BioWorld International articles from December 2005

BioWorld International archives from December 2005

Astex in cell-cycle inhibitor deal with Novartis for up to $520m.
December 7, 2005... LONDON -- Astex Therapeutics Ltd. landed a $520 million deal with Novartis AG for three cell-cycle inhibitors, the largest advertised figure for any deal involving a UK biotech to date, and bringing the total potential value of licenses granted...

Crucell buying Berna biotech in $449m all-share takeover.
December 7, 2005... Leveraging a stock that had gained 1 19 percent since the start of the year, Crucell NV agreed to an all-share takeover of Berna Biotech AG in a deal valued at CHF591 million (US$448.6 million). The transaction values Berna Biotech's stock...

Key to blood cell differentiation could spawn leukemia therapies.
December 7, 2005... LONDON -- A tiny fragment of RNA has turned out to be a master regulator of the process of cell differentiation in a type of human blood cell. A group of Italian researchers has elucidated both the role of the RNA fragment and the...

Domantis enters deal with BMS on antibody fragments.
December 7, 2005... LONDON -- Domantis Ltd. sealed a multiproduct deal with Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. for its domain antibodies (dAb) worth $9.2 million in up-front and research payments, plus $20 million per dAb in preclinical and clinical milestones, plus...

Piramed in $230i preclinical cancer deal with Genentech.
December 7, 2005... LONDON -- PIramed Ltd., a 2-year-old, private UK biotech company, landed a deal worth a headline $230 million with Genentech Inc. for preclinical-stage inhibitors of the signal transduction enzyme phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI 3-kinase),...

4AZA Bioscience NV.(Other News To Note)
December 7, 2005... 4AZA Bioscience NV, of Leuven, Belgium, entered a licensing agreement with Gilead Sciences Inc., of Foster City, Calif., to research and develop compounds for the potential treatment of hepatitis C virus infection. The compounds, discovered by...

ExonHit Therapeutics, Roche identify blood markers for BSE.
December 7, 2005... PARIS -- ExonHit Therapeutics SA announced the discovery, in collaboration with Roche Applied Science, of new blood markers for the detection of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), or mad cow disease, in living animals. Paris-based...

Avidis enters technology deal with Merial for animal vaccines.
December 7, 2005... PARIS -- The French protein engineering company Avidis signed an agreement with the animal health company Merial providing for the latter to use Avidis' aXent adjuvant-free immunization technology for the development of recombinant veterinary...

Aeres Biomedical Ltd.(Other News To Note)
December 7, 2005... Aeres Biomedical Ltd., of London, which was spun out of the UK Medical Research Council (MRC) in 1999, is moving back under the MRC's umbrella. Staff from AERES will form the basis of the Therapeutic Antibody Group (TAG), which will collaborate...

UK increasing spending to bolster stem cell excellence.
December 7, 2005... LONDON -- The UK government announced a large increase in public spending on stem cell research, to fund a 10-year strategy from 2006 to 201 6, and maintain the country's leading position in the field. New money of at least [pounds...

Affitech AS, of Oslo, Norway, and XOMA Ltd., of Berkeley, Calif., signed a collaboration and cross-license agreement for antibody-related technologies.(Other News To Note)
December 7, 2005... Affitech AS, of Oslo, Norway, and XOMA Ltd., of Berkeley, Calif., signed a collaboration and cross-license agreement for antibody-related technologies. Under the agreement, Affitech received a license to use XOMA's bacterial cell expression...

Amphion Innovations plc.(Other News To Note)
December 7, 2005... Amphion Innovations plc, of New York, raised [pounds sterling]1 million (US$1.7 million) through a group of new investors four month after raising [pounds sterling]5 million in an initial public offering on the Alternative Investment Market in...

