Recent advances in gene editing offer promising opportunities to mitigate emissions from agriculture and other sectors, and to capture carbon from the atmosphere. A report by the Information Technology & Innovation Foundation (ITIF), an independent US-based think tank, outlines several applications of gene editing that benefit the climate and outlines policy recommendations to stimulate development.
TheITIF report explores solutions made possible by the most modern techniques of biotechnology: gene editing. An esoteric interest of just a handful of molecular biologists only a decade ago, gene editing is now the second-most published topic in biology (after SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19). Gene editing can be used to improve fundamental biological processes, like photosynthesis, to deliver positive impacts across wide range of human activities, including those that impact the climate.
Noted physicist Freeman Dyson wrote in 2008, “After we have mastered biotechnology, the rules of the climate game will be radically changed…. if we can control what the plants do with the carbon, the fate of the carbon in the atmosphere is in our hands.” While Dyson’s long-term prediction will not quickly come to pass, over the next 50 years, gene editing will make significant contributions to address the climate challenge, especially if public policymakers recognize and act on the opportunity quickly. Public investments in climate and clean energy research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) to date have focused heavily on chemical and physical solutions. It’s time for biology to play a much bigger role.
This report describes how ancient biological processes have been reforged by researchers into new tools that can reshape the characteristics of plants, animals, and microbes to help reduce GHG emissions and remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. It focuses primarily on opportunities for agricultural innovation, which is the logical sector for initial applications because, while it is not the largest source of GHGs, it is more directly dependent on biology than other sectors. The report also addresses biofuels, before turning to applications of gene editing that hold promise for removing carbon from the atmosphere.
It concludes with a set of policy recommendations aimed at accelerating the development and deployment of gene-edited climate solutions, making four key recommendations to the United States government and its international partners:
Eliminate unscientific regulatory burdens and barriers that hinder the development of safe gene-edited products.
Increase investment in research and development (R&D) priorities such as advancing CRISPR tools, enhancing photosynthesis, and improving methods to measure soil carbon.
Improve coordination of existing R&D efforts within the United States and around the world.
Expand incentives that will spur the rapid adoption of novel gene-edited technologies.
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Utrechtse wetenschappers demonstreren een nieuwe, snelle manier om zonder genetische modificatie van planten nieuwe gewassen te ontwikkelen, tegen een fractie van de kosten van de klassieke veredeling. Door de genen te veranderen van de bacteriën die de planten omringen, krijgen de wetenschappers dezelfde gewenste uitkomst als het aanpassen van de genen van de plant zelf. Zij publiceren hun bevindingen in New Phytologist.
Het veredelen van gewassen is een hoeksteen van de wereldwijde voedselzekerheid. Het verkrijgen van verbeterde gewassen door klassieke veredelingsmethoden is echter een tijdrovend proces dat jaren tot decennia kan duren. In een recente doorbraak ontdekte een team wetenschappers van de Universiteit Utrecht een snellere manier om betere gewassen te veredelen door genetisch de micro-organismen te veredelen die van nature in en rond planten leven.
Planten dragen altijd een overvloed aan bacteriën met zich mee. Tot nu toe richtte moderne plantenveredeling zich op de genen die in de plant zelf aanwezig zijn, maar er is weinig aandacht voor de genen in de bacteriën die in de plant aanwezig zijn. In dit werk toont het onderzoeksteam rond Mohammad Ravanbakhsh aan dat hetzelfde plantenfenotype kan worden verkregen door ofwel de plantengenen te veranderen ofwel de bacteriële genen te veranderen.
De wetenschappers onderzochten bijvoorbeeld of ze de voedingswaarde van de plant kunnen verhogen. “We hebben daarvoor de manipulatie van het gewijzigde ethyleensynthesegen, ETO1, in de plant zelf vergeleken met de manipulatie van het bijbehorende microbiële gen. Beide mutaties leverden een vergelijkbaar plantenfenotype op met een verhoogde ethyleenproductie en hogere micronutriëntenconcentraties in de stengel”, zegt Ravanbakhsh.
“Dit werk is een grote doorbraak”, zegt laatste auteur Alexandre Jousset. “Het heeft vergaande implicaties, omdat het laat zien dat microbioommanipulatie een snelle manier kan worden om de eigenschappen van planten te verhogen, tegen een fractie van de kosten die gepaard gaan met de traditionele veredeling.”
Het onderzoeksteam heeft inmiddels een spin-off opgezet, Blossom Microbial Technologies (Blomitec), om deze doorbraken te vertalen naar commerciële toepassingen, ter ondersteuning van de ontwikkeling van stress- en ziekteresistente gewassen.
