Fluidic Analytics Ltd, a 2013 spin-out from the University of Cambridge’s chemistry department, has raised £5.3 million in a Series B investment round to progress its line of laboratory research tools for characterising proteins that can reveal an individual’s disease state or state of health.
Bayer AG has agreed to pay $128 per share in an all-cash bid for Monsanto Co to create one of the largest suppliers of seeds and agricultural chemicals. Including debt, the transaction is valued at $66 billion and is one of the largest German takeovers of a US company.
Promimic AB, a Swedish biomaterials company, has secured SEK 23.8 million (€2.49 million) in new equity to prepare for the commercial launch of its orthopaedic and dental implant products in the US.
Verily Life Sciences LLC, a subsidiary of the IT conglomerate Alphabet Inc, and Sanofi SA, have created a jointly owned company called Onduo which will provide services to patients with Type 2 diabetes by tapping into the potential of big data to help patients manage their disease. Onduo will be based in Kendall Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the mecca of the global biotech industry.
Rigontec GmbH, which is developing RNA-based immunotherapeutics for cancer and viral diseases, has completed a €29.25 million series A funding with a final €15 million tranche issued to its venture capital shareholders.
Camstent Ltd, which is developing a bacteria-resistant polymer coating for medical devices, has raised £850,000 from a combination of existing and new investors to bring its first product to market – a polymer coated catheter designed to prevent urinary tract infections.
Bayer AG has raised its non-binding offer to buy Monsanto Co for a third time since May to $127.50 per share. A report in The Wall Street Journal on 5 September indicates that the two companies are having constructive talks.
In keeping with the widespread interest in precision medicine, OncoDNA SA, a privately held company that identifies cancer treatment options for doctors and patients, has raised €7.7 million in an equity placement.
Cell Medica Ltd has strengthened its hand in the field of T cell therapy with a new collaboration around T cell receptor technology. Having recently expanded a partnership with Baylor College of Medicine in Texas, US, and acquired the Delenex Therapeutics AG antibody company in Switzerland, the company has now entered into a partnership with University College London (UCL) to develop genetically engineered T cell receptor products for cancer.
AstraZeneca Plc is divesting a portfolio of small molecule antibiotics in line with its strategy of generating out-licensing revenue and tightening its therapeutic focus. In a deal announced on 24 August, the UK company said it will sell rights to the portfolio to Pfizer Inc which has a focus on infectious disease.