Bio3 Research Srl, of Colleretto Giacosa, Italy, and Creabilis Therapeutics SpA, of Milan, Italy, signed agreements with Frazer, Pa.-based Cephalon Inc. to evaluate the research compound K252a as a topical treatment for psoriasis and for potential use in the prevention and treatment of restenosis.(Other News To Note)
December 7, 2005... Bio3 Research Srl, of Colleretto Giacosa, Italy, and Creabilis Therapeutics SpA, of Milan, Italy, signed agreements with Frazer, Pa.-based Cephalon Inc. to evaluate the research compound K252a as a topical treatment for psoriasis and for...

BioDiem Ltd.(Other News To Note)
December 7, 2005... BioDiem Ltd., of Sydney, Australia, received regulatory approval to begin a Phase I/II trial for its peptide BDME in patients with diabetic macular edema. BDM-E is a small synthetic peptide that in vitro studies have shown to stimulate growth...

Compugen Ltd.(Other News To Note)
December 7, 2005... Compugen Ltd., of Tel Aviv, Israel, is cutting its staff by 25 percent and reducing expenditures by $2 million to $3 million per year for the next two years to focus resources and activities on its short- and mid-term development and...

Cresset BioMolecular Discovery Ltd.(Other News To Note)
December 7, 2005... Cresset BioMolecular Discovery Ltd., of Hertfordshire, UK, launched its FieldTemplator, a technology designed to identify the three-dimensional bound conformation of hits and potential drugs in a biological target. The company said it can be...

CyGenics Ltd., of Sydney, Australia, said its wholly owned subsidiary, Cell Sciences Ltd., entered a nonexclusive distribution agreement with CombiMatrix, a unit of Newport Beach, Calif.-based Acacia Research Corp., to distribute CombiMatrix products and services in Singapore.(Other News To Note)(Brief Article)
December 7, 2005... CyGenics Ltd., of Sydney, Australia, said its wholly owned subsidiary, Cell Sciences Ltd., entered a nonexclusive distribution agreement with CombiMatrix, a unit of Newport Beach, Calif.-based Acacia Research Corp., to distribute CombiMatrix...

Genmab A/S.(Other News To Note)
December 7, 2005... Genmab A/S, of Copenhagen, Denmark, reported additional positive results in the HuMax-CD20 Phase I/II study to treat patients with relapsed or refractory follicular non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Overall, there were 37 evaluable patients and objective...

GPC Biotech AG, of Martinsried, Germany, achieved target enrollment in the Phase III registration trial of its lead drug candidate, satraplatin, an orally bioavailable platinum-based compound.(Other News To Note)
December 7, 2005... GPC Biotech AG, of Martinsried, Germany, achieved target enrollment in the Phase III registration trial of its lead drug candidate, satraplatin, an orally bioavailable platinum-based compound. The company, along with partner Spectrum...

Immatics Biotechnologies GmbH.(Other News To Note)
December 7, 2005... Immatics Biotechnologies GmbH, of Tubingen, Germany, began a Phase I study on its product candidate IMA901 for renal cell cancer. Under the study, some two dozen patients suffering from advanced stages of renal cell cancer will be treated in...

MediGene AG.(Other News To Note)
December 7, 2005... MediGene AG, of Martinsried, Germany, said its new drug application for Polyphenon E ointment was accepted for filing by the FDA. Polyphenon E ointment aims at treating genital warts, a benign form of skin tumors caused by infections with...

Oncodesign.(Other News To Note)
December 7, 2005... Oncodesign, of Dijon, France, appointed Bertrand Merot managing director, with particular responsibility for getting partners for the co-development of new cancer drug candidates and negotiating future fund rounds. Between 1998 and 2004, Merot...

Plethora Solutions Holdings plc.(Other News To Note)(Brief Article)
December 7, 2005... Plethora Solutions Holdings plc, of London, announced positive results in a Phase II trial of PSD502 for the treatment of premature ejaculation. Initial analysis showed the topically applied product produced a statistically significant increase...

