Tag: biotechnology
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AAAS Pres: Science Drives Innovation, Economic Growth
13 February 2014. Phillip Sharp, professor of molecular biology at MIT and president of American Association for Advancement of Science (AAAS), underscored the tight connection between scientific advancement, entrepreneurship, and economic growth, in the opening plenary session of the AAAS annual conference in Chicago. Sharp described the way scientific discovery feeds the economic engines of…
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Start-Up Developing Gene Therapies Lands $45M in Early Funds
12 February 2014. Voyager Therapeutics, a new start-up in Cambridge, Massachusetts creating gene therapies for disorders of the central nervous system, gained $45 million in first-round financing. Third Rock Ventures, a venture capital company specializing in life science enterprises, provided the funds for the company founded by researchers at University of Massachusetts Medical School, University…
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Engineered Hemp Delivers High Volume of Healthy Oleic Acid
10 February 2014. Biologists at University of York in the U.K. developed a new form of hemp plant that produces seeds with oil containing a high volume of oleic acid, a nutritious fatty acid like that found in olive oil. The team led by York’s Ian Graham, who heads the university’s biology department, published its…
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Trial Underway Testing Pancreatic Cancer Immunotherapy
10 February 2014. Aduro BioTech Inc. in Berkeley, California started treating ist first patients in an intermediate-stage clinical trial of immunotherapies for pancreatic cancer. The trial is expected to enroll 240 patients at 20 sites in the U.S. and Canada, and is still recruiting participants. Pancreatic cancer is often difficult to diagnose in its early…
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Calif Stem Cell, UC Irvine Partner on Eye Transplant Tissue
6 February 2014. California Stem Cell Inc. in Irvine and University of California in Irvine are researching the creation of retinal tissue from stem cells for transplants in patients with incurable retinal disorders, such as age-related macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa. The study is funded by a $4 million grant from the California Institute of…
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Myriad Genetics Acquires Rheumatoid Arthritis Test Developer
Myriad Genetics Inc., a designer of genetics-based diagnostics in Salt Lake City, will acquire Crescendo Bioscience in South San Francisco, California, a developer of molecular blood tests for autoimmune diseases, particularly rheumatoid arthritis. Myriad is paying $270 million in cash, which includes repayment of an outstanding $25 million loan to Crescendo. Crescendo Bioscience, founded in…
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Pain Therapy Developer Issues IPO, Raises $55 Million
31 January 2014. Cara Therapeutics Inc., a biotechnology company in Shelton, Connecticut, issued its initial public offering (IPO), raising some $55 million. The company issued 5 million shares of common stock, priced in the range of $11 to $13 a share. At noon ET today, the stock is priced at $13.38 a share on the…
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Early Trial Finds Vaccine Booster Covers Pandemic Flu Types
30 January 2014. An early-stage clinical trial shows an RNA agent being developed by Hemispherx Biopharma in Philadelphia extends the effectiveness of the standard nasal flu vaccine to cover pandemic influenza strains, like those found in Pacific Rim countries. Results of the trial were presented yesterday at a meeting of the American Society for Microbiology…
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Mayo Clinic Taking Part in ALS Stem Cell Clinical Trial
29 July 2014. BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics, a biotechnology company in New York and Israel says the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota is now taking part in a clinical trial of the company’s treatments for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) that harness the patient’s own bone marrow stem cells. Financial aspects of the agreement were not disclosed.…
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Biopharma, University Partner on Blood Cancer Immunotherapy
29 January 2014. Kiadis Pharma B.V., a biopharmaceutical company in Amsterdam, is collaborating with a research group at Technical University of Munich to identify immune-system cells for treating leukemia in the company’s immunotherapy product for blood cancers. Financial aspects of the partnership were not disclosed, although the company says the Munich research is funded, at…