LONDON – European and U.S. investors are joining forces to launch the first venture capital fund dedicated solely to investing in treatments for rare diseases. Read More

LONDON – Treating Alzheimer's disease (AD) by inhibiting a key enzyme that helps to generate amyloid-beta peptide sounded like a good strategy – but evidence is continuing to build, showing that the enzyme also has important other functions in the body. Read More

SHANGHAI, China – Chinese biopharmaceutical companies are unlikely to benefit much from a relaxation in an 8-month-old ban on new initial public offerings (IPOs) or from new draft regulations aimed at improving disclosures and governance. Read More

Cardio3 Biosciences SA is the third European biotechnology company to dip its toes in the initial public offering (IPO) waters this year. The Belgian stem cell therapy developer is seeking up to €24.7 million (US$32.5 million) in an offering on the NYSE Euronext Exchanges in Brussels and Paris. Read More

LONDON – While oncolytic cancer vaccines are advancing in the clinic, there is as yet limited understanding of how they exert their effects on the immune system after infected tumor cells burst. Read More

Vasopharm GmbH raised €5 million (US$6.5 million) in new investment to fund preparations for a Phase III trial of VAS203, an allosteric inhibitor of nitric oxide (NO) synthase in development for treating traumatic brain injury (TBI). Read More

• Twi Biotechnology Inc., of Taipei, Taiwan, said it completed enrollment in a Phase II trial of AC-201 for gout flare prophylaxis during urate-lowering therapy (ULT). The randomized study includes patients with acute arthritis of primary gout and elevated serum uric acid. Read More