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CATO SMS announced that it has acquired Wilmington, NC-based Array Biostatistics (Array) to expand its offering of specialized clinical research solutions. The company plans to invest in growing Array and its highly regarded biostatistical capabilities.
Both Array and CATO SMS offer highly specialized services that expedite and support drug development for small and emerging biopharmaceutical companies. By acquiring Array, CATO SMS adds expertise and scale to its full-service biostatistical consulting, analysis and programming capabilities. CATO SMS will focus on growing these capabilities and its team of senior biostaticians and statistical programmers, as it continues to expand its product development consulting and clinical trial operations. Sandy Ferber, chief executive officer of Array, will continue to lead Array and will spearhead CATO SMS’ overall biometrics offering.
“We are thrilled to have this opportunity to grow our biostatistical offering in partnership with CATO SMS. Together, we share core values centered around high quality and a commitment to providing our clients with expert and highly personalized service. We have already identified a number of areas where, as a result of our combination, we will be able to provide our clients with enhanced capabilities in the future,” said Ms. Ferber.
Mark A. Goldberg, M.D., executive chairman, CATO SMS, added, “We are excited to welcome Array’s impressive team to CATO SMS. They are differentiated by their consultative approach, wealth of industry experience and commitment to client satisfaction. The Array acquisition furthers our goal of providing our clients with a comprehensive portfolio of specialized solutions to best support development in complex therapeutic areas including oncology, rare and orphan indications, and cell and gene therapy, among others.”
CATO SMS’ acquisition of Array marks another advancement in the company’s strategic expansion. The company was formed in 2019 when Cato Research merged with SMS-oncology. Working together with healthcare investors, Water Street Healthcare Partners and JLL Partners, CATO SMS has extended its global footprint, deepened its oncology and regulatory expertise, and bolstered its suite of solutions. With offices across North America, Europe, and the Middle East, CATO SMS conducts trials in more than 20 countries. To date, the company has contributed to the successful development of more than 50 marketed products.
Roche is gambling on a new way of discovering drug targets and, ultimately, promising to infuse more than $375 million into a small biotech if all goes well. A spinout of the Netherlands Cancer Institute and Oxford University, Scenic Biotech set out to pioneer a field that’s gaining some traction among top VCs in the US: to harness the natural protecting powers of genetic modifiers — specific genes that suppress a disease phenotype.
After each getting a PhD from the prestigious Dutch research center and spending time in the Boston/Cambridge biotech hub, Thijn Brummelkamp and Sebastian Nijman built their functional genomics platform and named it Cell-Seq. The tech allows scientists to sift through all 20,000 genes in haploid cells (which have only one set of chromosomes), identify the genes that modify a given disease, and create a library of maps pinpointing them.
“There have been other modifiers discovered but these have mostly been discovered by serendipity,” Nijman, who’s also the CSO, told Endpoints News. “What we are now doing is doing this systematically.”
Oscar Izeboud, a former banker who was recruited to be CEO this July, put it this way: “It’s a very fast way to find a needle in a haystack.”
Once they find it, the strategy is to then find gene products — proteins — that can be targeted with small molecule drugs or antibodies. In most cases they would be enzymes, such as QPCTL, which Scenic believes is a druggable modifier of the CD47 checkpoint.
The other internal efforts have mainly focused on rare inherited metabolic disorders, where Nijman and Izeboud believe the 20-people-and-growing team can handle the clinical work.
Their new partners at Genentech are interested in an area that Scenic has not gone into. In addition to the undisclosed upfront, the deal covers target selection fees as well as milestones and royalties.
Scenic, though, isn’t the only startup claiming to have the necessary tools to unpack genetic modifiers — an idea that’s central to the mystifying notion that people born into the same family, with the same genes, don’t always have the same disease.
San Francisco-based Maze Therapeutics launched last year with $191 million from a syndicate led by ARCH and Third Rock, boasting a similar genetics platform designed to unearth new targets. Nessan Birmingham’s Triplet Therapeutics, meanwhile, is focused on the DNA level, leveraging antisense oligonucleotides to hit the DNA damage response pathway.
In comparison Scenic’s beginning was much more humble, raising €6.5 million from European firms BioGeneration Ventures and INKEF Capital, with some support from the university-affiliated Oxford Sciences Innovation and later the Dutch government.
But it’s not stopping Nijman from dreaming big.
Aside from the big Roche collaboration, he also has in his corner seasoned drug such as GSK vet Chas Bountra and cell therapy expert Ton Schumacher, who’s just embarked on his own new venture with Arie Belldegrun and David Chang. If anything, the buzz that rivals are generating is welcome.
