Approvals for RNA-based drugs in the past decade. © IQVIA

With the opening of a production centRE for RNA vaccines and therapeutics, German CDMO Wacker Biotech is expanding its expertise in the field of RNA active ingredients.

Dr Marco Giuman, Co-Founder & CTO and Dr Konstantinos Antonopoulos, Co-Founder & CEO, Picture: mk2 GmbH

Mk2 Biotechnologies GmbH was founded in 2020 and is located in the Innovation and Start-up Centre IZB in Planegg-Martinsried.

16-9-BioFlo320-BioBLU.jpg

Single-use bioreactor technology offers a set of benefits compared to common glass or stainless-steel vessels, including reduced downtime between runs, minimal cleaning effort, or decreased cross-contamination risk. In that regard, BioBLU® Single-Use Bioreactors combine the benefits of single-use bioreactor technology with the reliable performance of conventional glass or stainless-steel bioreactors. Furthermore, using them together with a powerful bioprocess controller like the BioFlo® 320 enables precise cell culture parameter control and seamless process transition to up to 40 L of working volume.

Evotec headquarters in Hamburg. © Evotec SE

Drug discovery CRO Evotec SE announced has entered into a partnership with Inserm, Lille University Hospital and Inserm Transfert to screen new biomarkers and targets in obesity and metabolic diseases.

Award winner Jeroen Verheyen (CEO and co-founder, Semarion, left) with Ignite Award judge Severine Tamas-Lhoustau, Managing Director of Novoptim (Paris, France, right). © Jill Hronek, Director Marketing and Communication at SLAS

UK-based Semarion Ltd. was honoured as the most innovative company in the field of laboratory automation at SLAS Europe 2024 in Barcelona.

Fundus in diabetis retinopathy. © By Shaofeng Hao, Changyan Liu, Na Li, Yanrong Wu, Dongdong Li, Qingyue Gao, Ziyou Yuan, Guanyan Li, Huilin Li, Jianzhou Yang, and Shengfu Fan. - (2022). - wikipedia.org/PLoS One (doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0275983.

US pharma giant Merck Sharp & Dohme (MSD) is decided to acquire London-based ophtalmology expert Eyebiotech Ltd for upt to US$3bn., US$1.7bn in future milestones.

Soo Romanoff, Analyst Edison Group; Picture: © Edison Group

2023 was another particularly tumultuous year for life sciences and, although the lingering effects of the last year are unlikely to change dramatically, the stabilisation of interest rates (off 16-year highs) and emerging direction of travel (market data points) tilt our bias to positive for the new year. 

Picture: Enhanc3D Genomics

In November 2023, Enhanc3D Genomics appointed Dr Hazel Jones as interim CEO and COO. Now she has taken over the Position of CEO officially.

Winning teams of the product award at SLAS Europe 2024 in Barcelona

Swiss Seed Biosciences SA and UK-based Cryologyx Ltd have won the SLAS Europe Product Award 2024 for product developments with transformational potential for the sector.

Prof. Dr Salah-Eddin Al-Batran Founder, Medical Director, Frankfurt Institute for Clinical Cancer Research IKF GmbH at the Northwest Hospital. Picture: © IKF GmbH

Over the past few years, the Frankfurt Institute of Clinical Cancer Research (IKF) has successfully conducted over 90 clinical studies. Each year, it enrolls approximately 1,500 patients in these trials. European Biotechnology spoke with the founder and director Prof. Dr med. Salah-Eddin Al-Batran.