Jonathan Smith, Author at Labiotech.eu

About

Reporter for Labiotech. I hail from the UK. I was born in Bristol, studied Neuroscience in the University of Bristol, and trained mice in Eisai, Hertfordshire, for one year. I then tickled locusts for my Ph.D. at the University of Leicester, before eventually ending up here!
Out of the office, I travel, play video games and board games, drink beer and play the piano.

Articles by Jonathan Smith

News and Trends 16 Nov 2020

Innate Immunity in Cancer Gains Recognition with Affimed’s €1.8B Deal

Last week’s €1.75B deal between the German biotech Affimed and Swiss giant Roivant backs up an emerging trend of harnessing our innate immune system to treat cancer. According to the deal’s terms, Affimed will receive €51M upfront to license to Roivant a preclinical-stage antibody drug for several undisclosed types of cancer. Roivant will handle the […]

November 16, 2020 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

Best in Biotech 16 Nov 2020

12 Biotech-Themed Online Courses to Try at Home During Lockdown

With national lockdowns forcing millions to stay home in the Covid-19 era, this could be a big opportunity to take an online course about the biotech industry and how to run a business in this exciting field. Over the past decade, universities have started offering courses on online platforms such as Coursera and FutureLearn that are […]

November 16, 2020 - 8 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

News and Trends 3 Nov 2020

Kiadis’ Natural Killer Cell Therapies Earn €308M Acquisition by Sanofi

The French big pharma Sanofi has offered €308M to acquire the Dutch firm Kiadis Pharma and get hold of cancer cell therapies based on a type of immune cells called natural killer cells. The offer comes not long after Sanofi inked a deal worth up to €857.5M to license a preclinical-stage cancer cell therapy from […]

November 3, 2020 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

News and Trends 29 Oct 2020

Universal Flu Vaccines Yield Second Clinical Failure This Year

In a blow to hopes for better protection from seasonal flu, last week’s phase III failure of BiondVax’s universal flu vaccine follows the phase II flop of Vaccitech’s flu vaccine in January. Last week proved a major setback for the Israeli biotech BiondVax. The company’s vaccine — designed to protect against multiple strains of flu […]

October 29, 2020 - 5 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

News and Trends 14 Oct 2020

Spatial Transcriptomics Landscape Shifts With Two Major Acquisitions

The Swedish firm Cartana and US-based ReadCoor have recently been snapped up by the US giant 10x Genomics to get hold of their spatial transcriptomics technology. What impact will these acquisitions have on the burgeoning field going forward? Last week, 10x Genomics took over ReadCoor for a smooth €298M ($350M). This followed the acquisition of […]

October 14, 2020 - 4 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

News and Trends 5 Oct 2020

Galapagos’ Arthritis Drug Approved in EU and Japan Amid US Rejection

The recent EU and Japan approvals of the rheumatoid arthritis drug filgotinib contrast with the FDA’s rejection in August. What does this signal for Galapagos, Gilead, and other biotechs working in inflammatory disease? For Galapagos and Gilead, it’s been a rollercoaster few months. In August, the FDA decided against approving their drug filgotinib for treating […]

October 5, 2020 - 5 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

News and Trends 25 Sep 2020

Roche Confirms Pharma Appetite for Inflammatory Disease Treatments

Roche’s acquisition of the Irish biotech Inflazome is a vote of confidence for emerging inflammatory disease drugs. How could other companies in the field benefit from this takeover? The inflammation process is essential for our survival, as it helps the body to clear up damage after injury. However, uncontrolled inflammation can also harm us, causing […]

September 25, 2020 - 4 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

News and Trends 14 Sep 2020

T-Cell Therapy Firm Wins Massive €93M Series A to Treat Solid Tumors

The Dutch startup Neogene Therapeutics has become the second T-cell therapy developer to raise a spectacularly large Series A round in Europe this year. The Series A round was co-led by the VC firms EcoR1 Capital, Syncona, and Jeito Capital. Neogene Therapeutics will use part of the €93M proceeds to advance its T-cell therapy immuno-oncology […]

September 14, 2020 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

News and Trends 1 Sep 2020

Microbiome Therapies Threatened by Covid-19 Restrictions

Providers of microbiome therapies worldwide have been hit by pandemic restrictions on the harvest of stool samples. Though these measures are now loosening in France, key safety challenges remain for companies using fecal microbiota. Fecal microbiota transplants — procedures where healthy individuals donate their gut microbes to a patient — have changed how we treat […]

September 1, 2020 - 5 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

unity biotechnology anti aging geroscience senolytics

News and Trends 25 Aug 2020

What Does Unity’s Phase II Fail Mean for European Anti-Aging Research?

A drug developed by the US firm Unity Biotechnology — designed to slow the aging process — recently proved a dud in phase II for the treatment of osteoarthritis. How is this high-profile setback affecting European biotechs developing anti-aging treatments? Aging is a complex, multi-faceted process that makes people vulnerable to a wide range of […]

August 25, 2020 - 6 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

News and Trends 20 Aug 2020

Is Hepatitis D Healthcare Being Overlooked?

Despite the recent EU approval of the first hepatitis D treatment, low public awareness remains an obstacle to tackling this aggressive infection. Earlier this month, the peptide drug Hepcludex became the first drug greenlit for hepatitis D treatment in Europe. This was a conditional market authorization granted to the German company MYR Pharmaceuticals based on […]

August 20, 2020 - 4 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

News and Trends 18 Aug 2020

Women’s Health Gains Traction as Bayer Pays €736M for UK Firm

Bayer’s recent €736M ($875M) acquisition of KaNDy Therapeutics could herald growing investor interest in women’s health – a historically neglected field in the biotech and pharma industry. Through this deal, Bayer has snapped up KaNDy Therapeutics’ first-in-class drug for treating hot flashes and night sweats, which often occur during the menopause. In a phase IIb […]

August 18, 2020 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith

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