Tag: Europe
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Consortium Develops Virtual Mouse for Lab Testing
Simcyp Ltd. in Sheffield, U.K., a consortium of pharmaceutical and biotech companies and research universities, has created a virtual lab mouse for use in cancer and toxicological research. Simcyp is a spin-off enterprise from Sheffield University that develops modeling and simulation tools for lab testing. Lab mice are used frequently in the development of new drugs…
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Report: Asia Closing Gap in U.S. R&D Leadership
National Science Foundation’s new report on global research and development (R&D) trends, Science and Engineering Indicators 2012, shows in the last decade, U.S. leadership in research and development has come under severe challenge from China and other countries in Asia. The report from NSF’s policy-making body, the National Science Board, shows between 1999 and 2009,…
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Compound That Repairs RNA Defects Identified
Researchers at Scripps Research Institute in Jupiter, Florida have identified a compound that can help repair defects in ribonucleic acid (RNA), a genetic material similar to DNA used in protein synthesis. The team’s findings appear online in the journal ACS Chemical Biology (paid subscription required). The researchers, led by Scripps chemistry professor Matthew Disney (pictured…
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BASF to Move Plant Biotech Work to U.S. from Germany
The German chemical company BASF says it will move much of its plant science R&D work to the U.S. to take advantage of a more favorable regulatory climate than in Europe. The company expects to relocate its facilities in Limburgerhof, Germany and elsewhere in Europe to a new site in Research Triangle Park near Raleigh,…
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Novartis to Restructure, Cut 1,960 U.S. Jobs
The Swiss company Novartis Pharmaceuticals said on Friday it plans to reorganize its General Medicines division in the U.S. resulting in a loss of 1,960 jobs. The company said it expects the job cuts to take place in the second quarter of 2012. Novartis plans to reduce its General Medicines field workforce by 1,630 jobs…
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UC San Francisco, Sanofi to Partner on Diabetes Therapies
University of California in San Francisco (UCSF) and the French pharmaceutical company Sanofi have agreed to collaborate on diabetes research. Under the $3.1 million partnership, UCSF and Sanofi will share their expertise and identify new drug targets for type 1 and type 2 diabetes. The collaboration is expected to bring together researchers in UCSF labs…
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Sanofi, VCs Back Start-Up Deriving Natural Product Drugs
The French drug maker Sanofi, with American venture capital (VC) companies Third Rock Ventures and Greylock Partners, are investing up to $125 million in Warp Drive Bio a new biotechnology company in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Warp Drive Bio, being incubated at Third Rock Ventures, specializes in using genomics to derive drug candidates from natural sources, such…
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Foundation to Fund Drug Maker Diabetic Eye Disease Research
KalVista Pharmaceuticals in Southampton, U.K. and JDRF in New York have formed a partnership to develop a drug candidate with potential to slow the advance of diabetic macular edema (DME). The collaboration aims to move KalVista’s plasma kallikrein inhibitor into human proof-of-concept clinical trials and generate clinical data to highlight its potential as a new…
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Cleantech Investment Volume Up, Deal Numbers Down in 2011
Global investment dollars in clean technologies increased in 2011 from the previous year, but the number investment deals declined somewhat, according to the industry research company CleanTech Group in San Francisco. Clean technologies, as defined by Cleantech Group, include renewable energy sources such as wind and solar, as well as energy efficiency, pollution control, infrastructure…
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Forma, Boehringer Ingelheim to Partner on Cancer Drugs
Forma Therapeutics, a biotechnology company in Watertown, Massachusetts says it signed an agreement with the German pharmaceutical maker Boehringer Ingelheim to discover and develop drug candidates for cancer. The deal involves the discovery of small molecule drugs targeting interactions among proteins. Forma’s technology for cancer drug discovery involves computational and medicinal chemistry, parallel synthesis, and…