12 July 2019
Devicare, a company specialising in therapeutic urological solutions which and CataloniaBio & HealhtTech member, has closed an investment round of more than €1.6 million through Capital Cell.
The funding is to accelerate the company’s growth, principally, to enter new markets and to finish the development of the Lit-Control® app.
In total, more than 150 small investors signed up as partners in the company “It is an honour for us here at Device that prestigious endourologists, patients, business angels and the employees themselves support our project” highlights Rosendo Garganta, the founder and CEO of Devicare.
Devicare, with headquarters in the ...
9 July 2019
Reig Jofre, CataloniaBio & HealthTech member, has acquired Bioiberica’s portfolio of finished pharmaceutical and nutraceutical products, representing a turnover of € 26 million.
The pharmaceutical group managed by Ignasi Biosca is focussing on a new therapeutic area, Joint Health and Pain.
Osteoarticular disease is one of the most prevalent physical complaints in the world. It is estimated that between 5% and 20% of the population suffers from such afflictions, a figure that reaches around 80% in people aged over 65 in industrialized countries.
The operation also includes the incorporation of a team consisting of 51 people from the ...
9 July 2019
Patconsult Lab, the only laboratory in Spain dedicated exclusively to experimental pathology with Good Laboratory Practice certification (GLP) and a CataloniaBio & HealthTech member, has inaugurated its new facilities at Parc Tecnològic del Vallès (Barcelona).
Patconsult Lab provides services to companies in the biomedical arena such as histological processing of organ and tissue samples from preclinical studies (regulatory or non-regulatory), efficacy studies, analysis of experimental models and biocompatibility studies, as well as histopathology studies and expert reports.
After working in the field of toxicologic histopathology for researching new medical products for human and veterinary use for 30 years, Jordi Alumà ...
4 July 2019
Pharmacelera, a CataloniaBio & HealthTech member, has signed a strategic agreement with the Cambridge Crystallographic Data Centre (CCDC) to share expertise on virtual screening and machine learning in order to help the centre’s scientists accelerate discovery of new drugs.
The CCDC is a renowned British drug discovery centre and Pharmacelera will contribute innovation, with latest-generation software like PharmScreen® (3D).
Recently, Pharmacelera has also announced research into new Parkinson drugs with the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB).
Photo: The Pharmacelera team at the company's offices in Barcelona - © Pharmacelera.
We recommend this video of CataloniaBioHT interviewing them:
4 July 2019
Peptomyc, a CataloniaBio & HealthTech member, has received €2.2 million in funding from the second phase of the SME Instrument, under the EU Horizon 2020 programme, to start clinical trials with its new cancer therapy Omomyc.
Omomyc is the best inhibitor discovered to date of Myc, a gene that is key in the growth of most tumours. The results from studies in mice have been positive.
Founded in 2014 by Dr Laura Soucek and Dr Marie-Eve Beaulieu, Peptomyc is a promising spin-off of the Vall d’Hebron Institute of Oncology and ICREA. In 2017, the company raised €4.2 ...
26 June 2019
Transplant Biomedicals, CataloniaBio & HealthTech member, announces the positive results of the clinical trial of Vivian®, a medical device used for the transportation and preservation of kidneys.
The results show an excellent safety profile with no events directly related with the use of Vivian® and no organs being discarded before implantation.
The study included Hospital Clínic Barcelona, Vall d’Hebron Hospital and Bellvitge Hospital.
Dr Fritz Diekmann, Head of Renal Transplant Unit at Hospital Clinic and principal investigator of the study, commented: “These results are very encouraging for patients undergoing kidney transplantation and surpasses our clinical daily experience and ...
25 June 2019
The Catalan Healthcare Service (CatSalut) has announced the 18 projects that will receive €30 million in funding through the new innovative public procurement programme for entities in the public healthcare network.
Catalan Minister Alba Vergés highlighted that they are geared towards “improving the quality and efficiency of healthcare service”.