Senexis Ltd., of Cambridge, UK, and Galapagos NV, of Mechelen, Belgium, expanded their collaboration to optimize Senexis' inhibitors of amyloid-induced toxicity and neuroinflammation for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease.(Other News To Note)
December 7, 2005... Senexis Ltd., of Cambridge, UK, and Galapagos NV, of Mechelen, Belgium, expanded their collaboration to optimize Senexis' inhibitors of amyloid-induced toxicity and neuroinflammation for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. Galapagos will...

Stem Cell Sciences plc.(Other News To Note)
December 7, 2005... Stem Cell Sciences plc, of Edinburgh, UK, said that its affiliate, Stem Cell Sciences KK, has begun operations in its new cell-processing facility at the Institute for Biomedical Research and Innovation in Kobe, Japan. SCS KK acquired access to...

Tibotec Pharmaceuticals Ltd.(Other News To Note)
December 7, 2005... Tibotec Pharmaceuticals Ltd., of Cork, Ireland, is discontinuing its single exploratory Phase II study of TMC125, a non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI), in protease inhibitor-naive HIV patients failing a first-line...

Y's Therapeutics Co.(Other News To Note)(Brief Article)
December 7, 2005... Y's Therapeutics Co., of Tokyo, began a Phase II program of YSPSL for prevention of delayed graft function (DGF) in patients undergoing cadaveric kidney transplantation. YSPSL is a recombinant molecule resulting from the fusion of P-selectin...

BioAlliance Pharma completes initial public offering for 30m [euro].
December 14, 2005... PARIS -- BioAlliance Pharma SA completed its initial public offering on Eurolist Compartment C of the Euronext stock exchange in Paris, raising gross proceeds of some 30 million [euro] (US$35.9 million). The offering price finally was...

Domantis' valuation higher for 17m [pounds sterling] third financing.
December 14, 2005... LONDON -- Domantis Ltd. raised 17 million [pounds sterling] (US$30.7 million) in an oversubscribed third round and achieved what is nowadays a rare feat, securing a 29 percent increase in value compared to the previous round. New investors...

Dutch team finds aspects of cell cycle checkpoints.
December 14, 2005... LONDON -- A discovery by researchers in the Netherlands has forced a rethinking of the scientific dogma relating to how cancer cells differ from normal cells. Put simply, cancer cells are less protected than normal cells against uncontrolled...

Zealand Pharma learning lessons from pulled IPO.
December 14, 2005... Despite tentative signs that the biotechnology IPO market in Europe is improving, the recent decision by Zealand Pharma A/S not to proceed with a listing on the Copenhagen Stock Exchange is an indication that many investors remain selective....

Group of GMO crop raiders acquitted by French court.
December 14, 2005... PARIS -- Anti-GMO activists in France won an unprecedented legal victory when a court in Orleans acquitted 49 self-confessed raiders of fields of genetically modified corn. Charged with destroying several fields planted with Monsanto GM...

Alimentary Health Ltd., of Cork, Ireland, signed a worldwide licensing agreement on therapies for gastrointestinal disorders with Procter & Gamble Co., of Cincinnati, its partner.(Other News To Note)
December 14, 2005... * Alimentary Health Ltd., of Cork, Ireland, signed a worldwide licensing agreement on therapies for gastrointestinal disorders with Procter & Gamble Co., of Cincinnati, its partner. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The companies are...

Cellartis brings in 8m [euro] for embryonic stem cell work.
December 14, 2005... Cellartis AB raised 8 million [euro] (US$9.5 million) to fund its human embryonic stem cell development programs and its international expansion. Bio Fund Management Oy, of Helsinki, Finland, led the round, which takes the company's total...

Alizyme reports positive data for cetilistat, plans Phase III.
December 14, 2005... LONDON -- Alizyme plc announced positive results in a Phase IIb trial of the lipase inhibitor cetilistat in obese diabetics. The results clear the product for Phase III, meaning the company now has three products at that stage. While...

Antisoma plc.(Other News To Note)
December 14, 2005... * Antisoma plc, of London, launched its Level I American depository receipt program to enable U.S. investors in Antisoma to trade in a dollar-denominated security and to move toward a full listing on Nasdaq. Each Antisoma ADR will represent 20...

