Biotech News

A much anticipated Covid-19 vaccine, developed by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca, achieved 70% efficacy in phase III interim data. While less effective on paper, it could prove cheaper and easier to distribute than its most advanced competitors.   Scientists and politicians heartily received the announcement of promising interim clinical trial results from the Covid-19 vaccine being developed by AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford. They come not long after phase III results from the vaccines being developed by BioNTech and Pfizer, Moderna, and the Russian Gamaleya Research Institute. While the vaccines of BioNTech and Moderna rely on messenger RNA technology, the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca vaccine is based on a common cold virus called adenovirus and engineered so it can’t replicate in human cells. The adenovirus trains the immune system to recognize the virus causing Covid-19 — SARS-CoV-2 — by exposing immune cells to the spike protein on the surface of the virus, which it uses to infect cells.  Compared to the vaccine candidates of BioNTech and Moderna, the technology used in AstraZeneca’s vaccine carries several key advantages. First of all, the technology is well established, whereas there is yet no mRNA medicine approved. Second, the vaccine can be produced, transported, and stored cheaply — its price is at least five times cheaper than its two competitors.  The post AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 Vaccine Proves Its Worth in Phase III appeared first on Labiotech.eu.

Despite the constant need for social distancing, mask-wearing, and the isolation and economic uncertainty that resulted from the outbreak, there is still much to be thankful for when families gather around a virtual table to break bread and carve the turkey this year.

The interim final rule aligns payment for Medicare Part B therapeutics with international prices and removes incentives for physicians to prescribe more expensive drugs and biologics.

Fancy a Black Friday R&D deal? Astellas has you covered badams Wed, 11/25/2020 - 08:32

Cancer-killing virus escapes immune destruction and fights metastatic lung tumors in mice arlene.weintraub Wed, 11/25/2020 - 07:43

BioNTech, Fosun start COVID-19 vaccine trial to support Chinese approval ntaylor Wed, 11/25/2020 - 06:47

Urovant's vibegron flunks irritable bowel syndrome phase 2 ntaylor Wed, 11/25/2020 - 06:01

The last month has seen a flurry of fundraises from European life sciences venture capital firms as they time their announcements around the ebb and flow of the pandemic in Europe.    This week, the Belgian investment firm Novalis Biotech announced the first closing of its second fund with €8M in the bank. Others raising new funds in the last few weeks include the UK accelerator Start Codon, French investment firm Jeito Capital, the German heavyweight TVM Capital Life Science, the Irish Fountain Healthcare Partners, and the Israeli Peregrine Ventures. Why are there so many funding announcements from life sciences VCs in late Autumn? One main reason is that uncertainty around the first waves of Covid-19 cases led many venture capital firms to hold back announcements until now. “I think people are synchronizing their announcements after the summer,” noted Hubert Birner, Managing Partner at TVM Capital Life Science.  “We could have announced it in July, but we decided to do it in October. We were hoping normality would come back to business amid [the pandemic].” As Birner explained, such an announcement would have gone unnoticed among the constant stream of Covid-19 news. The same thing happened earlier this year. Life science VCs were very quiet about their fundraising during the pandemic chaos of April and May. The post Autumn Brings Burst of Biotech Venture Capital Fundraising in Europe appeared first on Labiotech.eu.

Biomedical companies face unique challenges when it comes to media communication. Crisis communication, in particular, can make or break a company — all the more so in a sector as sensitive as healthcare. Crises can strike a biotech company at any point — the dream partner company that had shot you to fame dumps you just before your treatment candidate goes into trial, sending your shares through the floor; or a freak adverse effect pops up during a phase III trial and suddenly all the media are at your door, asking questions that you are only just starting to explore. How can a company survive such a crisis and turn it into an opportunity?  The healthcare sector overall is thriving financially amid the Covid-19 pandemic and the economic fallout of widespread lockdowns that has rocked economies around the world. This is in part because healthcare is seen by investors as an essential service and a relatively safe investment. Down the road, that means more research, more clinical trials, more news to be communicated, and, given that about 90% of all new treatment approaches fail, more crisis communication. “Every company at some point in their growth will have bad news, because that’s the nature of science,” said Ashley Tapp, Senior Associate Partner at Consilium Strategic Communications, The post How to Weather Bad Press as a Biotech Company appeared first on Labiotech.eu.

Galapagos sells off Fidelta as CRO activities 'no longer fit with its strategy' badams Wed, 11/25/2020 - 04:01

The drug, now known as Oxlumo, is the first approved treatment for patients with a potentially life-threatening condition that can cause kidney failure. Like other Alnylam drugs, it comes at a six-figure list price.

Anti-aging biotech Elevian raises $15M as it looks to the clinic badams Tue, 11/24/2020 - 09:48

Hoping for an endgame, GSK kick-starts phase 3 RSV vaccine trial in pregnant women badams Tue, 11/24/2020 - 08:37

AstraZeneca probes 'mistake' behind 90% COVID-19 vaccine efficacy ntaylor Tue, 11/24/2020 - 08:11

This year, the biotech spent about $27 billion trying to become a leader in cancer research. Executives who spoke to BioPharma Dive said there's still work to be done.

Twist Bioscience's COVID-19 'nanobodies,' inspired by llamas, show promise in hamsters aliu Tue, 11/24/2020 - 06:56

Immunocore's TCR bispecific improves survival in solid tumor phase 3 ntaylor Tue, 11/24/2020 - 06:37

The newly founded SynOx has become the latest startup to attack solid tumors via their ‘comfort zone’, known as the tumor microenvironment. SynOx was spun out of the UK firm Celleron Therapeutics last week with a huge Series A round of €37M. The fledgling company is developing an antibody drug that Celleron licensed from Roche in August to treat a rare form of cancer in the joints called diffuse tenosynovial giant cell tumors. SynOx’s candidate drug is designed to deplete a type of immune cell called macrophages close to the tumor. These cells normally function as fighters against foreign pathogens, but those close to cancer cells are sometimes hijacked and used to suppress immune cells. The drug falls outside of the two broad camps of traditional cancer treatments: those that kill cancer cells directly, and those that boost the immune system’s natural ability to destroy cancer cells. Instead, it is in an emerging group that remodels the tumor microenvironment — the unique conditions within and surrounding tumors that nurture and protect the tumors from immune cells. “There are still many cancers that remain largely unresponsive to currently available therapies, so new asset classes with novel mechanisms of action are badly needed for such hard-to-treat tumor types,” said Tim Skerry, The post SynOx Joins Wave of Biotechs Attacking Solid Tumor ‘Comfort Zone’ appeared first on Labiotech.eu.

The large drugmaker will pay $425 million to acquire OncoImmune, which is developing a treatment for severe coronavirus disease. 

The smaller biotech vowed to push forward, although the pill's inability to prevent heart failure death may complicate its plans to win approval. 

Data from two late-stage trials showed the shot to be, on average, 70% effective against COVID-19 — an encouraging finding. The lower dose tested, however, unexpectedly outperformed a higher dose.

Merck inks $425M OncoImmune buyout to bag COVID-19 drug ntaylor Mon, 11/23/2020 - 08:20

Black Diamond's EFGR-targeted glioblastoma drug candidate slows tumor growth in mice arlene.weintraub Mon, 11/23/2020 - 08:15

AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine 70% effective, shares fall ntaylor Mon, 11/23/2020 - 05:58

Belgium biotech argenx nabs Bayer speedy review voucher for a cool $98M badams Mon, 11/23/2020 - 03:55