Biotech - Today Stories
Craigavon, N.I., 26 September 2019 – Almac Diagnostic Services, a member of the Almac Group, will launch the complete version of claraT at the ESMO Congress in Barcelona on 27th September. The Almac claraT Total mRNA Report content has expanded considerably from the initial version launched the previous year at the ESMO Congress. The complete version now includes 92 gene expression signatures, 100 single gene drug targets and over 7,000 additional biology linked genes, categorised by all 10 Hallmarks of Cancer.
The innovative claraT Total mRNA Report benefits both academic and biopharma biomarker discovery and translational researchers by saving them valuable time in analysing gene expression data and helping to maximise the understanding of their dataset. claraT analyses multiple publishe…
Mutational signatures could help improve myeloma patient prognosis
Myeloma UK funded research from The Institute of Cancer Research, London, has identified the main biological processes which cause the genetic mutations associated with the development of myeloma.
The research, published in Blood Cancer Journal, increases our knowledge of how myeloma develops and evolves and also suggests that analysis of mutational signatures could play a role in helping identify high risk myeloma patients and predicting patient outcomes. This will aid the development of more personalised treatments for myeloma patients and help to drive improved diagnosis and assessment of prognosis.
The team at The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) analysed whole-genome sequencing (WGS) and whole-exome sequencing (WES)…
In Vitro Approach Provides Predictive Platform for Human-Based Drug Discovery
NEW YORK, August 6, 2019 (Newswire.com) - Researchers from TARA Biosystems, Inc. and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) today published data demonstrating that TARA’s engineered heart-on-a-chip system replicated drug responses found in adult humans. The findings, published in the Journal of Toxicological Sciences, show TARA’s 3D-cardiac tissue platform can predict how human hearts will respond to a wide range of drugs, something that has been a challenge in pre-clinical models until now.
“The cardiac tissues generated in the study are the first to provide high-fidelity human drug responses and demonstrate the potential for evaluating the safety and efficacy of new therapies in preclinical development,” said Michael P. Gra…
Timothy Kulbago named one of the most inspiring people in life sciences industry
PHILADELPHIA – Aug. 5, 2019 – ERT, a global data and technology company that minimizes uncertainty and risk in clinical trials, today announced that Timothy Kulbago, Vice President, Imaging has been named one of the 100 most inspiring individuals in the life-sciences industry by PharmaVoice.
Representing a broad cross-section of industry sectors, the PharmaVoice 100 honorees are selected based on how they have inspired their colleagues and affected positive changes in their organizations, as well as their involvement in community and philanthropic activities.
“We’re pleased to honor Tim as he truly represents the spirit of the PharmaVoice 100,” said Taren Grom, Editor and Cofounder of PharmaVOICE. “His contr…
Supporting the NHS on its decade-long journey towards an integrated health and care system, as well as delivering extra investment for new buildings and infrastructure, social care and addressing major gaps in NHS staffing, should be at the top of the new Prime Minister’s priority list.
That is the call today from the NHS Confederation in a letter and briefing to the Prime Minister. The NHS Confederation, which represents organisations across the healthcare sector, says there is much ‘unfinished business’ for the new government to resolve in the health and care sector.
The letter warns the Prime Minister that the question of NHS funding is not yet settled, despite the £20.5bn funding settlement that kicked in from April this year. The settlement excluded some vital areas of expenditure tha…
GlaxoSmithKline plc (GSK) today announced that Jonathan Symonds will succeed Sir Philip Hampton as Non-Executive Chairman of the GSK Board with effect from 1st September 2019.
Jonathan is currently Deputy Group Chairman of HSBC Holdings plc and has been an independent non-executive Director of HSBC since April 2014. He is a former Chief Financial Officer of Novartis AG and AstraZeneca plc, and has been a non-executive Director of Diageo plc and QinetiQ plc. He is currently non-executive Chairman of Proteus Digital Health Inc, a non-executive director of Rubius Therapeutics Inc and Chairman of Genomics England Limited.
The appointment was approved by the Board and follows a thorough succession process undertaken by the Nominations Committee, led by Vindi Banga, the company’s Senior Independ…
NEW YORK, July 22, 2019 (Newswire.com) - InvestAcure, PBC, honored 10 leading bioindustry scientists with the Cure Coin Award for their outstanding work developing groundbreaking scientific discoveries into lifesaving therapeutics for Alzheimer's, CTE and other related Dementias. The award reception took place on July 15, during the 2019 Alzheimer's Association International Conference in Los Angeles.