“People are starting to realize and wake up to the fact that this is now possible,” Nijman said. “We can now go after this type of drug target.”
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HollandBIO is proud to be a partner for the newest research of the Dutch Startup Association (DSA) on Diversity & Inclusion in the Dutch startup ecosystem. With the rise of recent events regarding for example the systematic racism against people of colour, it is crucial to shed light on these issues and work towards a more inclusive and diverse society. By acknowledging these values on a startup level, we can strive for a(n) (work)environment in which all people are respected for who they are and achieve their full potential. For this research, the DSA is still looking for participants in this survey. If you are an employee in a Dutch startup or scaleup who would like to participate in this research, please fill in the following survey here.
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Synaffix B.V., a biotechnology company enabling antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) with best-in-class therapeutic index, announces that it has won the “Best ADC Platform Technology” category at the 2020 World ADC Awards ceremony. Synaffix’ ADC platform consists of GlycoConnect™, HydraSpace™ and toxSYN™ which comprise site-specific technology and payloads to enable best-in-class ADCs.
Synaffix was presented the award during the 2020 World ADC Digital event. The finalists were shortlisted through a voting pool of over 1,000 individuals, with a panel of distinguished,independent industry experts from across the ADC field, assessing each finalist to decide the winners.
The judging panel highlighted the following three cornerstone features of the Synaffix ADC platform: • Consistent delivery of highly competitive ADC product candidates • Strong commercial and scientific validation (over $420m in out-licensing deals, at least six ADCs in development with two in clinical trials) • Compatible and easy to use with any antibody
Peter van de Sande, CEO of Synaffix, said: “We are greatly honored to be recognized with the award for Best ADC Platform Technology as voted by our industry peers. Our team has worked passionately to provide cutting-edge ADC-enabling technologies, and we have now built what we believe to be an industry-leading platform to enable best-in-class ADC product candidates. Being recognized with this award serves to validate the significant efforts we have already made towards becoming the most prevalent technology across new clinical-stage ADCs.”
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The EU is to set up an equivalent to the U.S. Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), after coming under criticism about Europe’s inability to swiftly seal advance purchase agreements for COVID-19 vaccines. The plan was announced on September 16 by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, in her first State of the Union address since coming into office at the start of 2020. The new agency will support capacity and readiness to respond to cross-border health threats and emergencies, “whether of natural or deliberate origin,” she said. At this stage, there are no details about funding or governance of European BARDA, but Von der Leyen said it will build strategic stockpiles to protect against supply chain interruptions, notably for pharmaceuticals.
In a set piece speech to the European Parliament, Von der Leyen, a medical doctor, said COVID-19 has exposed “the fragility all around us” and laid bare “the strain in our health systems.” In response, she is calling for the European Commission (EC) to have more influence over health, an area where currently member states hold – and fiercely defend – all responsibility. In addition to the BARDA lookalike, Von der Leyen said she wants the EU to “reinforce and empower” the EMA and the European Center for Disease prevention and Control. She also took aim at the World Health Organization (WHO), saying it needs reform, but that this should be “change by design – not by destruction,” adding, “I want the EU to lead reforms of … WHO so [it is] fit for today’s world.”
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LAVA Therapeutics, a biotech company pioneering the development of bispecific antibodies to engage gamma-delta T cells for cancer therapies, today announced the closing of an oversubscribed $83 million (€71 million) Series C financing to fund the advancement of its pipeline and platform. The financing was co-led by new investors Novo Ventures, the venture arm of Novo Holdings, and Sanofi Ventures, and included additional new investors Redmile Group, LLC, Ysios Capital and BB Pureos Bioventures. In addition, current investors Versant, Gilde Healthcare and MRL Ventures Fund, LLC participated significantly in the round.
As part of the transaction, Nanna Lüneborg, partner at Novo Ventures, Laia Crespo, EU head of investments at Sanofi Ventures, and Joël Jean-Mairet, managing partner and co-founder of Ysios, joined LAVA as members of the board of directors.
“We are grateful to have attracted a high-quality syndicate of new investors complementing strong continued support of our existing investors. This financing provides meaningful capital to advance our bispecific gamma-delta T cell engager portfolio into multiple proof-of-concept clinical trials expected to start in 2021 for the treatment of solid tumors and hematologic malignancies,” said Stephen Hurly, chief executive officer of LAVA Therapeutics. “We believe our targeted approach, leveraging the unique features of gamma9-delta2 T cells with innovative bispecific antibodies, will deliver novel T cell-based therapies offering advantages over today’s oncology treatments. In addition to the funding raised, the appointments of Nanna, Laia and Joël to our board further strengthen our team, and we look forward to benefiting from their insights and industry expertise.”
