Weekly Pharma & Life Science News Round-Up: 11th – 15th July

A round-up of the latest news from the Life Science industry; including news from the Pharmaceutical, Clinical Research, Biotechnology and Medical Device sectors from 11^th-15^th July.

Vertex to acquire ViaCyte, with the goal of accelerating its potentially curative VX-880 programs in type 1 diabetes

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated announce that the company has entered into a definitive agreement under which Vertex will acquire ViaCyte.

Labcorp forms strategic partnership with MD Anderson Center Foundation Spain to increase access to early phase oncology clinical trials

Labcorp announces it has formed a strategic partnership with MD Anderson Cancer Center Foundation Spain, a non-profit organisation whose objectives are to beat cancer and to increase accessibility of early phase oncology clinical trials.

Worldwide Clinical Trials enters into a strategic collaboration with Invitae to accelerate clinical trials for rare disease patients

Worldwide Clinical Trials, Inc. announces its strategic partnership with Invitae, a leading medical genetics company. The partnership makes Worldwide the first CRO to use Invitae’s Explorer tool – part of its real-world data platform that enables access to aggregated genetic testing results.

Merck and Orion announce global collaboration for the development and commercialization of ODM-208, an investigational steroid synthesis inhibitor for the treatment of metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer

Merck and Orion Corporation announce a global development and commercialisation agreement for Orion’s investigational candidate ODM-208 and other drugs targeting cytochrome P450 11A1 (CYP11A1), an enzyme important in steroid production.

Innoviva to acquire La Jolla Pharmaceutical Company

Innoviva, Inc. and La Jolla Pharmaceutical Company announce that they have entered into a definitive merger agreement whereby Innoviva will acquire La Jolla.

ABL partners with KaliVir immunotherapeutics to advance development of oncolytic viruses

ABL announces its partnership with KaliVir Immunotherapeutics, a privately held biotech company developing cutting-edge, next-generation oncolytic viral immunotherapy programs. ABL will manufacture KaliVir’s oncolytic viruses for its upcoming clinical trial.

RevoluGen wins 2022 BioNewsRound award for translational research

RevoluGen Ltd. is pleased to announce that it has been selected as the winner of the 2022 BioNewsRound Award, for the development and automation of its Fire Monkey High Molecular Weight (HMW) DNA extraction system and successful transfer to its collaborator, Quadram.

Connect in Pharma launches art exhibition and charity partnership to raise funds for rare disease research

The organisers of Connect in Pharma announce today that for every visitor to the Geneva-based event, five Swiss francs will be donated to EspeRare Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation that identifies, develops and promotes access to life-changing treatments and technologies for patients affected by rare diseases.

Destiny Pharma receives award from the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation

Destiny Pharma plc, a clinical stage biotechnology company focused on the development of novel, hospital infection prevention and treatment products that address the global challenge of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), announces it has received an award from the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

Bicycle Therapeutics announces further expansion of Genentech immune-oncology collaboration

Bicycle Therapeutics plc announces that Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, has exercised its second option to initiate a new program, expanding the exclusive strategic collaboration agreement with Bicycle to discover, develop and commercialise novel Bicycle®-based immune-oncology therapies.

ProBioGen teams up with Granite Bio for cell line development and GMP manufacturing services

Granite Bio, a Swiss biotech company built through Versant Venture’s discovery engine Ridgeline Discovery, and ProBioGen announce the closure of a Master Services Agreement to support the development of Granite Bio’s mAb pipeline.

AI-powered drug discovery company Healx opens new labs at Chesterford Research Park

Healx, the AI-powered, patient-inspired technology company pioneering the next generation of drug discovery for rare diseases, is taking more than 3,500 sq ft of space within the Park’s multi-occupancy lab building.

Orion Biotechnology and Peptilogics enter strategic research collaboration to enable AI-driven drug discovery against undrugged GPCR target

Orion Biotechnology Canada Ltd and Peptilogics announce that they have entered a research and development collaboration to leverage AI for drug discovery against an undrugged GPCR target.

Matter opens Dallas office to support the region’s booming healthcare + tech presence

Matter Communications announces the opening of its Dallas office to further support the region’s rapidly growing global healthcare and high-tech presence, as well as recruit and retain diverse talent.

U.S. Alliance Pharma acquires U.K.-based LGC’s Drug Development Solutions (DDS) business

Alliance Pharma today closed on the purchase of Drug Development Solutions (DDS), a U.K.-based bioanalytical and material science testing contract research organisation (CRO), from LGC.