Industry news

The best tech on show at Skolkovo Startup Village 2015

Adam Shepherd / IT Pro

Russia is planning to give a boost to tech start-ups in the country, with an accelerator program designed to provide funding and other assistance to select young companies in the science and IT sectors. The annual Startup Village event was held this week at the Skolkovo Innovation Centre, with some of Russia's best tech start-ups on show.

Clarus adds a $500M biotech venture fund as the good times roll

John Carroll / FierceBiotech

You can add Clarus Ventures to the long list of venture groups active in life sciences that raised a big new fund. Clarus announced this morning that it had raised $500 million for its third biotech fund, Clarus III, easily beating its goal of $375 million. That money will now be devoted to new investments ranging from $15 million to $50 million for companies focused on breakthrough--or at least best-in-class--drugs or new R&D risk-sharing projects with biotechs and pharmas.

India fleshes out manufacturing cluster program to cut Chinese imports

EJ Lane / FeircePharmaAsia

India's plans to boost domestic drug manufacturing and cut reliance on imports from China could include a 15-year tax holiday, low-cost space at industrial parks and subsidies on interest owed to banks, according to Bloomberg TV India.

U.S. poised to spend $50B on just 10 'breakthrough' meds in 10 years

Tracy Staton / Fierce Pharma

U.S. payers are striking out at drug spending again. This time, they're not lamenting their own spending on pricey meds. They're highlighting the cost to taxpayers--and according to a commissioned report, 10 hot new "breakthrough" meds are expected to cost publicly funded healthcare plans more than $50 billion over the next decade.

В 2015 году зарегистрировано 73 отечественных препарата

Vademecum

В России в 2014 году зарегистрировано на треть больше отечественных лекарственных препаратов, чем годом ранее.

Amazon, Google duke it out for control of cloud genomics

Nick Paul Taylor / FierceBiotechIT

The battlefront between Amazon ($AMZN) and Google ($GOOG) covers a diverse range of fields, from online search and advertising, to smartphones and shopping. Increasingly, genomics is emerging as another hotspot, with both companies scrambling to establish themselves as the place to store and analyze DNA data.

Five digital campaigns that show pharma really can do it

Beth Snyder Bulik / FiercePharmaMarketing

Pick a week and you'll find a headline somewhere declaring that digital marketing and pharma just don't mix. Cue the list of hardships: regulatory compliance, side-effect reporting guidelines, risk disclosures or any of the other reasons drugmakers use to justify staying away from digital. While it's true that digital and social media aren't the panacea for what ails pharma marketing, just saying no to digital isn't an option anymore. Need some inspiration? Check out what's working for these pharmas.

08 June 2015

Celtaxsys Secures $45M in Capital to Fund Novel Anti-inflammatory Phase 2 Programs in Cystic Fibrosis and Acne

Celtaxsys, a clinical stage drug development company focused on developing novel therapies for patients suffering from inflammatory diseases, today announced the successful completion of a $40M Series D financing led by Domain Partners VIII.  Additional investors in the financing include Lumira Capital, RMI Partners, Masters Capital Management and the Georgia Research Alliance Venture Fund.

08 June 2015

Tobira Therapeutics Completes Patient Recruitment for CENTAUR Phase 2b Study of Cenicriviroc in NASH with Liver Fibrosis

Tobira Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: TBRA), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of novel treatments for liver and inflammatory diseases, announced today that it has completed recruitment for the Phase 2b CENTAUR study. CENTAUR is a global, double blind, placebo controlled, Phase 2b clinical trial evaluating the treatment effects of cenicriviroc (CVC) versus placebo in patients with non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and liver fibrosis at high risk of progressive disease. NASH is a severe form of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Patients with NASH and risk factors such as liver fibrosis and type 2 diabetes or metabolic syndrome are often at higher risk for progression to more advanced liver complications such as cirrhosis and liver cancer. Results of the one-year primary endpoint are anticipated to be announced in mid-2016.

Australia lambasts Big Pharma for paying tiny taxes on multibillion-dollar revenue

Emily Wasserman / FiercePharma

Big Pharma's tax planning has raised more than a few eyebrows lately, with the U.S. government and foreign lawmakers grilling multinational companies over questionable tactics. Now, the Australian government is cracking down on top drugmakers, comparing their big state-funded revenues to their meager tax payments.