The call for these grants was opened in 2017 and received 33 applications. Of these, 18 were chosen from 10 different entities: Catalan Institute of Health (ICS), Corporació Sanitària Parc Taulí, Hospital Clinic, Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau, Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Déu, Hospital Sant ...
19 June 2019
Idneo, a CataloniaBio & HealthTech member, will hire one hundred engineers this year, under the slogan Are you an engineer or a Dreammaker?. This new talent will join the company mainly at its headquarters in Mollet del Vallès (Barcelona), but also at its offices in Silicon Valley (United States) and in-company with its clients.
The new engineers will cover high value-added positions in sectors like medical technology, mobility and the Internet of Things (IoT) and will take part in cutting-edge projects for companies that are global benchmarks.
“It is a great opportunity to be part of a unique technology company ...
18 June 2019
Inveready has finished the fundraising period for its new technology fund, First III, putting together a total of €54 million, nine more than the original goal, in just six months.
This fund will allow the firm to continue investing in technology-based start-ups with a high component of innovation (biotechnology, artificial intelligence, big data, Internet of Things, cybersecurity, etc.). Occasionally, it will also invest in B2C projects with potential for growth.
Ignacio Fonts, managing partner at Inveready, explains that the new fund “will help us diversify our portfolio and accompany our participated companies in later rounds of funding.”
With this ...
18 June 2019
Dr Marisa López-Teijón, creator of the BabyPod technological device and CEO of Institut Marquès, a global benchmark in assisted reproduction and CataloniaBio & HealthTech member, is looking for investors to tackle the next phases of the R&D project.
BabyPod is the first small-format intravaginal device that uses music to stimulate vocalisation of babies before birth. The product was created through a line of research conducted by Dr López-Teijón on the effects of music from the beginning of life, which has conducted several scientific studies and been recognised by Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
The product ...
7 June 2019
iVascular, CataloniaBio & HealthTech member, launches the open innovation program innoVasc aimed at start-ups in the biomedical field and health.
Marc Amorós, Head of Innovation at iVascular, says "we want to promote innovation and transform vascular therapies to provide our customers with advanced treatments for the diseases of the cardiovascular system".
Specifically, proposals, approaches, solutions and ideas for vascular therapies from the following areas of interest:
Medical devices for the treatment of vascular disordersDrug delivery systems for local treatmentsReplacement of open surgery with minimally invasive proceduresThe deadline for participation is until August 30, 2019.
iVascular was founded ...
6 June 2019
Pharmacelera, CataloniaBio & HealthTech member that provides solutions for computer-aided drug design, has reached an agreement with the Institute of Biotechnology and Biomedicine (IBB) of the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona to perform a research project in the area of Parkinson based in the alpha-synucleic protein.
"The in silico selection technologies will be a key complement to our experimental approach" Dr Salvador Ventura, director of IBB-UAB, points out.
Pharmacelera's CEO Enric Gibert explains "we are sure that our flagship software PharmScreen® will play a key role in proposing new candidates for the treatment of Parkinson's disease."
Esteve, the ...
5 June 2019
Asabys Partners, a venture capital fund created in Barcelona in early 2019, has announced its first investments: €1.5 million in spin-off Ona Therapeutics and €8 million in Psious, a round co-led by Caixa Capital Risc with participation from other investors, including Sabadell Venture Capital.
With this funding, Ona Therapeutics will begin development of a new drug to treat metastatic cancer, while Psious will complete development of its virtual reality solution to treat anxiety disorders.
Asabys has kicked off with €30 million in committed capital, although its goal is to put together €70 million to invest in roughly 15 biomedical ...
4 June 2019
At its annual shareholders’ meeting, Grifols announced a €1,400 million capital investment plan through 2022. 66% will be allotted to the Bioscience Division, 10% to the Diagnostic Division and 3% to the Hospital Division. The company's manufacturing facilities in Spain will receive more than €300 million.
