Biotech - Today Stories

Jeanette Rigby is Director Human Resources at Valneva Scotland Ltd Scotland’s life sciences sector is a crucial part of the nation’s economy, contributing groundbreaking innovation in areas such as biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, and vaccine manufacture. Recent data shows the sector now contributes almost £10.5bn to the Scottish economy, with life sciences exports worth £4.3bn, and the potential is building. Its strong academic foundation, coupled with a robust talent pool and the Scottish Government’s life sciences strategy, makes Scotland a prime destination for innovation and investment. However, if we are to remain competitive globally, Scottish companies must invest in their people. Read the full article here

Akiram Therapeutics, a Swedish biotech company specializing in targeted radiotherapy, today announces the launch of PRE-CISE, a Eurostars-funded research collaboration with Danish PreTT and TetraKit Technologies. The aim of the project is to develop a new generation of targeted alpha-therapeutics by expanding Akiram’s proprietary CD44v6-targeting antibody platform using advanced pre-targeting strategies and radiolabeling chemistry. The PRE-CISE project combines Akiram’s CD44v6-targeting antibody platform with PreTT’s expertise in pre-targeting technology and TetraKit’s radiolabeling chemistry. Using a two-step approach—where the antibody first binds to the tumor, followed by the separate delivery of a radioactive payload—the collaboration aims to unlock access to alpha-emitting radionuclid…

Biogen signs lease for Kendall Common as part of multi-year real estate optimization plan to modernize its facilities and consolidate its Massachusetts real estate footprint New building will be designed to foster collaboration and spark innovation; Biogen plans to relocate Cambridge-based employees to the new site in 2028 CAMBRIDGE, Mass., March 24, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Biogen Inc. (Nasdaq: BIIB) announced plans for its new global headquarters at Kendall Common, located at 75 Broadway in Cambridge, as part of a multi-year real estate consolidation plan in Massachusetts. The move centralizes Biogen’s presence in Kendall Square, integrating Biogen’s research and development and technical operations teams alongside its global and North American commercial organizations into a co-locate…

Acquisition to strengthen key pillar of BioNTech’s oncology strategy aimed at establishing BNT327 as a pan-tumor technology platform for the treatment of advanced cancers With the closing of the transaction, BioNTech will expand its capabilities to develop, manufacture and commercialize novel BNT327 combinations and next-generation bispecific antibodies Biotheus will become a new indirect Chinese subsidiary of BioNTech, adding a local research and development hub and an advanced biologics manufacturing facility to the Company’s network MAINZ, Germany, February 3, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- BioNTech SE (Nasdaq: BNTX, “BioNTech” or “the Company”) announced today the completion of the acquisition of Biotheus (“Biotheus”), a clinical-stage biotechnology company dedicated to the discovery and d…

Since 2021, Moderna has launched 23 clinical trials across 110 UK sites One in five of participants in industry-sponsored clinical research are enrolled in Moderna trials LONDON, UK—(ACCESS WIRE)— 31 January, 2024—Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) has announced updates demonstrating substantial R&D investment and progress in the UK, two years since signing its strategic partnership with the UK government, at a milestone event at the Harwell Campus in Oxfordshire. The milestone event brought together stakeholders from across the UK life sciences ecosystem to mark the completion of the construction of the Moderna Innovation and Technology Centre (MITC) – the company’s state-of-the-art research, development and manufacturing facility. Subject to licensure, the first product manufactured at scal…

Chiesi Group is making a strategic investment of €400 million to establish its new Biotech Center of Excellence in Parma. The Center is designed to integrate the entire supply chain, enhancing innovation and production, while its seamless research-production integration will accelerate product development and autonomous production capacity. Chiesi’s strategy aligns with EU priorities on innovation, security, and private R&D investment. Parma (Italy), 30th September 2024 - Today, Chiesi Group, an international biopharmaceutical company focused on research, celebrates the operational launch of its Biotech Center of Excellence. This state-of-the-art facility is dedicated to developing and producing monoclonal antibodies, enzymes, and other proteins. This facility is anticipated to be ou…

The funding will support Theolytics’ Phase 1 clinical trial for THEO-260 in ovarian cancer and incorporates comprehensive biomarker studies to showcase the candidate's differentiated dual tumour-lytic (cancer cells and CAFs) and immunotherapeutic mechanism of action Oxford UK September 2nd 2024. Oxford UK September 2nd 2024. Theolytics, a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing next-generation oncolytic viral therapies, has been awarded £2M from Innovate UK’s prestigious Transforming Cancer Therapeutics grant funding competition to support the clinical development of its lead candidate THEO-260. This non-dilutive funding adds to the £19M raised earlier this year from a strong investor syndicate comprising M Ventures, Taiho Ventures, Epidarex Capital, Oxford Science Enterprises…

