Halt of Polyphor trial shrinks company valuationRoche had a nose for success when the pharma giant ended the CHF500m deal with Polyphor in November 2015. Now, the antibiotics maker stopped a Phase III trial of its lead murepavadin (Pol7080). more ➔
Ethics Council calls for moratorium of clinical germline manipulationFollowing the birth of genome-edited twins in China, the German Ethics Council has provided a complete ethical review about human germline intervention. more ➔
BioNtech aquires antibody assets from MabVax TherapeuticsImmunotherapy and infection specialist BioNTech SE (Mainz, Germany) has acquired preclinical and clinial antibody assets and infrastructior from MabVax Therapeutics Holding, Inc. more ➔
MS linked to epigenetic changes in immune cellsEpigenetic changes in immune cells may provide the trigger of multiple sclerosis. Researchers have now identified MS-specific epigenetic biomarkers that change upon drug treatment. more ➔
Confo Therapeutics raise €30m in Series A financingThe round was led by BioGeneration Ventures and Wellington Partners, with Fund+, Perceptive Advisors and existing investors Capricorn Venture Partners, MINTS, PMV, QBIC and V-Bio Ventures contributi … more ➔
Researchers report how body fat affects imune cellsUS scientists have found that the complex interactions between fat tissue and the immune system are mediated by interleukin 33 (IL-33). more ➔
European Lead Factory gets €36.5m support from IMI The European Lead Factory (ELF) – a drug discovery hub for validation new targets from academia and biotech SMEs – has again received project funding from the Innovative Medicine’s Initiative. more ➔
AstraZeneca set to licence 5 programmes from Transgène SATransgène SA and AstraZeneca plc have entered into a collaboration and exclusive license option agreement on Transgène’s armed oncolytic immunotherapies. more ➔
Alentis Therapeutics debuts with CHF12.5m Liver specialist Alentis Therapeutics AG has raised CHF12.5m in a Series A round co-led by BioMedPartners and BB Pureos Bioventures. more ➔
EMA recommends nine drugs for market approval In its first meeting in Amsterdam, the CHMP of the European Medicines Agency recommended six new drugs, two orphan meds, and one biosimilar for EU market authorisation. more ➔
