News and Trends 16 Mar 2017 UK Immunotherapy Biotech raises Massive Funding in Series C The UK biotech Cell Medica picked up a massive €69M (£60M) in its recent Series C funding round to advance its cancer immunotherapy programs. Cell Medica is a clinical stage company developing cell-based therapies to treat cancer. With the aim of advancing the clinical development of its immunotherapies, the company was able to raise an impressive […] March 16, 2017 - 3 minutesmins - By Melanie De Almeida Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 16 Mar 2017 What’s Berlin’s Secret to Success in Biotech & Digital Health? Berlin is a creative crossroads not just for arts but also life science. A variety of players in academia, industry, and startups make the ecosystem blossom. To those who know Berlin as a creative hub, it might come as a surprise that life science is one of the city’s industrial pillars. The German capital region […] March 16, 2017 - 8 minutesmins - By External Contributor Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 15 Mar 2017 France Closes in on an HIV Cure by Detecting Cells with Dormant Viruses French researchers have found a protein only expressed in HIV-infected reservoir cells, paving the way for an HIV cure that completely eliminates the virus. Researchers from the Institut de Génétique Humaine (IGH) at Montpellier University, France, have discovered a protein, CD32a, that is only present on the surface of CD4 T cells infected with dormant HIV. This […] March 15, 2017 - 2 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 15 Mar 2017 Allergan makes a deal with Editas to License CRISPR Programs for Eye Disease Allergan has signed a deal with Editas Medicine to access its CRISPR technology and license up to five of its programs in ocular disease. The Irish Allergan has a certain tendency to go on shopping sprees. Its latest deal is a research and development alliance with the American Editas Medicine, which is on the side of […] March 15, 2017 - 2 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 14 Mar 2017 Huge Successful €103M IPO for the Next European Leader in Bioplastics Avantium has gone public and raised €103M on Euronext Amsterdam and Euronext Bruxelles with Sofinnova Partner as the main shareholder. Avantium, a spin-off from Shell, is developing renewable bioplastics made 100% from plant-based materials with the support of big partners such as Coca-Cola or Danone, for which the Dutch biotech is developing sustainable PlantBottles and yogurt cups, […] March 14, 2017 - 2 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 14 Mar 2017 Can Roche & MorphoSys beat the odds in new Alzheimer’s Phase III Trials? After recent late-stage disappointments from Eli Lilly and Merck, Roche and Morphosys are stepping up with two new Phase III trials in Alzheimer’s. Roche just announced plans to start two new Phase III studies in Alzheimer’s with its antibody candidate gantenerumab, initially developed by the German biotech giant MorphoSys. The trials are expected to begin later this year, but Roche […] March 14, 2017 - 2 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 14 Mar 2017 The First 3D Structure of Active DNA could advance Stem Cell Therapies Scientists from the University of Cambridge have determined the first 3D structures of mammalian genomes from individual cells. For the first time, researchers from the University of Cambridge were able to determine the 3D structure of an active mouse genome in embryonic stem cells. Tim Stevens and his colleagues used a combination of imaging and […] March 14, 2017 - 3 minutesmins - By Melanie De Almeida Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 13 Mar 2017 New Cardiac Stem Cell Therapy passes Phase I/II Trials TiGenix announces positive one-year results for its phase I/II trial of donor-derived cardiac stem cell therapy in acute myocardial infarction (AMI). The Belgian biotech TiGenix is developing allogeneic stem cell therapies. Now the company has announced that its cardiac stem cell therapy AlloCSC-01 reached its primary endpoints in a phase I/II trial. In 2015, the company acquired Coretherapix in a €292M deal for its allogeneic cardiac stem […] March 13, 2017 - 3 minutesmins - By Melanie De Almeida Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 13 Mar 2017 This Dutch Company is Upgrading ADCs for Immunotherapy T-Guard is CEO and co-founder Ypke van Oosterhout’s life work. He told us about the technology that he has been developing since his graduate studies. It was during his post-MSc research that Ypke van Oosterhout ‘discovered’ T-Guard, a technology which neutralizes rogue T cells. Seeing its clinical potential, Oosterhout took the concept and ran with it — […] March 13, 2017 - 7 minutesmins - By External Contributor Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 11 Mar 2017 You Can Watch Fleming’s Original Penicillin Culture in Oxford! The Museum of the History of Science in Oxford is hosting an exhibition on the history of penicillin and the current challenges of antibiotic resistance featuring the first culture used to extract the antibiotic. The discovery of penicillin by Alexander Fleming in the early 20th century changed the world of medicine. Antibiotics have saved millions […] March 11, 2017 - 3 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 10 Mar 2017 Galapagos finds a Partner to Boost its Pipeline with Drug Combinations Galapagos and Pharnext will work together to develop low-dose drug combinations that improve drug efficacy and target new indications. Galapagos, the biggest biotech in Belgium, has closed an R&D agreement with the French Pharnext to develop drug combinations of the billion-euro biotech’s drug candidates with already approved drugs. While Pharnext’s focus has been neurodegenerative diseases, the […] March 10, 2017 - 2 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 10 Mar 2017 SynBio Success with Enzyme opens Jet Fuel Production Possibilities The well-known but stubborn FAS enzyme has been successfully modified to make petrol and jet fuel. This research opens up possibilities to produce biofuels with engineered microorganisms, or “cell factories”. Researchers from Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden have developed a method to modify the enzyme fatty acid synthase (FAS). This complex enzyme has long been […] March 10, 2017 - 2 minutesmins - By Denise Neves Gameiro Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email