New campaign aims to inform and educate the public about the ongoing risks of COVID-19 and the impact the virus continues to have on day-to-day life Updated vaccines targeting KP.2 variant have been approved by the U.S. FDA and are now available across the country CAMBRIDGE, MA / ACCESSWIRE / August 29, 2024 / Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) today announced the launch of its new awareness campaign, "Do It For You & Them." The initiative is part of Moderna's broader efforts to drive vaccination rates in the United States as COVID-19 infection rates continue to be elevated across the country. "COVID-19 remains a significant health risk and is a leading cause of respiratory illness-related hospitalization, regardless of age or health condition," said Francesca Ceddia, Chief Medical Affairs Of…

BILLINGHAM, U.K., 1701HRS August 20, 2024:– FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies, a world leading contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) for biologics, vaccines, advanced therapies, and oncolytic viruses, today hosted a celebration for the opening of its microbial fermentation manufacturing facility in Billingham. This new facility triples existing microbial production throughput with the addition of a new production line equipped with 2 X 4000 L fermenters, primary separations suite and a modular purification suite with an investment over 100 million GBP. To support further expansion, the facility is built with the flexibility to accommodate new projects to meet the emerging needs of FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies’ partners, and to provide supply chain resilience. This…

CAMBRIDGE, MA / ACCESSWIRE / February 7, 2024 / Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) today announced that Stéphane Bancel, Chief Executive Officer, has been elected to the National Academy of Engineering (NAE), broadly known as one of the highest acknowledgments of achievement in the field, in recognition of distinguished contributions to engineering and the "development and manufacturing of pharmaceutical products, including the COVID-19 vaccine." Stéphane Bancel has served as Moderna's Chief Executive Officer since October 2011 and as a member of Moderna's board of directors since March 2011. In the 13 years since he joined Moderna, Mr. Bancel has led the company from startup to global commercial enterprise. Today, the Company has 45 mRNA therapeutic and vaccine programs in its pipeline, nine of…

Atomic AI’s ATOM-1 large language model (LLM) demonstrates state-of-the-art accuracy for predicting RNA structure and function Technology can be exploited to evaluate and optimize key features critical in developing RNA-based and RNA-targeting drug modalities ATOM-1 uniquely enabled by billion-scale chemical mapping datasets collected in-house by Atomic AI SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Atomic AI, a biotechnology company fusing cutting-edge machine learning with state-of-the-art structural biology to unlock RNA drug discovery, announced that the Company has created the first large language model (LLM) leveraging chemical mapping data. In a preprint paper published on bioRxiv, Atomic AI describes its proprietary ATOM-1™ platform component, a foundation model that can accura…

Almac Discovery and Queen’s University Belfast have today announced a five-year project to develop a new Chemoproteomics Centre of Excellence for drug discovery.The multi-million-pound facility, which is jointly funded by Almac Discovery and a BBSRC Prosperity Partnership award, is a first of its kind in Northern Ireland and will be located at Queen’s.The project combines and harnesses the experience of industrial and academic experts to shine a new light on the way drug molecules could be used to treat disease, by using advanced mass spectrometry techniques to examine their effects on thousands of potential drug targets simultaneously, in disease relevant systems.This latest collaboration builds on a long-established relationship between Almac Discovery and Queen’s in biological research…

Company behind the successful life-sciences firm Moderna, Flagship Pioneering, has selected the UK for their first location outside of the US Announcement opens up new opportunities for life science start-ups and investments in the UK, complementing UK government’s plan to drive innovation in science and tech and boost the UK’s investment ecosystem New Memorandum of Understanding between Flagship and the Government cements the UK’s commitment to the sector, setting out how both can work together on clinical trials, potential UK manufacturing locations, and more Leading life sciences bioplatform company Flagship Pioneering has today (Tuesday 28 November) announced the UK as the home for its first base outside the US, paving the way for new scientific start-ups, discoveries and investments…

