Biopharma

A gene therapy targeting a rare brain disorder has received a positive opinion by the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) of the European Medicines Agency (EMA). PTC Therapeutics’ one-time gene replacement therapy Upstaza was given a positive opinion for the treatment for aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase (AADC) in patients 18 months or […]

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) is investing $577 million to establish nine Antiviral Drug Discovery (AViDD) Centers for Pathogens of Pandemic Concern, the organisation has announced.   The AViDD centers will conduct multidisciplinary research to develop candidate Covid-19 antivirals and others targeting specific viral families which could cause a future pandemic. These […]

The LSX World Congress returned for an in-person event in May, bringing together executives from the biotech, medtech and healthtech sectors, across two days to examine the latest trends across life sciences.  DDW’s Reece Armstrong attended the event – here are the key takeaways from the show.  One of the key theme’s across LSX was […]

As Chief Technical Lead and a Head of R&D at Samsung Biologics America, Soojin Han examines the challenges, tactics, and best partnering practices in cell line development (CLD). She emphasises the need to ensure a balance between shortening commercial CLD timelines, increasing efficiencies and maintaining product quality. Advances in treatments for oncological, autoimmune, and infectious […]

By Dr. Deborah Phippard, Chief Scientific Officer of Precision for Medicine and Anshul Mangal, President & General Counsel, Project Farma. In recent years the advanced therapy industry has been the most significant disruptor in medicine. Cell and gene therapies are transforming the way diseases are treated but are also aiming to cure entirely new patient populations. New applications and […]

Biopharma company Biomunex Pharmaceuticals has appointed a new chief scientific officer (CSO) to the company and member of its scientific advisory board.   The company has appointed Dr Simon Plyte as CSO who joins Biomunex to help strengthen its R&D strategy.   Dr Plyte brings a wealth of knowledge and experience, spanning over two decades in R&D […]

News round-up by DDW’s Reece Armstrong for 18-22 April    Covid-19, the link between ageing and genetic mutations, alongside funding opportunities for drug developers are some of the themes of this week’s news round-up.   1: Researchers shed light on ageing in new study   Animals with a large difference in lifespan and size end their natural lives […]

Synthetic biology company Evonetix’ has been granted a patent in Europe for its proprietary thermal control technology for DNA synthesis, as well as the design and manufacture of its silicon chips.  The EP3551331B1 patent will extend Evonetix’s IP portfolio and will help the company stratetgy’s for developing a benchtop DNA synthesis platform, to change how […]

The top 20 global innovative bio/pharma companies* reported a 24.9% growth in aggregate market capitalisation (MCAP)—from $2.8 trillion on 31 December 2020 to $3.4 trillion as of 31 December 2021, according to GlobalData.   The data and analytics company notes that a positive year-on-year MCAP growth was reported for 14 of the top players, with five […]

‘Can synthetic biology save us?’ and ‘synthetic biology can benefit us all’, are just some of the headlines this emerging scientific field has recently elicited. Lu Rahman speaks to Dr Emily Leproust, Founder and CEO of Twist Biopharma, about the potential that synthetic biology holds within the drug discovery sector.  “Most people today consider synthetic biology to mean […]