Microbiome start-up Nextbiotix raised € 7m in a Series A round. The Paris-based biotech uses commensal bacteria as drugs to treat major inflammatory bowel diseases.

The Board of Directors of the company has appointed Dr. Deborah Dunsire as new president and CEO of Lundbeck. Deborah Dunsire will take up her new position on 1 September 2018.

Dialysis product and service provider Fresenius Medical Care has placed €500m notes. Yesterday, the medtech giant had to come to terms with a sharp drop in share price.

The 33rd edition of Chemspec Europe, International Exhibition for Fine and Speciality Chemicals, ended after two successful show days with record visitor numbers. From 20 to 21 June 2018, a total of 4,202 trade visitors came to the exhibition grounds of the Koelnmesse in Cologne, Germany, where international experts of the fine and speciality chemicals industry met for Europe’s leading exhibition. These figures represent an increase of visitor numbers by nearly 9% compared to last year’s show in Munich.

Researchers at VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland have developed a vaccine, diluted into drinking water, to treat diarrhoea on piglets being weaned. The vaccine is expected to reduce the global resistance problem caused by excessive antibiotic use.

Eppendorf introduces first ready-to-use, synthetic cell cultureware for iPSC and MSC stem cells.

In Brussels, European Commissioners Jyrki Katainen and Carlos Moedas proposed a budget increase of 25% for the next European Research and Innovation programme Horizon Europe (2021-27) compared to Horizon 2020. Insummer, however, the EC’s High LevelGroup recommended a budget of at least €120bn.

VarmX will use the combination of a €7.5m Series A financing co-led by BioGeneration Ventures (BGV) and Dutch regional development company InnovationQuarter plus an €5m innovation credit from  the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO.nl) to develop a modified blood coagulation factor X to prevent severe bleeding in haemophilia patients.

The EMA’s CHMP recommended nine medicines including six orphan medicines for EU market approval on Friday. 

EuropaBio’s Executive Board and General Assembly of Members this week confirmed the appointment of Tjerk de Ruiter as Chairman of the association.