Funding and deal making dries up for local industry
31 May, 2010 by Staff WritersThe Australian biotech and pharmaceutical industries saw an alarming 75 percent drop in venture fundings over the last four years, compared with a global decline of only 14 percent. That’s according to MedTRACK, a leading database of companies in the industry.
Glaxo’s asthma market lead to run out of puff
24 May, 2010 by Staff WritersGlaxoSmithKline will see its dominance of the Australian asthma treatment market eroded over the next few years by the arrival of new combination and generic products. That’s according to a new study from industry analysts Datamonitor .
Clinuvel gets pre-approval win in Italy
17 May, 2010 by Tim DeanItaly's National Health System has bucked the European regulatory system and approved the use and reimbursement of Clinuvel's photoprotective drug, afamelanotide, prior to it gaining regulatory approval in Europe or the US.
Relevare braces for IPO
14 May, 2010 by Tim DeanIn defiance of market conditions, Melbourne and San Francisco-based pharma company, Relevare Pharmaceuticals, is confident it can raise at least $20 million in an IPO, slated to take place this year.
R&D Tax Credit introduced to parliament
13 May, 2010 by Tim DeanAlmost precisely 12 months after it was first announced, the much-debated R&D Tax Credit legislation was introduced into parliament by Innovation Minister, Senator Kim Carr, today, but there's still controversy over the definition of "research and development."
Avexa reels from HIV drug dropout
13 May, 2010 by Tim DeanPositive phase III results weren't enough to save apricitabine, the flagship HIV treatment being developed by Melbourne-based Avexa.
Budget 2010: Not much for science or biotech
12 May, 2010 by Tim DeanThe 2010-2011 budget handed down by the Treasurer, Wayne Swan, last night was exceptional, if only for its unexceptional nature, with fiscal restraint overshadowing any major spending initiatives.
BIO 2010: Pulse from the floor
06 May, 2010 by Tim DeanIt's day three of BIO 2010, this year held in Chicago, which has managed to put on some splendidly warm spring weather, echoing the sentiment from the floor that the biotechnology industry has weathered the harsh winter of the global financial crisis and sunny climes are just over the horizon.
Immuron has cows and ferrets fighting swine flu
05 May, 2010 by Tim DeanAntibody specialists, Immuron, are on the cusp of beginning pre-clinical trials of its Influenza prevention antibody treatment after receiving the go ahead from the CSIRO animal ethics committee.
BIO 2010: Biotech enters 'new normal' phase
04 May, 2010 by Tim DeanThe worst of the global financial crisis has passed, but the biotech industry isn't returning to business as usual.
BIO 2010: Australian biotech, state of the nation
04 May, 2010 by Tim DeanIt’s not just the Big Three – CSL,ResMed and Cochlear – with high hopes for 2010. Many other Australian biotechnology companies are either in the final stages of trials and are close to gaining regulatory approval, or they are in the initial stages of commercialising their products, with several forming strategic partnerships to expand into new and lucrative overseas markets.
BIO 2010: Diagnosis positive for ImpediMed
03 May, 2010 by David BinningIn March this year the American Medical Association (AMA) assigned the all important Category III coding to ImpediMed’s bio-impedance spectroscopy (BIS) technology, enabling physicians to be reimbursed for its use in the early detection of lymphedema.
BIO 2010: QRxPharma begins end run
30 April, 2010 by Tim DeanSometimes the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. That’s certainly the case with pharmaceutical company, QRxPharma. Not only does its lead product, MoxDuo, combine two existing drugs to give a superior effect with fewer side effects than current products, but the company has combined a strong background in science with a prudent approach to clinical trials to build a robust biotechnology company with global aspirations.
BIO 2010: Kim Carr on biotech in 2010
30 April, 2010 by Kim CarrTwo thousand and nine was an extraordinary year. When I last wrote twelve months ago, we were in the thick of a global economic crisis. The biotechnology industry, like most Australian industries, was feeling the effect of the downturn. Thanks to swift action by the Commonwealth, Australia has fared better than just about any other developed nation.
US healthcare bill already impacting biotechs
29 April, 2010 by Tim DeanAccording to an analyst at Datamonitor, it's a bumpy road ahead for the life sciences and pharmaceutical industry in the United States as a result of the recently passed healthcare bill along with the 'patent cliff' due to arrive around 2011.