Gamma-delta T cells are the natural surveillance cells of the immune system, continuously patrolling the human body for the identification and targeting of tumor cells. These cells bridge the innate with the adaptive immune system and are a largely untapped opportunity in cancer treatment. LAVA’s bispecific gamma-delta T cell engager platform is harnessing the unique properties of these T cells creating a revolutionary truly tumor-targeted immunotherapy to improve outcomes for cancer patients.
“LAVA’s bispecific antibody approach to targeting and engaging gamma-delta T cells has the potential to transform the treatment of a wide range of cancers,” said Dr. Lüneborg. “We are impressed by the preclinical data generated by LAVA to date, which validate the company’s platform and support their transition into a clinical-stage organization. The team is highly experienced in drug development, and I look forward to working with them.”
“Gamma-delta T cells are an emerging field and an incredibly exciting area in oncology. Bispecific antibodies able to directly engage this type of cells offer the potential to significantly impact patients across the globe in these diseases with high morbidity and mortality,” said Dr. Crespo
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In deze ongekende en onzekere tijden kiest het kabinet ondanks sterke economische krimp voor forse financiële ondersteuning. De regering wil Nederland uit de coronacrisis investeren en innoveren – of het nu gaat om gezondheidszorg, de circulaire economie of een duurzame landbouw. Daar is HollandBIO het roerend mee eens, want we zien dat biotechnologie Nederland bij uitstek de kans biedt om op een duurzame manier ons verdienvermogen te vergroten.
Die boodschap weerklonk dan ook uit de Troonrededie koning Willem-Alexander vanuit de Grote Kerk in Den Haag uitsprak. Zo sprak de koning over ‘de noodzaak van preventie en zorginnovaties’, ‘maatregelen om de circulaire economie, waarin afval weer grondstof wordt, te stimuleren’ en wees hij op de noodzaak ‘voor een gezonde en innovatieve toekomst van de Nederlandse landbouwsector, die ook in tijden van crisis zorgt voor een betrouwbare voedselvoorziening.’ Natuurlijk werden er ook woorden gewijd aan de strijd tegen het coronavirus: ‘Zo werkt Nederland intensief samen met andere Europese landen om de ontwikkeling en beschikbaarstelling van een vaccin te versnellen.’
Daarnaast komt de maatschappelijke strijd tegen het coronavirus ook naar voren in de Miljoenennota, zo blijkt uit de maatregelen die het kabinet heeft opgesomd. Zo erkent het kabinet het belang van startups en scale-ups voor een gezonde economische groei. Eerder al stelde het rijk in deze kamerbrief daarom €300 miljoen beschikbaar voor deze groep. Zo wordt er een nationale scale-up faciliteit ingericht, om het eigen vermogen van kleine bedrijven te vergroten door directe investeringen met behulp van Europese middelen en bijdragen van private investeerders. Daarvoor werd eerder een bedrag van €150 miljoen genoemd. Daarnaast worden de regionale ontwikkelingsmaatschappijen (ROM’s) met €150 miljoen versterkt om investeringen in startups en scale-ups te vergroten.
Later deze week zullen we in een mailing naar onze leden de details van deze maatregelen nader uiteenzetten en duiden.
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Het opleiden van meer en ervaren Nederlandse patiëntvertegenwoordigers – dat is het doel van de Nederlandse editie van de European Patients Academy on Therapeutic Innovation (EUPATI-NL). In Frontiers of Medicine rapporterende oprichters over de business case rond EUPATI-NL.
Geïnterviewde stakeholders geven onder meer aan dat de vraag naar ervaren patiëntvertegenwoordigers stijgt. Een mooie ontwikkeling, vindt HollandBIO. Wij geloven heilig dat patiëntbetrokkenheid de ontwikkeling van geneesmiddelen kan helpen versnellen en verbeteren. Zoek je nog naar handvatten voor het betrekken van patiënten? Lees dan zeker ook onze patiënt engagement guide.
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Gene Editing for the Climate: Biological Solutions for Curbing Greenhouse Emissions
Voedsel en materialenRecent advances in gene editing offer promising opportunities to mitigate emissions from agriculture and other sectors, and to capture carbon from the atmosphere. A report by the Information Technology & Innovation Foundation (ITIF), an independent US-based think tank, outlines several applications of gene editing that benefit the climate and outlines policy recommendations to stimulate development.