"The Cure Coin Award aims to bring public attention to the vital work of leading industry scientists developing lifesaving treatments," said Max Tokarsky, the founder and CEO of InvestAcure, a Public Benefit, Finance company building a spare-change investment platform to facilitate public investment in companies working on developing effective therapeutics for Alzheimer’s.
While govern…
Converse Pharma Group is primed for national expansion after securing a £60m combined facility from Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and Secure Trust Bank Commercial Finance.
Founded in 2013, the firm is a national pharmaceutical wholesaler, providing a comprehensive range of prescription drugs to over 5,500 independent pharmacies across the UK and Ireland.
Operating from bases in Doncaster and Prudhoe, Converse Pharma Group currently employs 980 members of staff across its 12 sites in the UK and Ireland. Its 140 strong sales team has helped revenues increase sharply in recent years, having achieved sales of £250m in 2018 – up from £188m the previous year.
The funding provided by RBS and Secure Trust Bank will enable the company to invest in new, larger depots, increasing the depth and range o…
Scientists at the University of Eastern Finland and the University of Oxford have shown that small RNA molecules occurring naturally in cells, i.e. microRNAs, are also abundant in cell nuclei. Previously, microRNAs were mainly thought to be found in cytoplasm. The scientists also discovered that microRNA concentrations in cell nuclei change as a result of hypoxia. The findings strongly suggest that microRNAs play a role in the expression of genes in the cell nucleus. This observation is crucial for the development of novel gene therapy, among other things. The study was published in Scientific Reports today.
The scientists profiled the division of microRNAs in different parts of endothelial cells, discovering that a large share of microRNAs are enriched in cell nuclei. When the scientists…
Today, Galapagos announces transformational multi-billion dollar collaboration with Gilead to create a global R&D leader based in Europe, developing and commercialising breakthrough therapies to patients. Please see the press releases https://www.glpg.com/press-releases
Multi-billion dollar collaboration is one of the largest ever biotech deals in Europe - $3.95 billion upfront payment, a $1.1bn equity investment by GILD, $1.1bn additional opt-in payments for two late stage products, as well as additional milestones to access early pipeline assets, and double digit royalties.
Creates a global R&D leader - Collaboration will accelerate GLPG’s vision to become a top 10 global biotech company and establish global leadership in inflammation & immunology. GLPG’s enhanced financial…
Novartis, Amgen and Banner Alzheimer's Institute today announced the decision to discontinue investigation of the BACE1 inhibitor CNP520 (umibecestat) in two pivotal Phase II/III studies in the Alzheimer's Prevention Initiative Generation Program. An assessment of unblinded data during a regular pre-planned review identified worsening in some measures of cognitive function. Given these findings, the sponsors concluded that the potential benefit for participants in the studies did not outweigh the risk.
John Tsai (M.D.), Head of Global Drug Development and Chief Medical Officer, said: "Novartis has a strong research focus and commitment to patients. As researchers we have to accept today's disappointing news as part of the search for innovative new treatments. We remain committed to advanci…
Commenting on the government response to the Promoting professionalism, reforming regulation consultation, Danny Mortimer, chief executive of NHS Employers, said: “Employees and employers will welcome steps to make the fitness to practise process quicker, fairer and effective; they will also look forward to further reform, which will allow the regulation of new roles and professions to support their full deployment to care for our patients.”
The Government will announce further details for how they will support pharmaceutical companies’ investments in the development of drugs that will treat AMR infections.
The NHS will test a first-of-its-kind ‘subscription-style’ payment model that will help incentivise companies to develop new drugs needed to tackle resistant infections.
The ABPI welcomes further detail on the Government’s approach.
Dr Sheuli Porkess, Executive Director of Research, Medical and Innovation at the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI), said:“Increased resistance to antibiotics is one of the greatest threats to global health we face.
