Germany-based Medigene AG, which has a long history in oncology drug discovery, has acquired Trianta Immunotherapies GmbH of Munich, a spin-out with three T cell immunotherapy technologies. The value of the deal is €4 million plus milestones.
The European Medicines Agency’s main scientific committee has given a positive opinion to a new drug developed by GlaxoSmithKline Plc for people with Type 2 diabetes. The drug, albiglutide, is a glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist.
Genmab A/S has raised DKK 998 million (€134 million) following the pricing of a previously-announced private share placement to support development of its therapeutic antibody portfolio. The company announced the results on 24 January.
IP Group Plc, which invests in intellectual property generated by universities primarily in the UK, has decided to raise new capital with a share issue. Funds from the issue will enable the company to expand its portfolio of life science investments.
Seventure Partners, an indirect subsidiary of the French financial conglomerate, Natixis SA, has launched a new fund called Health for Life Capital that will invest in companies focused on nutrition and the science relating to the human microbiome.
Roche has announced the failure of two studies in a large Phase 3 programme which is investigating the efficacy of bitopertin, a glycine reuptake inhibitor, in schizophrenia. The company said it will wait for data from the remaining studies before deciding its next steps.
An experimental gene therapy has shown promise in a Phase 1/2 study of patients with an inherited cause of progressive blindness called choroideremia. Six patients receiving the treatment have shown improvements in their vision six months after treatment, according to an article in The Lancet.
Shire Plc is to divest Dermagraft, a bio-engineered skin substitute, as part of a strategic review set in motion by the company’s chief executive Flemming Ornskov. The Dermagraft assets are being sold to Organogenesis Inc in exchange for future milestone payments.
The potential of stem cells as future therapies could be linked to a greater understanding of how mitochondria are transferred among cells in the human body leading to the repair of damaged tissue, according to a paper in The EMBO Journal on 15 January.
JLL/Delta Dutch Newco BV, a company set up to combine the assets of Canada’s Patheon Inc and the pharmaceutical division of Royal DSM of the Netherlands, is raising $500 million with a private placement of eight-year notes in New York.