News

Basilea reports loss, files NDA for anti-infective

Country
Switzerland

Basilea Pharmaceutica Ltd, a developer of treatments for infectious diseases and cancer, reported its first-half results for 2014 which showed a small decline in revenue and a widening of its net loss.

4SC directors resign

Country
Germany

Two members of the supervisory board of 4SC AG, the German biotechnology company, have announced their intentions to resign effective 18 September.

Skyepharma in deal with Pulmagen for COPD therapy

Country
United Kingdom

Skyepharma Plc has purchased rights to a respiratory technology platform from Pulmagen Therapeutics (Synergy) Ltd that could form the basis of a range of new products for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

Avastin approved for advanced cervical cancer

Country
United States

The Food and Drug Administration has approved the use of Avastin (bevacizumab) with chemotherapy to treat advanced cervical cancer – the first biologic to be authorised for this indication in combination with other agents.

Kyprolis trial misses endpoint in myeloma

Country
United States

A Phase 3 trial of the cancer drug Kyprolis administered as a single agent for patients with refractory multiple myeloma has failed to meet its endpoint of improving overall survival. This follows another study of the same drug in combination with two other agents that was positive.

Prosensa gets funding for DMD pipeline

Country
Netherlands

Prosensa Holding NV of the Netherlands has received a commitment for up to €5 million in funding to support the further development of its portfolio of antisense oligonucleotides for patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy, a rare genetic disorder.

Ablynx gets grant funding for ocular programme

Country
Belgium

Ablynx NV has received a €2.1 million grant from a government body in the Flanders region of Belgium to investigate the treatment of eye diseases with the company’s antibody-derived therapeutics which go by the name of Nanobodies.

Over-allotment option for ArGEN-X issue exercised

Country
Belgium

ArGEN-X NV has raised an additional €1.8 million from its initial public offering on the Euronext stock exchange in Brussels following the partial exercise of an over-allotment option by one of the underwriters.

Oxford Nanopore raises £35 million

Country
United Kingdom

Oxford Nanopore Technologies Ltd, which develops gene sequencing technology, said that it has raised £35 million in new funding through a private placement of its ordinary shares. The transaction brings to £180 million the total funds raised since its founding in 2005.

Data said to support cancer hypothesis

Country
United Kingdom

Scancell Holdings Plc said that a study in animals which combined its cancer vaccine SCIB1 with a checkpoint inhibitor showed enhanced tumour destruction and longer survival times, supporting the hypothesis that the best outcomes in humans may be from combination therapy.