The ITIF report explores solutions made possible by the most modern techniques of biotechnology: gene editing. An esoteric interest of just a handful of molecular biologists only a decade ago, gene editing is now the second-most published topic in biology (after SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19). Gene editing can be used to improve fundamental biological processes, like photosynthesis, to deliver positive impacts across wide range of human activities, including those that impact the climate.
Noted physicist Freeman Dyson wrote in 2008, “After we have mastered biotechnology, the rules of the climate game will be radically changed…. if we can control what the plants do with the carbon, the fate of the carbon in the atmosphere is in our hands.” While Dyson’s long-term prediction will not quickly come to pass, over the next 50 years, gene editing will make significant contributions to address the climate challenge, especially if public policymakers recognize and act on the opportunity quickly. Public investments in climate and clean energy research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) to date have focused heavily on chemical and physical solutions. It’s time for biology to play a much bigger role.
This report describes how ancient biological processes have been reforged by researchers into new tools that can reshape the characteristics of plants, animals, and microbes to help reduce GHG emissions and remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. It focuses primarily on opportunities for agricultural innovation, which is the logical sector for initial applications because, while it is not the largest source of GHGs, it is more directly dependent on biology than other sectors. The report also addresses biofuels, before turning to applications of gene editing that hold promise for removing carbon from the atmosphere.
It concludes with a set of policy recommendations aimed at accelerating the development and deployment of gene-edited climate solutions, making four key recommendations to the United States government and its international partners:
the world.
Source: ITIF
Utrechtse wetenschappers ontdekken versnelde technologie om planten te verbeteren
Voedsel en materialenUtrechtse wetenschappers demonstreren een nieuwe, snelle manier om zonder genetische modificatie van planten nieuwe gewassen te ontwikkelen, tegen een fractie van de kosten van de klassieke veredeling. Door de genen te veranderen van de bacteriën die de planten omringen, krijgen de wetenschappers dezelfde gewenste uitkomst als het aanpassen van de genen van de plant zelf. Zij publiceren hun bevindingen in New Phytologist.
Het veredelen van gewassen is een hoeksteen van de wereldwijde voedselzekerheid. Het verkrijgen van verbeterde gewassen door klassieke veredelingsmethoden is echter een tijdrovend proces dat jaren tot decennia kan duren. In een recente doorbraak ontdekte een team wetenschappers van de Universiteit Utrecht een snellere manier om betere gewassen te veredelen door genetisch de micro-organismen te veredelen die van nature in en rond planten leven.
Planten dragen altijd een overvloed aan bacteriën met zich mee. Tot nu toe richtte moderne plantenveredeling zich op de genen die in de plant zelf aanwezig zijn, maar er is weinig aandacht voor de genen in de bacteriën die in de plant aanwezig zijn. In dit werk toont het onderzoeksteam rond Mohammad Ravanbakhsh aan dat hetzelfde plantenfenotype kan worden verkregen door ofwel de plantengenen te veranderen ofwel de bacteriële genen te veranderen.
De wetenschappers onderzochten bijvoorbeeld of ze de voedingswaarde van de plant kunnen verhogen. “We hebben daarvoor de manipulatie van het gewijzigde ethyleensynthesegen, ETO1, in de plant zelf vergeleken met de manipulatie van het bijbehorende microbiële gen. Beide mutaties leverden een vergelijkbaar plantenfenotype op met een verhoogde ethyleenproductie en hogere micronutriëntenconcentraties in de stengel”, zegt Ravanbakhsh.
“Dit werk is een grote doorbraak”, zegt laatste auteur Alexandre Jousset. “Het heeft vergaande implicaties, omdat het laat zien dat microbioommanipulatie een snelle manier kan worden om de eigenschappen van planten te verhogen, tegen een fractie van de kosten die gepaard gaan met de traditionele veredeling.”
Het onderzoeksteam heeft inmiddels een spin-off opgezet, Blossom Microbial Technologies (Blomitec), om deze doorbraken te vertalen naar commerciële toepassingen, ter ondersteuning van de ontwikkeling van stress- en ziekteresistente gewassen.
Bron: Universiteit Utrecht
CATO SMS Acquires Array Biostatistics
InnovatieklimaatCATO SMS announced that it has acquired Wilmington, NC-based Array Biostatistics (Array) to expand its offering of specialized clinical research solutions. The company plans to invest in growing Array and its highly regarded biostatistical capabilities.
Both Array and CATO SMS offer highly specialized services that expedite and support drug development for small and emerging biopharmaceutical companies. By acquiring Array, CATO SMS adds expertise and scale to its full-service biostatistical consulting, analysis and programming capabilities. CATO SMS will focus on growing these capabilities and its team of senior biostaticians and statistical programmers, as it continues to expand its product development consulting and clinical trial operations. Sandy Ferber, chief executive officer of Array, will continue to lead Array and will spearhead CATO SMS’ overall biometrics offering.
