This week’s biotechnology news headlines include, Array’s skin cancer drug does well in trials, GSK donates to Comic Relief to fight malaria, AstraZeneca buys Takeda’s respiratory business, Novartis opens 600 million dollar facility, CDER outlines 2016 priorities, and Spark Therapeutics gets $15 million milestone payment from Pfizer.
Cell Culture Events
Conferences:
January
PepTalk – January 18-22, 2016 – San Diego, CA
http://www.chi-peptalk.com/single-use-systems/PepTalk: The Protein Science Week is one of the largest gatherings of protein science researchers in the world. It offers an array of education, innovation and networking programs, and provides many opportunities to scientists.
Don’t miss:
Tuesday, January 19th at 9:35Hollow Fiber Perfusion Bioreactors; The Original Upstream Single Use Continuous Manufacturing Technology
Scott Waniger, Vice President, Bioservices, Cell Culture Company
Hollow fiber perfusion bioreactor technology has been used in the bioprocessing industry for 30+ years and continues to be used to manufacture regulated biologics worldwide. While the technology has many similarities to stirred tank bioreactors, it also offers significant advantages over traditional technologies for many applications. The presentation will describe these advantages while explaining the setup, daily operation, and turn-around of this accepted technology within the bioprocessing industry. A case study showing steady state production of a monoclonal antibody (IgG) using hollow fiber bioreactors will be included.
“Britain’s AstraZeneca (AZN.L) has agreed to buy Takeda Pharmaceutical’s (4502.T) respiratory business, including expanded rights to roflumilast, a treatment for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).”
If you like this story, please see our blog titled “Biomanufacturing Innovations are Plentiful at This Year’s BPI Conference”
“With a banner year for new drug approvals under its belt in 2015 (42 approvals and counting), the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) is now looking at how it can not only negotiate three new user fee agreements but fill an enormous number of staff vacancies.”
If you like this story, please see our blog titled “Exosomes: A Major Phenomenon Flying Under the Radar”
“AstraZeneca Plc said it’s exploring a deal with Acerta Pharma BV that would give the U.K. drugmaker a potential blockbuster medicine for blood cancers as well as diseases in which the body attacks itself.”
If you like this story, please see our blog titled “Hollow Fiber Provides a Sweet Spot for Several Biomanufacturing Applications”
“Spark Therapeutics Inc. received a $15 million milestone payment this week from Pfizer Inc. as part of the companies’ collaboration deal covering the joint development of a potential Gene Therapy treatment for hemophilia B.”
If you like this story, please see our blog titled “You can teach an old dog new tricks: Vero cells for virus-based cancer vaccine therapies”