BioInvent International AB.(Other News To Note)
December 14, 2005... * BioInvent International AB, of Lund, Sweden, said the subscription period for its preferential rights issue ended Dec. 2, and interest in participation in the issue was substantial. The issue has raised SEK1 60 million (US$21 million) for...

Borean Pharma A/S.(Other News To Note)
December 14, 2005... * Borean Pharma A/S, of Aarhus, Denmark, established proof of concept in a preclinical study of its tumor necrosis factor-alpha antagonist for rheumatoid arthritis. Treatment with the antagonist resulted in a dose-dependent slowing of disease...

Crucell NV.(signs an research agreement with Vakzine Projekt Management GmbH)(Brief Article)
December 14, 2005... * Crucell NV, of Leiden, the Netherlands, signed a PER.C6 research license agreement with Vakzine Projekt Management GmbH, of Braunschweig, Germany. The nonexclusive agreement allows VPM to use the PER.C6 cell line to develop a vaccine to...

DeCode Genetics Inc.(Other News To Note)
December 14, 2005... * DeCode Genetics Inc., of Reykjavik, Iceland, filed a universal shelf registration statement with the SEC to issue and sell from time to time debt and equity securities worth up to $100 million total. The company applies its discoveries in...

Evotec AG.(Other News To Note)
December 14, 2005... * Evotec AG, of Hamburg, Germany, achieved the first milestone in its four-year drug discovery collaboration with Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., of Osaka, Japan. Evotec has granted Takeda exclusive rights to a novel target for Alzheimer's...

ExonHit Therapeutics SA.(Other News To Note)
December 14, 2005... * ExonHit Therapeutics SA, of Paris, announced that the overallotment option of 172,500 new shares offered to Societe Generale, of Paris, the sole bookrunner in its recently-completed IPO on the Alternext market of the Euronext stock exchange...

Galapagos NV.(Other News To Note)
December 14, 2005... * Galapagos NV, of Mechelen, Belgium, said its services division, BioFocus, has extended its drug discovery collaboration with Amgen Inc., of Thousand Oaks, Calif., for biology, computational/medicinal chemistry services and supply of...

Genetic Technologies Ltd.(Other News To Note)
December 14, 2005... * Genetic Technologies Ltd., of Melbourne, Australia, reached a final settlement on its patent dispute with Applera Corp., of Norwalk, Conn., after a conference held last week in San Francisco. Commercial terms are confidential, but the...

Genmab A/S.(Other News To Note)
December 14, 2005... * Genmab A/S, of Copenhagen, Denmark, said preliminary results in the Phase II study of HuMax-CD4 to treat patients with refractory or relapsed noncutaneous Tcell lymphoma showed that three patients achieved objective responses, including one...

GPC Biotech AG.(Other News To Note)
December 14, 2005... * GPC Biotech AG, of Martinsried, Germany, said a Phase II study evaluating its lead drug candidate, satraplatin, in combination with Taxol (paclitaxel) as a first-line therapy in patients with unresectable advanced non-small-cell lung cancer...

InforSense Ltd., of London, and Tripos Inc., of St. Louis, disclosed an alliance to integrate Tripos' discovery informatics portfolio with InforSense's KDE workflowbased integrative analytics platform.(Other News To Note)
December 14, 2005... * InforSense Ltd., of London, and Tripos Inc., of St. Louis, disclosed an alliance to integrate Tripos' discovery informatics portfolio with InforSense's KDE workflowbased integrative analytics platform. Through the alliance, Tripos joins...

IP2IPO Group plc.(Other News To Note)
December 14, 2005... * IP2IPO Group plc, of London, agreed to a 25-year partnership with the University of Bristol for exclusive rights to set up spinout companies. Under the agreement, IP2IPO will invest up to [pounds sterling]5 million. It is the fifth such...