“We are thrilled to have this opportunity to grow our biostatistical offering in partnership with CATO SMS. Together, we share core values centered around high quality and a commitment to providing our clients with expert and highly personalized service. We have already identified a number of areas where, as a result of our combination, we will be able to provide our clients with enhanced capabilities in the future,” said Ms. Ferber.
Mark A. Goldberg, M.D., executive chairman, CATO SMS, added, “We are excited to welcome Array’s impressive team to CATO SMS. They are differentiated by their consultative approach, wealth of industry experience and commitment to client satisfaction. The Array acquisition furthers our goal of providing our clients with a comprehensive portfolio of specialized solutions to best support development in complex therapeutic areas including oncology, rare and orphan indications, and cell and gene therapy, among others.”
CATO SMS’ acquisition of Array marks another advancement in the company’s strategic expansion. The company was formed in 2019 when Cato Research merged with SMS-oncology. Working together with healthcare investors, Water Street Healthcare Partners and JLL Partners, CATO SMS has extended its global footprint, deepened its oncology and regulatory expertise, and bolstered its suite of solutions. With offices across North America, Europe, and the Middle East, CATO SMS conducts trials in more than 20 countries. To date, the company has contributed to the successful development of more than 50 marketed products.
Source: CATO SMS
Roche looks to genetic modifiers for new drug targets, teaming up with Scenic Biotech in $375M deal
InnovatieklimaatRoche is gambling on a new way of discovering drug targets and, ultimately, promising to infuse more than $375 million into a small biotech if all goes well. A spinout of the Netherlands Cancer Institute and Oxford University, Scenic Biotech set out to pioneer a field that’s gaining some traction among top VCs in the US: to harness the natural protecting powers of genetic modifiers — specific genes that suppress a disease phenotype.
After each getting a PhD from the prestigious Dutch research center and spending time in the Boston/Cambridge biotech hub, Thijn Brummelkamp and Sebastian Nijman built their functional genomics platform and named it Cell-Seq. The tech allows scientists to sift through all 20,000 genes in haploid cells (which have only one set of chromosomes), identify the genes that modify a given disease, and create a library of maps pinpointing them.
“There have been other modifiers discovered but these have mostly been discovered by serendipity,” Nijman, who’s also the CSO, told Endpoints News. “What we are now doing is doing this systematically.”
Oscar Izeboud, a former banker who was recruited to be CEO this July, put it this way: “It’s a very fast way to find a needle in a haystack.”
Once they find it, the strategy is to then find gene products — proteins — that can be targeted with small molecule drugs or antibodies. In most cases they would be enzymes, such as QPCTL, which Scenic believes is a druggable modifier of the CD47 checkpoint.
The other internal efforts have mainly focused on rare inherited metabolic disorders, where Nijman and Izeboud believe the 20-people-and-growing team can handle the clinical work.
Their new partners at Genentech are interested in an area that Scenic has not gone into. In addition to the undisclosed upfront, the deal covers target selection fees as well as milestones and royalties.
Scenic, though, isn’t the only startup claiming to have the necessary tools to unpack genetic modifiers — an idea that’s central to the mystifying notion that people born into the same family, with the same genes, don’t always have the same disease.
San Francisco-based Maze Therapeutics launched last year with $191 million from a syndicate led by ARCH and Third Rock, boasting a similar genetics platform designed to unearth new targets. Nessan Birmingham’s Triplet Therapeutics, meanwhile, is focused on the DNA level, leveraging antisense oligonucleotides to hit the DNA damage response pathway.
In comparison Scenic’s beginning was much more humble, raising €6.5 million from European firms BioGeneration Ventures and INKEF Capital, with some support from the university-affiliated Oxford Sciences Innovation and later the Dutch government.
But it’s not stopping Nijman from dreaming big.
Aside from the big Roche collaboration, he also has in his corner seasoned drug such as GSK vet Chas Bountra and cell therapy expert Ton Schumacher, who’s just embarked on his own new venture with Arie Belldegrun and David Chang. If anything, the buzz that rivals are generating is welcome.
“People are starting to realize and wake up to the fact that this is now possible,” Nijman said. “We can now go after this type of drug target.”
