Following weeks of negotiations and four rejected bids, British neurology and orphan drug giant Shire has agreed to Takeda’s latest take-over offer of £46bn (€52,38bn).

Liam Condon, Picture © Bayer.

Bayer today announced the selection of the new Executive Leadership Team for the Crop Science division, which will go into effect as of the closing of Bayer’s proposed acquisition of Monsanto. The closing is still subject to pending regulatory approval.

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Vas Narasimhan, the newly appointed CEO of Swiss pharma giant Novartis, introduced himself to the Swiss biotech industry with a stimulant talk at the Swiss Biotech Day. Apart from that participants of the annual gathering were in high spirits as the Swiss biotech sector continues to grow steadily.

Swiss injection pen developer Haselmeier and Boston-based Common Sensing have partnered to develop smart connected self-injection devices that can monitor drug administration, dosing and efficacy of therapies.

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The UK-based pioneer in marine biotechnologies Jellagen has closed a £3.8m funding round to boost sales of its next-generation jellyfish-based medicine. Lead investor were Newable Private Investing and the Development Bank of Wales.

© maguisso/flickr.com (CC BY 2.0)

Iterum Therapeutics plans to raise up to US$92m in an initial public offering on US technology stock market Nasdaq. The Irish company develops oral and IV antibiotics for urinary tract infections and intra-abdominal infections.

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Sonde Health Inc., an affiliate of PureTech Health (PureTech Health plc, PRTC.L) developing a voice-based technology platform for monitoring and diagnosing mental and physical medical conditions, today announced that Thai Lee, President and Chief Executive Officer of SHI International Corporation, has joined Sonde’s Board of Directors.

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US biotech company Biogen has exercised the option of a one-off payment to Swiss developer Neurimmune. If Biogen’s Alzheimer’s candidate Aducanumab is approved, the sales-related payments to Neurimmune will thus be reduced by 5%.

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Neurimmune today announced that it has appointed Dr. Fabian Buller to the newly created position Chief Business Officer. Dr. Buller joins Neurimmune’s executive team and brings 8 years of professional experience with biotech and pharma companies.

Mouse heart function under investigation at the Hansmann lab in Freiburg. © Hansmann/Science Translational Medicine

A new study shows that a drug approved for the treatment of diabetes reverses pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and prevents right heart failure in rats. Ekaterina Legchenko and colleagues say their findings could lead to new therapies for PAH and other chronic heart and lung conditions.