The biotech group has invested more than €1,370 million in R&D projects over the last five years, including the AMBAR clinical trial against Alzheimer's.
Grifols' co-CEO Raimon Grífols Roura underscored the vital role of its global talent pool: "In 2018, we expanded our workforce by 16% to 21,230 employees, of which ...
31 May 2019
Devicare, a digital therapeutics company and CataloniaBio & HealthTech member, is looking to speed growth and has launched a crowdfunding campaign to raise €1.5 million through the Capital Cell platform. In just one week, the company has raised 39% of its goal.
Devicare has developed a non-surgical treatment for renal lithiasis or kidney stones, called Lit-Control®, and has closed commercial deals in 30 countries with various pharmaceutical companies. The latest market they’ve entered is the United States, this May, under the framework of the American Urological Association 2019 Annual Meeting (AUA).
“We’re innovating in the field of ...
31 May 2019
CataloniaBio & HealthTech and the Massachusetts Medical Device Industry Council (MassMEDIC), the largest association of medical technology companies in the United States, have signed an agreement to foster innovation and collaborations in business and research among their members. The agreement was signed at the highly successful European investment congress Bio€quity, held in Barcelona on 20 and 21 May.
Angel Alonso, vice-president of CataloniaBioHT and CEO of Vecmedical, explained that this agreement will “strengthen institutional ties and provide a good opportunity to bring the innovative companies of CataloniaBioHT to the world’s top biomedical ecosystem.”
For his part, MassMEDIC President Bryan ...
30 May 2019
Manremyc, a CataloniaBio & HealthTech member that has developed a tuberculosis probiotic, has opened a crowdfunding round to raise €250,000 through Capital Cell. So far, the company has raised 37% of its goal, including investment from the Reig family (main shareholder of the pharmaceutical corporation Reig Jofre).
Manremyc is a spin-off of the Institute for Health Science Research Germans Trias i Pujol (IGTP). The technology prevents people from contracting tuberculosis using a natural product, administered orally that is suitable for regions with high incidence rates and limited resources. This is why the company has been B Corp certified since ...
29 May 2019
Companies in the health and biomedicine sector generate return that goes beyond just economics, as their goal is to benefit the patients their drugs and therapeutic solutions are intended for, but they can emphasise whether social return on investment (SROI) is part of their mission.
Both in Europe and the United States, SROI is a growing trend that is aligned with society’s growing demand for a more sustainable, socially responsible world.
CataloniaBio & HealthTech put this up for debate at the latest Lessons Learned forum on 9 May at the Barcelona Science Park (PCB), with investors, accelerators and ...
20 May 2019
Hartmann Spain presented two innovative solutions at the 2019 Spanish National Congress of Hospitals and Health Management, held 8 to 10 May in Santiago de Compostela. These were the Cooper Plan to optimise surgical processes and the PrevenIRAS Plan to prevent healthcare-related infections. These products are part of the digital hub created by the company at the corporate headquarters in Mataró (Barcelona), according the newspaper Expansión.
The subsidiary of the German Hartmann group recently appointed Jordi Guinovart as its new general manager, replacing Marc Pérez Pey, who has been named vice-president for Western Europe and Northern Africa.
Hartmann Spain ...
20 May 2019
Six CataloniaBio & HealthTech companies participated in a mission to China and Hong Kong organised by ACCIÓ (Government of Catalonia) from 11 to 18 May.
Anagram, Cytes Biotechnologies, Drug Development and Regulation (DDR), Eignapharma, Freeox Biotech and Laboratorios Rubió, plus the Catalan Ministry of Health, explored the Chinese healthcare market to assess opportunities to expand there. They also participated in the Health Industry Summit in Shanghai, which brings together more than 300,000 professionals each year.
ACCIÓ is currently setting up new missions to Denmark (September) and Latin America (October).
More information (in Catalan)