Source: EndpointsNews
HollandBIO proud partner of new research on Diversity & Inclusion in the Dutch startup ecosystem
InnovatieklimaatHollandBIO is proud to be a partner for the newest research of the Dutch Startup Association (DSA) on Diversity & Inclusion in the Dutch startup ecosystem. With the rise of recent events regarding for example the systematic racism against people of colour, it is crucial to shed light on these issues and work towards a more inclusive and diverse society. By acknowledging these values on a startup level, we can strive for a(n) (work)environment in which all people are respected for who they are and achieve their full potential. For this research, the DSA is still looking for participants in this survey. If you are an employee in a Dutch startup or scaleup who would like to participate in this research, please fill in the following survey here.
Synaffix wins Best Platform Technology at 7th Annual World ADC Awards
GezondheidSynaffix B.V., a biotechnology company enabling antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) with best-in-class therapeutic index, announces that it has won the “Best ADC Platform Technology” category at the 2020 World ADC Awards ceremony. Synaffix’ ADC platform consists of GlycoConnect™, HydraSpace™ and toxSYN™ which comprise site-specific technology and payloads to enable best-in-class ADCs.
Synaffix was presented the award during the 2020 World ADC Digital event. The finalists were shortlisted through a voting pool of over 1,000 individuals, with a panel of distinguished,independent industry experts from across the ADC field, assessing each finalist to decide the winners.
The judging panel highlighted the following three cornerstone features of the Synaffix ADC platform:
• Consistent delivery of highly competitive ADC product candidates
• Strong commercial and scientific validation (over $420m in out-licensing deals, at least six ADCs in development with two in clinical trials)
• Compatible and easy to use with any antibody
Peter van de Sande, CEO of Synaffix, said: “We are greatly honored to be recognized with the award for Best ADC Platform Technology as voted by our industry peers. Our team has worked passionately to provide cutting-edge ADC-enabling technologies, and we have now built what we believe to be an industry-leading platform to enable best-in-class ADC product candidates. Being recognized with this award serves to validate the significant efforts we have already made towards becoming the most prevalent technology across new clinical-stage ADCs.”
Source: BioGeneration Ventures
European Commission president announces plan for EU version of BARDA
GezondheidThe EU is to set up an equivalent to the U.S. Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), after coming under criticism about Europe’s inability to swiftly seal advance purchase agreements for COVID-19 vaccines. The plan was announced on September 16 by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, in her first State of the Union address since coming into office at the start of 2020. The new agency will support capacity and readiness to respond to cross-border health threats and emergencies, “whether of natural or deliberate origin,” she said. At this stage, there are no details about funding or governance of European BARDA, but Von der Leyen said it will build strategic stockpiles to protect against supply chain interruptions, notably for pharmaceuticals.
In a set piece speech to the European Parliament, Von der Leyen, a medical doctor, said COVID-19 has exposed “the fragility all around us” and laid bare “the strain in our health systems.” In response, she is calling for the European Commission (EC) to have more influence over health, an area where currently member states hold – and fiercely defend – all responsibility. In addition to the BARDA lookalike, Von der Leyen said she wants the EU to “reinforce and empower” the EMA and the European Center for Disease prevention and Control. She also took aim at the World Health Organization (WHO), saying it needs reform, but that this should be “change by design – not by destruction,” adding, “I want the EU to lead reforms of … WHO so [it is] fit for today’s world.”
Source: BioWorld
LAVA Therapeutics Announces $83 million Series C Financing to Advance Novel Immuno-Oncology Programs
InnovatieklimaatLAVA Therapeutics, a biotech company pioneering the development of bispecific antibodies to engage gamma-delta T cells for cancer therapies, today announced the closing of an oversubscribed $83 million (€71 million) Series C financing to fund the advancement of its pipeline and platform. The financing was co-led by new investors Novo Ventures, the venture arm of Novo Holdings, and Sanofi Ventures, and included additional new investors Redmile Group, LLC, Ysios Capital and BB Pureos Bioventures. In addition, current investors Versant, Gilde Healthcare and MRL Ventures Fund, LLC participated significantly in the round.
As part of the transaction, Nanna Lüneborg, partner at Novo Ventures, Laia Crespo, EU head of investments at Sanofi Ventures, and Joël Jean-Mairet, managing partner and co-founder of Ysios, joined LAVA as members of the board of directors.
“We are grateful to have attracted a high-quality syndicate of new investors complementing strong continued support of our existing investors. This financing provides meaningful capital to advance our bispecific gamma-delta T cell engager portfolio into multiple proof-of-concept clinical trials expected to start in 2021 for the treatment of solid tumors and hematologic malignancies,” said Stephen Hurly, chief executive officer of LAVA Therapeutics. “We believe our targeted approach, leveraging the unique features of gamma9-delta2 T cells with innovative bispecific antibodies, will deliver novel T cell-based therapies offering advantages over today’s oncology treatments. In addition to the funding raised, the appointments of Nanna, Laia and Joël to our board further strengthen our team, and we look forward to benefiting from their insights and industry expertise.”
