LONDON – Detailed analysis of genes associated with autoimmune diseases has identified three new regions where genetic variation plays a role in determining the risk of the autoimmune liver disease called primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC).

LONDON – TauRx Therapeutics Ltd. announced the start of a 180-patient Phase III trial of its tau aggregation inhibitor, LMTX, in Pick's disease, an early onset form of dementia that shows similar characteristics to Alzheimer's disease.

LONDON – Takeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd. is celebrating the completion of its €75 million (US$96 million) manufacturing facility in Russia, becoming one of the first international pharmaceutical companies to put down roots in that important emerging market.

Sweden is making its largest ever investment in life sciences research, in the form of a $320 million funding package that is intended to secure its future as a global location for high-quality research.

Theravectys SAS raised €7.48 million (US$9.4 million) in a third funding round to support what it claims will be the world's first trial of a therapeutic HIV vaccine based on a lentiviral vector.

LONDON – A company based in Aberdeen, Scotland, that was founded and funded in Malaysia, with the aim of commercializing cancer vaccines discovered in Cuba, has announced the start of a pivotal Phase III trial of its lead product, BV-NSCLC-001.

DUBLIN, Ireland – A greater emphasis on research collaborations between Irish academic scientists and international pharmaceutical firms and a doubling of patent licensing and spinout activities are two of the main action points in Science Foundation Ireland's newly published draft strategy document.

LONDON – The UK BioIndustry Association (BIA) has drawn up a scheme to unlock the "patriotic potential" of the British public and enable them to invest in biotech and other technology start-ups through the creation of Citizen's Innovation Funds (CIF).

Australian drug developer CBio Ltd. acquired privately held Inverseon Inc. in an all-stock deal, creating Invion Ltd., which will operate from offices in San Francisco and Brisbane.

• Evolva Holding SA, of Reinach, Switzerland, reported further data for the first 32 patients enrolled in its Phase IIa study of EV-077, a reversible antagonist of isoprostanes and prostanoids, showing that, when given orally to Type II diabetes patients, the drug provided antiplatelet activity, reduced exercise-induced proteinuria and increased forearm blood flow.