“Today’s announcement is an example of how the UK can lead the world in this fight and hopefully brings us closer to fixing the problems that have hampered inv…
• Strategic partnership between world’s leading cancer research charity and leading specialist healthcare investment firm with track record of creating breakthrough companies and treatments • Major opportunity to progress charity’s research and translate scientific breakthroughs into new cancer medicines for patients• US$25 million investment by Cancer Research UK into new life sciences investment fund• Cancer Research UK to collaborate closely with SV Health Investors to identify research within charity’s network that could be rapidly developed
London, July 2nd 2019, Cancer Research UK, the world's largest independent funder of cancer research, today announced a strategic partnership with SV Health Investors (SV), a leading life sciences venture capital and growth equity firm, focused on…
On June 25, 2019, AbbVie Inc. and Allergan announced that the companies have entered into a definitive transaction agreement under which AbbVie will acquire Allergan in a cash and stock transaction for a transaction equity value of approximately $63 billion, based on the closing price of AbbVie's common stock of $78.45 on June 24, 2019.
Strategic Rationale:
New growth platforms and leadership positions to diversify and expand revenue base: The combined company will consist of several attractive franchises with leadership positions across immunology, hematologic oncology, medical aesthetics, neuroscience, women's health, eye care and virology. Allergan's product portfolio will be enhanced by AbbVie's commercial strength, expertise and international infrastructure.
Immediate scale and en…
(NEW YORK and SOMERSET, N.J., June 19, 2019) – Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE:BMY) and Catalent, Inc. (NYSE: CTLT), today announced that Catalent has agreed to purchase Bristol-Myers Squibb’s oral solid, biologics, and sterile product manufacturing and packaging facility in Anagni, Italy. Catalent is the leading global provider of advanced delivery technologies, development and manufacturing solutions for drugs, biologics, gene therapies, and consumer health products. The companies anticipate completing the transaction by the end of 2019, subject to regulatory approvals, the information and consultation procedure with the unions, and the satisfaction of certain other customary closing conditions.
Through the years, the Anagni plant has served as one of the primary launch facilities for…
(Reuters) - Pfizer Inc said on Monday it would acquire Array Biopharma Inc for $10.64 billion in cash, giving it access to the target’s approved drugs for skin cancer and the targeted cancer medicines in its pipeline.
The offer of $48 per Array share represents a premium of about 62% to the stock’s close on Friday. Array’s shares surged 56% in light premarket trade.
Pfizer has been investing in cancer drugs and gene therapies in the face of competition for its blockbuster pain drug Lyrica.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration last year approved Array’s oral combination treatment for use in patients with the deadliest form of skin cancer.
The company is also testing its triple combo therapy in colorectal cancer patients.
“(The acquisition) sets the stage to create a potentially industry-le…
Singapore, 31 May 2019 – ASLAN Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq:ASLN, TPEx:6497), a clinical-stage oncology and immunology focused biopharma company, today announced that it has amended its license agreement with CSL Limited (CSL) so that ASLAN has full global rights to develop, manufacture and commercialise ASLAN004 in all indications. The amended agreement replaces the licensing agreement ASLAN and CSL signed in May 2014.
Dr Carl Firth, Chief Executive Officer of ASLAN Pharmaceuticals, said: “We are very excited by the recent data we have generated on ASLAN004 and we believe that it has the potential to be a best-in-class treatment for atopic dermatitis and other inflammatory indications with a differentiated profile. The amendment of our agreement with CSL is an important achievement in our stra…
A prestigious competition that has helped innovators raise millions of pounds to take their concepts to the global marketplace is looking for 2019’s most life-changing creations.
The Royal Society of Chemistry’s Emerging Technologies Competition has helped winners raise more than £32million in funding since it was launched in 2013.
Backed by some of the world’s biggest companies, such as Unilever, Croda, Johnson Matthey, RSSL and Pfizer, entries are now open until 5 July for the next big success story whose mastery of the chemical sciences helped create a product that can deliver a real-world benefit for wider society.
Aurora Antemir, a senior manager in the Royal Society of Chemistry’s Industry team said: “In less than a decade, the Emerging Technologies Competition has gone from being an…
Neuraxpharm Group, a leading European specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the treatment of central nervous system (CNS) disorders, announces it will soon launch its first probiotic[1] in the European market following an exclusive licensing agreement with the probiotics company Bened Biomedical Co., Ltd.
Bened Biomedical, an award winning 2015 spin-out from Taiwan-based National Yang-Ming University, develops functional probiotic strains that can alter human microbiome. The agreement secures Neuraxpharm exclusive rights to market its first probiotic, PS128™, in the European market.
This is Neuraxpharm’s first launch of a probiotic product expanding the Company’s portfolio of marketed Consumer Healthcare products. This is in line with its ambition of covering CNS therapeutics from pr…