Gamma-delta T cells are the natural surveillance cells of the immune system, continuously patrolling the human body for the identification and targeting of tumor cells. These cells bridge the innate with the adaptive immune system and are a largely untapped opportunity in cancer treatment. LAVA’s bispecific gamma-delta T cell engager platform is harnessing the unique properties of these T cells creating a revolutionary truly tumor-targeted immunotherapy to improve outcomes for cancer patients.
“LAVA’s bispecific antibody approach to targeting and engaging gamma-delta T cells has the potential to transform the treatment of a wide range of cancers,” said Dr. Lüneborg. “We are impressed by the preclinical data generated by LAVA to date, which validate the company’s platform and support their transition into a clinical-stage organization. The team is highly experienced in drug development, and I look forward to working with them.”
“Gamma-delta T cells are an emerging field and an incredibly exciting area in oncology. Bispecific antibodies able to directly engage this type of cells offer the potential to significantly impact patients across the globe in these diseases with high morbidity and mortality,” said Dr. Crespo
Source: Lava Therapeutics (Press release)
Prinsjesdag 2020 – Kabinet wil dat Nederland zich uit crisis investeert en innoveert
Wereld mét toekomst, Gezondheid op maat, IJzersterk innovatieklimaat, Hollandbio, UitgelichtIn deze ongekende en onzekere tijden kiest het kabinet ondanks sterke economische krimp voor forse financiële ondersteuning. De regering wil Nederland uit de coronacrisis investeren en innoveren – of het nu gaat om gezondheidszorg, de circulaire economie of een duurzame landbouw. Daar is HollandBIO het roerend mee eens, want we zien dat biotechnologie Nederland bij uitstek de kans biedt om op een duurzame manier ons verdienvermogen te vergroten.
Die boodschap weerklonk dan ook uit de Troonrede die koning Willem-Alexander vanuit de Grote Kerk in Den Haag uitsprak. Zo sprak de koning over ‘de noodzaak van preventie en zorginnovaties’, ‘maatregelen om de circulaire economie, waarin afval weer grondstof wordt, te stimuleren’ en wees hij op de noodzaak ‘voor een gezonde en innovatieve toekomst van de Nederlandse landbouwsector, die ook in tijden van crisis zorgt voor een betrouwbare voedselvoorziening.’ Natuurlijk werden er ook woorden gewijd aan de strijd tegen het coronavirus: ‘Zo werkt Nederland intensief samen met andere Europese landen om de ontwikkeling en beschikbaarstelling van een vaccin te versnellen.’
Daarnaast komt de maatschappelijke strijd tegen het coronavirus ook naar voren in de Miljoenennota, zo blijkt uit de maatregelen die het kabinet heeft opgesomd. Zo erkent het kabinet het belang van startups en scale-ups voor een gezonde economische groei. Eerder al stelde het rijk in deze kamerbrief daarom €300 miljoen beschikbaar voor deze groep. Zo wordt er een nationale scale-up faciliteit ingericht, om het eigen vermogen van kleine bedrijven te vergroten door directe investeringen met behulp van Europese middelen en bijdragen van private investeerders. Daarvoor werd eerder een bedrag van €150 miljoen genoemd. Daarnaast worden de regionale ontwikkelingsmaatschappijen (ROM’s) met €150 miljoen versterkt om investeringen in startups en scale-ups te vergroten.
Later deze week zullen we in een mailing naar onze leden de details van deze maatregelen nader uiteenzetten en duiden.
Goed opgeleide patiëntvertegenwoordigers cruciaal voor de route van lab naar patiënt
GezondheidHet opleiden van meer en ervaren Nederlandse patiëntvertegenwoordigers – dat is het doel van de Nederlandse editie van de European Patients Academy on Therapeutic Innovation (EUPATI-NL). In Frontiers of Medicine rapporteren de oprichters over de business case rond EUPATI-NL.
Geïnterviewde stakeholders geven onder meer aan dat de vraag naar ervaren patiëntvertegenwoordigers stijgt. Een mooie ontwikkeling, vindt HollandBIO. Wij geloven heilig dat patiëntbetrokkenheid de ontwikkeling van geneesmiddelen kan helpen versnellen en verbeteren. Zoek je nog naar handvatten voor het betrekken van patiënten? Lees dan zeker ook onze patiënt engagement guide.