IT-Omics, of Lille, France, and OmniViz Inc., of Maynard, Mass., entered a collaboration to permit their respective users to incorporate the other company's software in their drug discovery process.(Other News To Note)
December 14, 2005... * IT-Omics, of Lille, France, and OmniViz Inc., of Maynard, Mass., entered a collaboration to permit their respective users to incorporate the other company's software in their drug discovery process. IT-Omics, a subsidiary of the Lille-based...

NeuTec Pharma plc.(Other News To Note)
December 14, 2005... * NeuTec Pharma plc, of Manchester, UK, completed recruitment in the Phase Ib study of MycoGrab in combination with docetaxel in metastatic or recurrent breast cancer. MycoGrab is a human antibody fragment that is active against extra cellular...

Pelias AG.(Other News To Note)(Brief Article)
December 14, 2005... * Pelias AG, of Vienna, Austria, began operations at the Campus Vienna Biocenter, where it will focus on the development of products to prevent and treat hospitalacquired infections, or nosocomial infections. The start-up is seed financed...

Peplin Ltd.(Other News To Note)
December 14, 2005... * Peplin Ltd., of Brisbane, Australia, completed enrollment in its Australian Phase IIa trial of PEP005 topical for superficial basal-cell carcinoma. Peplin said it expects to report results in April. Peplin also said the company has determined...

Phoqus Group plc.(Other News To Note)(Brief Article)
December 14, 2005... * Phoqus Group plc, of West Malling, UK, began the Phase I trial of Chronocort, a once-daily modified release hydrocortisone for adrenal insufficiency. The drug is designed to mimic the natural circadian rhythm of the native hormone, which is...

Phytopharm plc.(Other News To Note)(Brief Article)
December 14, 2005... * Phytopharm plc, of Godmanchester, UK, announced preliminary results from the 106-patient Phase II proof-ofprinciple study of PYM50028 in Alzheimer's disease. The 12-week study did not show any significant differences between the treated group...

Sinovac Biotech Ltd.(Other News To Note)
December 14, 2005... * Sinovac Biotech Ltd., of Beijing, received RMB7 million (US$867,000) from China's Ministry of Science and Technology for the preclinical trials of its pandemic flu vaccine, Panflu, for humans. Since April, Sinovac has received more than $1...

SkyePharma plc.(Other News To Note)
December 14, 2005... * SkyePharma plc, of London, received a number of expressions of interest in individual assets and cash offers for the company as a whole, following the appointment of Lehman Bros. to review all strategic options. As a result it is allowing a...

UCB SA.(Other News To Note)
December 14, 2005... * UCB SA, of Brussels, Belgium, launched Xyrem (sodium oxybate) oral solution in Germany for the treatment of cataplexy in adult patients with narcolepsy. The launch follows the recent European Commission marketing approval in the orphan...

Xceleron Ltd., of York, UK, agreed to a contract with Servier SA, of Paris, to provide accelerator mass spectrometry services to assess candidate drugs in microdoses in humans, in advance of Phase I studies.(Other News To Note)
December 14, 2005... * Xceleron Ltd., of York, UK, agreed to a contract with Servier SA, of Paris, to provide accelerator mass spectrometry services to assess candidate drugs in microdoses in humans, in advance of Phase I studies. Servier said it will change its...

GPC biotech submits CMC section of Satraplatin NDA.
December 21, 2005... Satraplatin's regulatory review is rolling right along, literally. GPC Biotech AG began a rolling submission of the chemotherapy's new drug application to the FDA, filing the chemistry, manufacturing and controls section. That procedure...

Santhera brings in CHF25M, starts idebenone pivotal trial.
December 21, 2005... Santhera Pharmaceuticals AG raised CHF25 million (US$19.3 million) in new funding from existing investors and moved its lead compound, SNT-MC17 (idebenone), into a Phase III trial in Freidreich's ataxia (FRDA) in Europe. Discussions with...