London, United Kingdom, 9 November 2023 - The UK biotech sector secured a substantial total of £563 million in venture capital and public financing during the three months spanning June to August 2023, data published today by the UK BioIndustry Association (BIA) and Clarivate shows. This represents a 48% increase from the previous quarter's takings and consistent quarter-on-quarter growth throughout the year making this the most robust period since the sector’s peak in 2021. This is in line with the surge in fundraising activity among European companies that more than doubled their fundraisings this quarter, while US companies saw a 21% decline across all fundraisings. While the dearth of public market launches continues to present challenges for European companies, including UK biotech co…

New partnership will harness Moderna's mRNA rapid-response platform, clinically validated during the COVID-19 pandemic, to accelerate epidemic and pandemic vaccine development First project will enable rapid pre-clinical testing of antigen designs for high-risk viral families, to advance global outbreak readiness CAMBRIDGE, MA / ACCESSWIRE / October 30, 2023 / The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) have entered into a strategic partnership that will harness Moderna's mRNA platform to accelerate the development of vaccines against viral disease outbreaks that threaten global health. The work undertaken as part of this partnership could expand the infectious disease targets for mRNA vaccine technology and strengthen pandemic preparedness…

CAMBRIDGE, MA / ACCESSWIRE / October 26, 2023 / Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) today announced it was ranked as one of the top employers in the global biopharmaceutical industry in Science and Science Careers' 2023 Top Employers Survey for the ninth consecutive year. Moderna was recognized for its commitment to continuous innovation, treating employees with respect, and social responsibility. "We are again honored to be recognized by Science as a top employer, with this year marking the ninth year in a row we have been named to this important list," said Stéphane Bancel, Chief Executive Officer of Moderna. "While Moderna has grown substantially since we were first recognized in 2015, our commitment to impacting the lives of patients and of our employees has never changed. We remain focused on…

Collaboration combines leading technologies to develop breakthrough, mRNA-enabled in vivo expressed TCER® molecules Companies to leverage Immatics' XPRESIDENT® target discovery platform and Moderna's mRNA technology for the development of novel cancer vaccines Collaboration to include evaluation of Immatics' investigational IMA203 PRAME TCR-T in combination with Moderna's investigational PRAME mRNA cancer vaccine Immatics to receive $120 million upfront cash payment plus research funding with the potential for additional milestone and royalty payments CAMBRIDGE, MA and TUEBINGEN, GERMANY / ACCESSWIRE / September 11, 2023 / Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA, "Moderna") and Immatics N.V. (NASDAQ:IMTX, "Immatics"), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company active in the discovery and development of…

STORM Therapeutics Ltd. (STORM), a clinical stage biotechnology company focused on discovering and developing novel small molecule therapies targeting RNA modifying enzymes (RMEs) for oncology and other diseases, is pleased to announce that it will be presenting the discovery of its lead clinical candidate, STC-15, which is an orally bioavailable and highly selective METTL3 inhibitor, at the American Chemical Society (ACS) Fall 2023 Conference, in San Francisco, California on the 13-17 August 2023. The presentation entitled “Discovery of STC-15, an orally bioavailable, highly selective METTL3 inhibitor for the treatment of AML and solid tumours: The first molecule specifically targeting an RNA methyltransferase enzyme to enter clinical development” will detail the Company’s discovery effor…

Alpha-1 antitrypsin (AAT) is an immuno-modulator with broadband anti-inflammatory and antiviral therapeutic effects AATec Medical is developing recombinant AAT initially for respiratory applications in combination with novel inhalation technology Clinical studies are expected to start in first half of 2024 Financing is supported by private investors, industry experts and family offices Company is led by experienced team of sector specialists Munich, Germany – 17 July 2023 – AATec Medical GmbH (AATec), a German biotech company developing a multi-product platform based on recombinant alpha-1 antitrypsin (AAT), today announced that it has commenced operations with seed financing of EUR 2.7 million from private investors, industry experts and family offices. The funds will be used to scale u…

- Following positive Phase 1/2 results in Vertex’s VX-880 program, Vertex and Lonza announce strategic manufacturing collaboration - - Dedicated large-scale facility will support commercial production of Vertex’s T1D cell therapy portfolio - - Approximately 300 new jobs anticipated at Lonza Portsmouth, New Hampshire Site - BOSTON & BASEL, Switzerland--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jun. 26, 2023-- Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (Nasdaq: VRTX) and Lonza (SIX: LONN) today announced a strategic collaboration to support the manufacture of Vertex’s portfolio of investigational stem cell-derived, fully differentiated insulin-producing islet cell therapies for people with T1D, currently focusing on the VX-880 and VX-264 programs that are currently in clinical trials. Vertex’s first clinical program, V…