News and Trends 11 Jul 2018 Gene Therapy for Retinitis Pigmentosa Tested in Humans for the First Time French biotech Horama has treated the first patients with a gene therapy for retinitis pigmentosa that could prevent the progressive loss of vision caused by this genetic condition. A Phase I/II trial with Horama’s gene therapy for retinitis pigmentosa is running at the Nantes University Hospital. The therapy is aimed at fixing genetic defects in a […] July 11, 2018 - 3 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 9 Jul 2018 Swedish Alzheimer’s Treatment Slows the Disease in Phase II Trial BioArctic, based in Stockholm, has clinical results showing its antibody treatment that targets amyloid plaques, a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease, can slow the disease’s progression. The trial tested the antibody in 856 patients with early-stage Alzheimer’s disease with plaques of amyloid-beta protein in their brains, which is considered a common hallmark of the disease. Results taken at […] July 9, 2018 - 3 minutesmins - By Alexander Burik Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 9 Jul 2018 Abingworth Closes €268M to Invest in Life Science Companies Abingworth has closed $315M (€268M) for its most recent fund, Abingworth Bioventures VII, which invests in European and US life science companies. In the current fundraising, Abingworth surpassed its target of $300M. The new fund will invest in life science companies in all stages of development, including early and late-stage venture deals. The company plans to […] July 9, 2018 - 2 minutesmins - By Alexander Burik Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 6 Jul 2018 A New HIV Vaccine Could Protect Patients Against Multiple Viral Strains A new HIV vaccine is moving into a Phase IIb trial and could potentially protect patients against multiple HIV strains worldwide. Recent findings from a Phase I/IIa trial published in The Lancet show that a new HIV-1 vaccine was safe and produced an immune response against HIV 393 healthy adults, as well as in a […] July 6, 2018 - 2 minutesmins - By Alexander Burik Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 5 Jul 2018 Series A Round Could Bring French Microbiome Treatment for Bowel Disease Into the Clinic Netbiotix has raised €7.5M to bring its lead candidate for inflammatory bowel disease into clinical trials. The treatment uses a bacterium found in the gut to prevent and dampen inflammation. The company, based in Paris, develops treatments for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) that consist of a single microbial strain that interacts with cells in the […] July 5, 2018 - 2 minutesmins - By Alexander Burik Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 4 Jul 2018 Stem Cells Could Help Patients Recover From Heart Attacks Viscofan BioEngineering has a green light in Spain to start clinical testing for its stem cell technology in patients with weakened heart muscles after a heart attack. While Viscofan BioEngineering’s main focus is on making sausage casings out of collagen, its technology could also help patients with weak heart muscles after suffering from a heart […] July 4, 2018 - 2 minutesmins - By Alexander Burik Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 3 Jul 2018 French Lupus Vaccine Ready to Move Into Phase III Neovacs, a French biotech, has shown its lupus vaccine can be effective in treating this severe autoimmune disease. Its lupus vaccine works by stimulating the patient’s immune system to produce antibodies against a protein called IFNα that regulates the immune system and is involved in the disease. The study enrolled 185 patients around the globe […] July 3, 2018 - 2 minutesmins - By Alexander Burik Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 2 Jul 2018 Dutch Snake Venom-Derived Clotting Agent Comes Closer to the Clinic Dutch biotech raises €12.5M to complete the preclinical development of its lead compound for acute internal bleeding and bring the drug into clinical trials. VarmX, based in Leiden, the Netherlands, raised a Series A round of €7.5M led by BioGeneration Ventures, with an additional €5M provided by the Netherlands Enterprise Agency as an Innovation Credit. The […] July 2, 2018 - 1 minutemin - By Alexander Burik Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 30 Jun 2018 Glass Microbiology: From the Microscope to the Art Gallery Artist Luke Jerram is behind Glass Microbiology, a series of beautiful glass-blown microbes that are changing the way we perceive viruses and bacteria. We’ve all seen at some point brightly-colored illustrations of viruses, most likely the feared HIV or an alien-like bacteriophage. These representations feed our imagination and help us understand the tiny but complex world of […] June 30, 2018 - 3 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 29 Jun 2018 Update: Yet Another ADC Company Makes Bank, This Time in Series B Update (29.06.2018): NBE Therapeutics has extended its Series B fundraising round by 20M CHF (€17.3M), reaching a total of 40M CHF (€34.6M) for the round. Novo Holdings joins the Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund and the PPF Capital Partners Fund as a major shareholder of the Swiss biotech, which continues to develop its ADCs for improved […] June 29, 2018 - 3 minutesmins - By Editorial Team Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 28 Jun 2018 Muscular Dystrophy Drug Fails in Phase 2 Trial The stock of Summit Therapeutics has plunged by 80% after announcing that its drug candidate for Duchenne muscular dystrophy failed to meet the primary and secondary endpoints of a Phase II clinical trial. Duchenne muscular dystrophy is a genetic disease that causes progressive muscle deterioration in children born with the disease. The British-American company Summit […] June 28, 2018 - 2 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 27 Jun 2018 International Fund Raises €300M for Dementia Research The Dementia Discovery Fund has raised $350M (€300M) to support industrial and academic scientists doing early-stage research to develop new dementia medicines. Launched in 2015, the Dementia Discovery Fund (DDF) is dedicated to investing in early-stage ventures that develop disease-modifying therapeutics for all types of dementia, including Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. Yesterday, the DDF completed a […] June 27, 2018 - 2 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email