Michael Tattory

It’s the ultimate example of personalized medicine — for some cancer patients who have run out of options, scientists can extract their immune cells and genetically re-engineer them to fight against the tumors.

A set of positive results validating OncoCyte’s liquid biopsy test has bolstered its stock $OCX, up 221% at press time. DetermaVu scored on both sensitivity — capacity to detect true positives — and specificity, the ability to snuff out negatives, in a blinded trial that involved 250 blood samples from lung cancer patients.

Micro-cap diagnostic company OncoCyte Corp tripled intraday after announcing break-through results for its lung cancer test that won praise from Wall Street. The company’s R&D validation study of DetermaVu, a non-invasive blood test, “significantly outperforms any other previous blinded study of its kind and signifies the first blood based test on the market to use strictly biomarkers for cancer

Isofol Medical AB, a small Swedish company founded a decade ago, is seeking to improve the standard of care (SOC) for metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC), an oncology indication that receives far less attention than metastatic forms of more prevalent breast, prostate and lung cancers, said CEO Anders Rabbe.

Instead of opening up a clinic to perform transfusions of young blood, Alkahest researchers aim to develop drugs for age-related diseases which are inspired by their work with plasma.

Meanwhile, Novartis’s crosstown rival Roche Holding AG has enlisted privately held SQZ for up to $1 billion in milestone payments. SQZ created a device that constricts cells to the point where small holes are formed in their outer membranes, allowing genetic material to pass through. The powered-up cells are then able to recognize antigens on

Vaccine maker Valneva has some experience pumping up a Big Pharma also-ran, and now it’s looking for more.

The company, which is working on drugs based on antisense oligonucleotides to treat genetic conditions, announced a reverse merger with Ohr Pharmaceutical on Jan. 3, which would allow its stock to trade publicly.

Dietrich Stephan, one of the pioneers in the field of precision medicine, was in process of raising venture funds for his gene-silencing company NeuBase Therapeutics when he was introduced to the team at the struggling eye drug developer Ohr Pharmaceutical $OHRP.

Leslie Williams, CEO of ImmusanT, discusses the company’s research for developing a disease-modifying therapeutic for patients with celiac disease.

Check-Cap received CE mark for its C-Scan Capsule in January of this year, now the Isfiya, Israel-based company is setting its sights on the U.S. market.

Talicia, a novel drug for the treatment of Helicobacter pylori, achieved positive top-line results in a phase 3 study, according to a press release from RedHill Biopharma, the manufacturer.

Orchard Therapeutics said it will build out a gene therapy manufacturing facility in Fremont, CA, that will employ 100 people and expand its manufacturing capabilities to support plans for an expanded pipeline.

Check-Cap (NSDQ:CHEK) said today it won conditional approval from the FDA for its investigational device exemption application to launch a pilot study of its C-Scan system. The Israel-based company’s C-Scan system is designed as an alternative to standard colon cancer screening methods.

Orchard Therapeutics is expanding its physical footprint in California. The U.K.-based company signed a long-term lease to build out a gene therapy manufacturing facility in Fremont, Calif. The 150,000-square-foot facility will add to the company’s presence in the Bay Area.

A single dose of a gene therapy developed by Orchard Therapeutics can restore immune function for at least a year in patients with X-linked chronic granulomatous disease (X-CGD).

Alkahest has dosed the first subject in a Phase II clinical trial of GRF6021 to treat Parkinson’s disease associated with mild cognitive impairment or dementia.

RedHill Biopharma Ltd. plans to submit an NDA to FDA next half for Talicia (RHB-105) as first-line treatment of Helicobacter pylori infection regardless of ulcer status after reporting that the antibiotic met the primary endpoint in the Phase III ERADICATE Hp2 trial in the indication.

A European/US company collaboration has reported encouraging safety and immunogenicity in early clinical studies with an alum-adjuvanted Zika vaccine based on inactivated whole virus.

ArQule is a personalized medicine company working in the oncology space to develop treatments that target specific mutations. The Massachusetts-based company faces many challenges in this space, including one that is common to many cancer treatments.

Results from a Phase I trial showed promising safety and efficacy of a potential first vaccine against the mosquito-borne Zika virus, developed by French biotech Valneva and US biopharma Emergent BioSolutions.

One Watertown, Mass.-based biotech is working to capitalize on growing momentum for cell and gene therapies — and it seems to have found its opening. The company is working on a technology that will squeeze cells to open up tiny pores in their membranes to deliver gene therapies or medicines straight into the cell. And

A $238,000 federal study will follow more than 10,000 medical marijuana patients in New York over the next two years to see if their opioid use drops. Scott Jordan never thought weed would help him kick the painkillers he took for a bad back. “I smoked pot in high school,” he told BuzzFeed News. “I

Shares of Arena Pharmaceuticals Inc jumped nearly 30 percent after the drug developer sold rights to develop and sell its hypertension treatment to United Therapeutics Corp, fetching it $800 million in an upfront payment. Arena Pharma said the money will help it prepare for the eventual launch of its bowel disorder drugs.