascular disease in mice by expressing an anti-aging gene often seen in centenarians. This could one day lead to a gene therapy treating the same condition in humans. Centenarians have long lives thanks to a mix of their environment, lifestyle, and their genes. In the past, researchers at […] July 10, 2019 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 9 Jul 2019 Update: Swiss Biotech’s Series E Expanded to €271M to Commercialize Antibody-Guided Cancer Chemotherapy Update (09/07/2019): The Switzerland-based ADC Therapeutics has completed the final closing of a €271M ($303M) Series E round to finance the development of a phase II antibody-drug conjugate treatment for blood cancer. With its big Series E complete, the company is in a good financial position to prepare for the commercialization of its lead candidate […] July 9, 2019 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email