Key protein for DNA damage repair illuminates p53 control.
December 21, 2005... LONDON -- Investigations into how cells respond to DNA damage have trained a spotlight on a protein that plays a role in regulating the functions of the well-known tumor suppressor protein, p53. The protein, until now not thought to be...

Cyclacel getting Nasdaq listing via Xcyte merger.
December 21, 2005... LONDON -- Cyclacel Group plc secured a Nasdaq listing in a reverse merger with Xcyte Therapies Inc., a T-cell immunotherapy specialist based in Seattle. Xcyte put up a "for sale" sign in July after reaching an impasse with the FDA over the...

New EMEA office, reduced fees to benefit small firms.
December 21, 2005... LONDON -- The European Medicines Agency (EMEA) opened a new office to provide a one-stop regulatory shop for small companies and announced reductions in fees and new services to make it easier for SMEs to get marketing approval for new drugs....

ACE Biosciences A/S.(Other News To Note)
December 21, 2005... * ACE Biosciences A/S, of Odense, Denmark, is collaborating with the Aeras Global TB Vaccine Foundation in Bethesda, Md., on developing second-generation BCG-based vaccines for tuberculosis. ACE is supplying analytical tools for the...

Actavis Group.(acquired)(Brief Article)
December 21, 2005... * Actavis Group, of Reykjavik, Iceland, completed the $810 million acquisition of the human generics business of Fort Lee, N.J-based Alpharma Inc. following receipt of regulatory approvals. The deal, along with Actavis' acquisition of New...

Active Biotech AB.(Other News To Note)
December 21, 2005... * Active Biotech AB, of Lund, Sweden, commenced the second of a planned series of Phase I trials of an orally available investigational compound, 57-57, in development for treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Patients with...

Amarin Corp. plc.(Other News To Note)
December 21, 2005... * Amarin Corp. plc., of London, began a Phase III trial of Miraxion in Huntington's disease patients in Europe, three months after dosing began in a U.S. Phase III study. The primary endpoint is a measure of whether Miraxion taken 2 grams per...

Apoxis SA.(acquires marketing rights from Astellas Pharma GmbH)(Brief Article)
December 21, 2005... * Apoxis SA, of Lausanne, Switzerland, acquired exclusive worldwide development and marketing rights to the cancer compound FK866 from Astellas Pharma GmbH, of Munich, Germany. Apoxis said it would begin a series of Phase II studies of the...

Argenta Discovery Ltd., of Harlow, UK, announced a two-year drug discovery collaboration with Genentech Inc., of South San Francisco, to use Argenta's services to discover new chemical entities against an undisclosed target.(Other News To Note)
December 21, 2005... * Argenta Discovery Ltd., of Harlow, UK, announced a two-year drug discovery collaboration with Genentech Inc., of South San Francisco, to use Argenta's services to discover new chemical entities against an undisclosed target. Financial terms...

Cellectis AS, of Romainville, France, granted AstraZeneca plc, of London, a worldwide nonexclusive license to a patent family related to a process for the specific replacement or insertion of a gene in the receiver genome by homologous recombination.(Other News To Note)
December 21, 2005... * Cellectis AS, of Romainville, France, granted AstraZeneca plc, of London, a worldwide nonexclusive license to a patent family related to a process for the specific replacement or insertion of a gene in the receiver genome by homologous...

Cerep SA, of Paris, reported that Bristol-Myers Squib Co., of New York, initiated a Phase I trial of a second LFA-1 antagonist discovered through their collaboration, established in 1999.(Other News To Note)
December 21, 2005... * Cerep SA, of Paris, reported that Bristol-Myers Squib Co., of New York, initiated a Phase I trial of a second LFA-1 antagonist discovered through their collaboration, established in 1999. Like the first compound identified in 2003, which is...

Crucell NV.(Other News To Note)
December 21, 2005... * Crucell NV, of Leiden, the Netherlands, obtained approval from the Belgian authorities to test the safety, tolerability and immunogenicity of its whole-inactivated West Nile virus vaccine in healthy volunteers. The company said it soon will...

