Tag Archives: CBT Advisors
Can the Amgen Takeout of Micromet Juice German Biotech? Can Anything?
Now that Germany has had its first billion-dollar biotech exit, it seems it would be about time for the beleaguered German biotech sector to enjoy a welcome jolt of juice. Generally, big exits create new opportunities. So is it time to celebrate in Germany? Not exactly. But I believe that the Micromet acquisition and other recent successes could serve as a valuable proof-of-concept for biotech products and technologies “made in Germany.” Continue reading
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Biogen Idec Lets Stromedix Do the Hard Part
For anyone wondering about the value that can be added by entrepreneurs and venture capitalists to the drug discovery and development process, look no further than Stromedix, acquired on Feb. 14, 2012 by Biogen Idec for up to $562 million ($75 million up-front). The kicker: Stromedix acquired STX-100, its primary asset, from Biogen Idec in 2007 for well under $5 million. Talk about added value. Continue reading
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Startup Targets Sweet Spot for Consumer Health: Connecting You With Your Data
By Steve Dickman, CEO, CBT Advisors One secret to both improving consumer health and making money in healthcare IT is the feedback loop: providing a person with her own data as a way to improve compliance and performance. Once she … Continue reading
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Partnering360: A New Social Network Aims At Biotech – And Succeeds
We recently test-drove Partnering360, a new social network for biotech and pharma executives that meets a real need. Here we give details on what makes us think this network will succeed and describe some of the challenges to its growth. Continue reading
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Big Pharma Attempts to Extend Own Lifespan by Activating Sirtuins
Can drugs that supposedly “activate” a controversial target – sirtuin proteins – stop or even reverse the aging process? A new report this week said “No.” Sirtuin activators, it said, do not extend lifespan in roundworms and flies and earlier studies that said they did were flawed. Nonetheless, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) continues to invest hundreds of millions of dollars into developing drugs to hit these targets Continue reading
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Google Health is Dead, Long Live Google+
Now that Google has put its ill-fated Google Health project to rest, we are wondering who will make the next big attempt to establish a personal health record (PHR) platform for healthy people. We think Google+ has the inside track. Continue reading
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Bugs 1, Humans 0: “Antibiotics: The Perfect Storm” by David M. Shlaes
Steve Dickman’s review of “Antibiotics: The Perfect Storm,” an entertaining book on the rise of super-resistant bacteria and industry’s inadequate attempts to combat them. Continue reading
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Google Meets Healthcare VC
Now that most private-company biotech CEOs have given up on “IPO window reopens” and “VC bidding war,” three of the most galvanizing words for someone raising money these days are “Google might invest.” Here’s the Boston Biotech Watch take not just on what Google Ventures is doing in healthcare but also what we think they should be doing. Continue reading
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We are our bugs – hot Boston startup mines the gut
The next Boston-area startup takes on our dual nature as “higher” eukaryotes who are in fact stuffed full of bacteria – which could be tweaked or targeted to improve our health. Continue reading
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IPO Drought Likely to Last, Boston Globe writes
Scott Kirsner, the Boston Globe’s innovation columnist, on Sunday thoughtfully tackled the question of when the current IPO drought is likely to end. His piece, which makes a nice mention of CBT Advisors, is nominally focused on the Boston area but the sentiments are of course similar in other geographies. Here is an excerpt with a link to the rest of the piece below. Continue reading
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