The US is doing more in the COVID-19 space than anywhere in the world due to the strength of its innovative ecosystem, says Michelle McMurry-Heath, president & CEO of life sciences advocacy group Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO). But such innovation is under threat due to “reckless” orders coming out of the White House. As part … Continue reading “BIO Chief: “Reckless” Executive Order on Drug Prices Threatens Innovation”
Author: Dan Stanton
War Paint to Bone Paint: MIT Spinout Aims to Transform Regenerative Meds
Driven by 20 years in the military, the founder of Theradaptive hopes his firm’s regenerative “paint” technology platform can transform bone repair, spinal fusion, and sports medicine. The firm, spun out of MIT, has a computational platform it says turns recombinant proteins into material-binding variants that behave like a paint. This can then be used … Continue reading “War Paint to Bone Paint: MIT Spinout Aims to Transform Regenerative Meds”
Tapping Into the Innovation Grid: J&J, Data, and a Shifting Healthcare Focus
Johnson & Johnson’s global head of external innovation says there needs to be a shift in how healthcare research is funded to focus on early detection and curing rather than managing diseases. “When you look at the investment in research in the pharma industry, it’s all designed to treat established diseases,” William Hait, global head … Continue reading “Tapping Into the Innovation Grid: J&J, Data, and a Shifting Healthcare Focus”
With Bristol and Otsuka on Board, LSP Raises $620M EU Life Sciences Fund
Healthcare investment firm LSP has raised what it says is the largest ever European fund focused on life sciences ventures. The Amsterdam, Netherlands-headquartered firm aimed to bring in $450 million in the final fundraiser for its LSP 6 life science private equity fund but has ended up with $620 million (€550 million) to invest in … Continue reading “With Bristol and Otsuka on Board, LSP Raises $620M EU Life Sciences Fund”
CRISPR, CAR-T, Consolidation: Top Advanced Therapy Milestones of 2019
CRISPR, capacity, and consolidation powered the cell and gene therapy space in 2019, but a proactive focus on patient access topped Falcon Therapeutics CEO Susan Nichols’ annual roundup. In what has become one of the most anticipated presentations at the Phacilitate Leaders World Conference, Susan Nichols, CEO of private North Carolina-based cell therapy firm Falcon … Continue reading “CRISPR, CAR-T, Consolidation: Top Advanced Therapy Milestones of 2019”
Discovery Labs Converts ex-GSK King of Prussia Site into R&D “Colony”
The MLP Ventures-funded Discovery Labs says it is “bending the rules” in its efforts to stimulate R&D at the former GlaxoSmithKline site through a limited governance financial model. In April 2018, GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: [[ticker:GSK]]) sold its R&D campus in King of Prussia, PA, to private Philadelphia-based life science and real estate investment company MLP Ventures … Continue reading “Discovery Labs Converts ex-GSK King of Prussia Site into R&D “Colony””
Investors Go With Gut Ahead of Microbiome Therapy Boom, Says Seventure
French VC firm Seventure is raising over €200 million in a second dedicated fund focused on the microbiome and says the therapeutic space will mature within the next three years. In March, France’s Seventure announced it is looking to raise €200 million ($220 million) in its Health for Life Capital II fund dedicated to the … Continue reading “Investors Go With Gut Ahead of Microbiome Therapy Boom, Says Seventure”
Healthcare AI Tech is Here, Now We Must Learn to Manage the Data
Pharma and software firms are actively embracing AI and machine learning, but governments may need to lead the way in accessing relevant data, says Molecular Health. Molecular Health, a software firm focused on transforming big data into analysis and prediction tools for healthcare companies, believes biotech is in the early days of using artificial intelligence … Continue reading “Healthcare AI Tech is Here, Now We Must Learn to Manage the Data”
Biotech VC Down 20% in US as Policies Drive Away Foreign Investors, BIO Says
Reforms to a US national security regulation are putting off foreign investors and driving down VC investment in the biotech space by as much as 20 percent, says BIO’s David Thomas. In August 2018, Congress passed the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act (FIRRMA) as part of the Fiscal 2019 National Defense Authorization Act. The … Continue reading “Biotech VC Down 20% in US as Policies Drive Away Foreign Investors, BIO Says”
GE Healthcare Opens Startup Labs at Former AstraZeneca UK R&D Site
The doors have opened at a GE Healthcare-supported open-access lab for startups at AstraZeneca’s former global center for oncology research and development at Alderley Park, the largest bioscience research campus in the UK. The AstraZeneca (NYSE: [[ticker:AZN]]) site in Macclesfield, UK, housed 3,500 staff and was instrumental in developing a number of its cancer drugs … Continue reading “GE Healthcare Opens Startup Labs at Former AstraZeneca UK R&D Site”