Cytos Biotechnology AG.(Other News To Note)
December 21, 2005... * Cytos Biotechnology AG, of Zurich, Switzerland, said its open-label Phase IIa trial in 20 patients with allergic rhinoconjunctivitis and asthma due to house dust mite allergies met its primary efficacy endpoint, a median 10-fold increase in...

Galapagos NV.(services division BioFocus partners with Cresset BioMolecular Discovery Ltd.)(Brief Article)
December 21, 2005... * Galapagos NV, of Mechelen, Belgium, said its services division, BioFocus, formed an alliance with Cresset BioMolecular Discovery Ltd., of Hertfordshire, UK, to develop a range of FieldFocus compound libraries using Cresset's molecular fields...

Genmab A/S.(Other News To Note)
December 21, 2005... * Genmab A/S, of Copenhagen, Denmark, said its partner F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd., of Basel, Switzerland, filed an investigational new drug application with the FDA for a Genmab antibody developed under the companies' collaboration. This is the...

genOway, of Lyon, France, and Invitrogen Corp., of Carlsbad, Calif., signed a co-marketing agreement for RNAi-related services.(Other News To Note)
December 21, 2005... * genOway, of Lyon, France, and Invitrogen Corp., of Carlsbad, Calif., signed a co-marketing agreement for RNAi-related services. The deal combines Invitrogen's expertise in RNAi research technologies with genOway's portfolio of transgenesis...

GPC Biotech AG.(Other News To Note)
December 21, 2005... * GPC Biotech AG, of Martinsried, Germany, said an independent data monitoring board for the satraplatin Phase III registrational trial in second-line chemotherapy for hormone-refractory prostate cancer held its third meeting Monday to review...

GW Pharmaceuticals plc, of Reading, UK, agreed to a European marketing agreement for its cannabis-based painkiller, Sativex, with Almirall, of Barcelona, Spain.(Other News To Note)
December 21, 2005... * GW Pharmaceuticals plc, of Reading, UK, agreed to a European marketing agreement for its cannabis-based painkiller, Sativex, with Almirall, of Barcelona, Spain. Almirall is paying a signing on fee of 12 million [pounds sterling] (US$21.2...

Iceland Genomics Corp.(Other News To Note)
December 21, 2005... * Iceland Genomics Corp., of Reykjavik, Iceland, said POLYGENE, a consortium including IGC; Bioinformatics ApS, of Denmark; the Department of Statistics and the University of Oxford in the UK; and the Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Center...

InforSense Ltd.(Other News To Note)(Brief Article)
December 21, 2005... * InforSense Ltd., of London, said that AstraZeneca plc, of Cambridge, Mass., strengthened its strategic commitment to InforSense technology across their research and development organization through a multiyear global licensing deal....

MediGene AG.(Other News To Note)
December 21, 2005... * MediGene AG, of Martinsried, Germany, issued a nonexclusive license to Glaxo Group Ltd., of London, to develop a therapeutic tumor vaccine using existing patents from MediGene's program, in exchange for a one-time payment from Glaxo. The...

MorphoSys AG.(Other News To Note)
December 21, 2005... * MorphoSys AG, of Martinsried, Germany, signed a five-year license agreement with Merck & Co. Inc., of Whitehouse Station, N.J., for the use of MorphoSys's HuCAL Gold and AutoCAL technologies in research and development of human therapeutic...

NicOx SA.(Other News To Note)
December 21, 2005... * NicOx SA, of Sophia-Antipolis, initiated a Phase III trial of HCT 3012 in patients with osteoarthritis of the knee. The trial will take place at around 120 sites in the U.S., and patient screening has started with a view to enrolling some 820...

Pharmaxis Ltd.(Other News To Note)(Brief Article)
December 21, 2005... * Pharmaxis Ltd., of Sydney, Australia, began a Phase III trial of Aridol (mannitol) in patients with suspected asthma to test the product's sensitivity and specificity to identify exercise-induced bronchoconstriction against acknowledged...