Category: Finance
-
Drug Delivery Biotech Raises $101.8 Million in IPO
17 July 2015. Chiasma Inc., a biotechnology enterprise developing oral therapies to replace injected drugs, raised some $101.8 million in its initial public stock offering. The company — located in Newton, Massachusetts and Jerusalem, Israel — issued 6,365,000 shares at $16.00, and trades on the Nasdaq exchange under the symbol CHMA. Shares in the company closed…
-
Trial Testing Respiratory Muscle Drug for ALS Patients
14 July 2015. Biopharmaceutical company Cytokinetics is beginning a late-stage clinical trial of a drug designed to slow the decline of respiratory muscle functions in people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, a neurodegenerative disorder. In addition, Cytokinetics, in South San Francisco, California, received a $1.5 million grant from the ALS Association supporting the trial,…
-
Spinal Stimulation Start-Up Wins $200K State Award
13 July 2015. PathMaker Neurosystems Inc., a developer of non-invasive devices that stimulate the spinal cord to relieve muscle weakness and paralysis, received a $200,000 award from a Massachusetts science funding agency. The grant was made by Massachusetts Life Sciences Center as part of its life sciences milestone achievement program. PathMaker’s technology uses electronic current…
-
University Campus Serving as Internet-of-Things Lab
10 July 2015. Carnegie-Mellon University is turning its campus into a real-time lab to develop a Google-funded platform supporting networks known as the Internet-of-things. Google is providing Carnegie-Mellon, in Pittsburgh, a grant of $500,000 for the project that also involves Cornell, Stanford, and University of Illinois. Internet of things, or IoT, is the term given…
-
Compression Software for Genomic Analysis Being Designed
6 July 2015. Engineers at University of Illinois in Urbana and Stanford University in California are tackling the problem of massive data files generated by genomic analyses, an emerging issue as precision medicine harnessing genomics takes hold. A team led by engineering faculty Olgica Milenkovic at Illinois and Tsachy Weissman at Stanford is funded by…
-
Foundation Supporting ALS Pilot Clinical Trials
1 July 2015. ALS Association is funding pilot studies with patients having amyotrophic lateral sclerosis to confirm biomarkers, or biochemical indicators, that improve responsiveness to therapies. The studies are being conducted by Neuraltus Pharmaceuticals Inc., a biopharmaceutical developer in Palo Alto, California, and University of Washington Medical Center in Seattle. ALS, also known as Lou…
-
Juno, Celgene Partner in $1 Billion Immunotherapy Deal
30 June 2015. Biotechnology company Juno Therapeutics Inc. and biopharmaceutical developer Celgene Corp. are collaborating on therapies that harness the immune system to treat cancer and autoimmune diseases over the next 10 years. The agreement is expected to bring Juno nearly $1 billion from Celgene in upfront payments and stock purchases. Juno Therapeutics, headquartered in…
-
Novartis Acquires Pain Medication Developer in $200M Deal
29 June 2015. Global pharmaceutical company Novartis is acquiring Spinifex Pharmaceuticals Inc., a developer of new types of therapies for neuropathic pain. Spinifex reports Novartis is paying $200 million in cash for the company — based in Stamford, Connecticut and Melbourne, Australia — as well as undisclosed future milestone payments. Spinifex Pharmaceuticals develops therapies for…
-
Rare Disease Therapy Company Raises $60 Million in IPO
26 June 2015. Catabasis Pharmaceuticals Inc., a biotechnology company creating treatments for rare diseases and cholesterol-related disorders, is raising $60 million in its initial public stock offering, trading on the Nasdaq exchange under the symbol CATB. The Cambridge, Massachusetts enterprise yesterday priced its 5 million shares at $12.00, and as of 4:00 pm today is…
-
Study Testing Sleep Rhythm Glasses for Cancer Insomnia
25 June 2015. Special eyeglasses that adjust circadian rhythms of people with sleep disorders are being tested as a treatment for lung cancer patients with chronic insomnia. The study, led by University at Buffalo (New York) nursing professor Grace Dean, is funded by a $25,000 grant from Oncology Nursing Society. Insomnia is a common problem…