NEWS
Novasep opens expanded China facilities
Novasep has opened a new 2,000 sq m facility in Shanghai Pudong district, China. The site will increase the company’s process development and engineering capabilities to cater growing Chinese and East Asian demand. The facilities will add to Novasep’s existing 12 synthesis and process sites in France, the USA, Germany, Belgium and The Bahamas.
Novasep launched its first facilities in Shanghai in 2006, and quickly outgrew the site whilst the company doubled its staff to almost 50 employees between 2010 and 2012. The new expanded facilities include 800 sq m dedicated to innovation and process development through new laboratory, piloting and FAT testing areas.
Bayer HealthCare and Tsinghua University extend drug discovery partnership
Bayer HealthCare and Tsinghua University of Beijing, China, are expanding their joint research partnership relating to the Bayer-Tsinghua Joint Research Center for Innovative Drug Discovery (BTC) and have signed a new strategic agreement to collaborate in the area of biomedical sciences over the next three years.
Established in 2009 and headed by Dr Shi Yigong, Professor and Dean of the School of Life Sciences at Tsinghua University, the BTC has initiated multiple joint research projects from early research programmes to gain deeper understanding of disease mechanisms to the identification of new drug targets, as well as joint structural biology research and medicinal chemistry programmes. To further strengthen their relationship, a Bayer-endowed chair at the Tsinghua University Institute of Biomedicine will be established later this year.
CRT and the EIF create new cancer R&D fund
Cancer Research Technology (CRT), the commercial arm of Cancer Research UK, and the European Investment Fund (EIF) have jointly created a £50 million investment fund to “bridge the funding gap” in the UK between cancer drug discovery and early development. The CRT Pioneer Fund will seamlessly take potential cancer drugs from discovery through to entry to Phase 2 clinical trials. CRT and the EIF will make equal contributions to the new fund, which has launched with a first close of £25 million. This may be doubled by the founders to reach the total £50 million. Dr Keith Blundy, CEO of Cancer Research Technology, said: “The creation of this landmark fund addresses the problem of funding the development gap which is restraining cancer drug development in the UK. The gap
has appeared because investment from industry has moved away from early stage discovery and there’s less funding for small biotechnology firms who previously helped bridge the gap between academia and pharmaceutical companies.
“This important investment means we can take forward the most innovative approaches using our in-house drug discovery and development capabilities, to progress promising treatments from the lab all the way to clinical trials, translating our world-class scientific research into new treatments more quickly.” Richard Pelly, EIF Chief Executive, said: “This investment targets a stage of the investment spectrum often neglected by the market. The CRT Pioneer Fund will be capital-efficient and
primarily follow a licensing model rather than creating companies.” CRT and EIF have worked with a specialist fund management firm, Sixth Element Capital LLP (6EC), to create and implement the fund. 6EC will establish committees of independent experts to provide guidance on the investment and commercialisation of individual projects. At least two-thirds of the fund will be used to develop scientific discoveries made by Cancer Research UK scientists. This may include projects within CRT’s Discovery Laboratories, the Institute of Cancer Research’s Cancer Therapeutics Unit, Cancer Research UK’s Paterson and Beatson Institutes, and Newcastle University. The remaining projects may come from other academic groups or industry in the UK. CRT will re-invest its share of any profits derived from the fund in Cancer Research UK’s research.
Waters Corporation and NIBRT form biotherapeutics partnership
The Irish National Institute for Bioprocessing Research and Training (NIBRT) and Waters Corporation have formed a ‘multi- level’ partnership designed to support advanced concepts and deliver the promise of more effective biotherapeutic innovations addressing challenging diseases through training and research. Waters and NIBRT have established the Complete Product and Processing Characterization Facility (CPPCF) for hands-on laboratory-based scientific training and retraining of ‘fit-for- purpose’ biopharmaceutical analysis, including protein and peptide characterisation. The CPPCF’s goal is to provide
Belgian cell therapy company Promethera Biosciences, a specialist in liver diseases, has completed an exceptional fundraising round generating €23.6 million, including €17 million in capital. The fundraising has been achieved
comprehensive training of industry and governmental technicians and scientists to help the industry develop advanced biotherapeutic characterisation. The new facility will also educate scientists on existing and upcoming US and European drug regulations.
The partnership also establishes NIBRT as a Waters Center of Innovation in the area of glycobiology research. Professor Pauline Rudd, NIBRT’s principal investigator, and her team will be working with Waters mass spectrometry to take challenging glycan characterisation to the next level. By improving
understanding of glycan chemical and molecular structure, scientists
due to Promethera Biosciences’ successes since its Series A fundraising in 2009, which include GMP accreditation following the transfer and scale-up of a production process developed at the Université Catholique de Louvain (UCL) into a larger-scale
can better understand safety and efficacy profiles for a potential molecule, leading directly to novel biotherapeutic options. Seán Sherlock TD, Irish Minister for Research and Innovation, Department of Jobs, Enterprise & Innovation, officiated at the opening ceremonies for two new laboratories. The institute was created by the Irish government to support the biopharmaceutical industry and one of its key focus areas is on research into improved product analytics to assist the industry in maintaining quality standards. A second key area is bioanalytical training in advanced analytical methods, which will be achieved through the partnership with Waters.
Promethera Biosciences raises €23.6 million in Series B financial round
pharmaceutical operation. In addition to this, the company has been granted authorisations from the respective agencies to start its Phase 1/2 clinical study in Belgium and the UK for its cell therapeutic HepaStem, which may hold a cure for liver diseases.
March/April 2012 sp2 Inter-Active 13
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48