BioWorld International articles from May 2002

BioWorld International archives from May 2002

Axis-Shield PLC. (Other News To Note).(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... * Axis-Shield plc, of Dundee, Scotland, said is raised 8.3 million [pounds sterling] (US$12.1 million) through a placing with institutional investors. The money will fund further development of the company's point-of-care diagnostics division,...

BioXell S.p.A. (Other News To Note).(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... * BioXell SpA, of Milan, Italy, reported positive results from a study of a compound's ability to arrest the development of autoimmune diabetes in non-obese diabetic mice. The compound, a synthetic analogue of the active form of vitamin D3,...

Cambridge Antibody Technology Group PLC, of Melbourn, UK, said it failed in its bid to take over Drug Royalty Corp. Inc. of Toronto. (Other News To Note).(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... * Cambridge Antibody Technology Group plc, of Melbourn, UK, said it failed in its bid to take over Drug Royalty Corp. Inc., of Toronto. CAT's all-share offer expired on April 26, without the conditions having been satisfied, and CAT said it...

Epigenomics AG and Biopsytec Holding AG both of Berlin, said they entered into a cross-licensing agreement for diagnostic technology. (Other News To Note).(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... * Epigenomics AG and Biopsytec Holding AG, both of Berlin, said they entered into a cross-licensing agreement for diagnostic technology. Epigenomics gains exclusive rights for use in pharmaceutical research and diagnostics of the Biopsytec...

KS Biomedix Holdings PLC. (Other News To Note).(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... * KS Biomedix Holdings plc, of Guildford, UK, said it will extend clinical trials of KSB303 to pancreatic cancer, following a successful Phase I imaging study in colorectal cancer patients. KSB303 is a radiolabeled, high-affinity sheep...

MediGene AG. (Other News To Note).(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... * MediGene AG, of Martinsried, Germany, said that it submitted to German regulatory authorities a marketing authorization application for the Leuprogel (leuprorelin acetate) three-month product, for the treatment of advanced prostrate cancer....

MelTec GmbH. (Other News To Note).(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... * MelTec GmbH, of Magdeburg, Germany, reported positive results from research describing the protein networks involved in T-cell invasion in sarcoid myopathy and polymyositis, two diseases of progressive muscle deterioration. The company's...

ML Laboratories PLC. (Other News To Note).(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... * ML Laboratories plc, of Warrington, UK, plans to float the DNA manufacturing arm of its subsidiary, Cobra Therapeutics Ltd., and to transfer Cobra's R&D to ML. The flotation will be effected by a reverse takeover of a dot-com shell, Buyers...

UK BioBank gets 45M [pounds sterling], approval to collect 500,000 DNA samples.
May 1, 2002... LONDON -- UK BioBank, the world's largest study of the links between genes and disease, has secured 45 million [pounds sterling] funding and the government's approval to go ahead with collecting DNA samples and health and lifestyle information...

NeuroSearch stops development of NS3728 for sickle-cell anemia.
May 1, 2002... Danish biopharmaceutical firm NeuroSearch A/S last week said it suspended development of the sickle-cell anemia drug candidate NS3728 following analysis of Phase I trial data and a re-evaluation of the likely costs of pursuing the full program....

Opposition to cloning puts EU research program in jeopardy. (European Union Roundup).
May 1, 2002... BRUSSELS, Belgium -- The European Union's research program planned for 2002-2006, with billions of dollars of funding set aside for biotechnology, has run into a new problem. Opposition in a key European Parliament committee to research into...

Genset prepares to initiate clinical trials of Famoxin.
May 1, 2002... PARIS -- Genset 5A plans to start clinical trials of the anti-obesity compound Famoxin in October and hopes to obtain initial results before the end of this year. Under an agreement signed in December, the company subcontracted Eurogentec,...

Oxford GlycoSciences PLC. (Other News To Note).(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... * Oxford GlycoSciences plc, of Abingdon, UK, saw its stock price fall by 21 percent to 3.27 [pounds sterling] last week after treatment with its lead compound, OGT 918 for the treatment of Gaucher's disease, was halted when a patient developed...

Protherics PLC. (Other News To Note).(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... * Protherics plc, of Macclesfield, UK, said it will start a further Phase II trial of its angiotensin vaccine for the control of hypertension, in the third quarter of 2002. The proof-of-concept study, involving 360 patients, will use an...

Wilex AG, of Munich, Germany, said it entered into a licensing agreement with Lynx Therapeutics Inc., of Hayward, Calif. (Other News To Note).(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... * Wilex AG, of Munich, Germany, said it entered into a licensing agreement with Lynx Therapeutics Inc., of Hayward, Calif., to identify genes regulated by WX-G250, Wilex's antibody compound for renal-cell carcinoma. The compound is in multiple...

GenOway enters drug target deal, plans $5.4m financing.(Brief Article)
May 8, 2002... PARIS -- GenOway SA signed a nonexclusive agreement with the French pharmaceutical company Servier for the in vivo validation of a number of therapeutic gene targets. At the same time, Lyon-based GenOway is engaged in another funding round...

Reprogramming technique raises hopes of adult skin cell therapy.(Brief Article)
May 8, 2002... LONDON -- The idea of being able to take someone's skin cells and turn them into nerve cells to treat a neurological disease in the same person has inched closer. Scientists based in Norway, in collaboration with the biotechnology company...

EU advisers support stem cell research, cautious on patents.(European Union)(Brief Article)
May 8, 2002... BRUSSELS, Belgium -- The European Union's principal advisory committee on ethics has come out strongly in favor of stem cell research. Patents on stem cells enable further research, the committee said unambiguously in an opinion delivered...

Screentec signals discovery ambitions with name change.(Brief Article)
May 8, 2002... Dutch biotechnology firm Screentec has a new name. The Leiden-based company is now called Kiadis BV, a move intended to underscore the company's goal of adding drug discovery to its high-throughput molecular screening and analysis capabilities....

Atox Bio. (Other News To Note).(Brief Article)
May 8, 2002... * Atox Bio, of Jerusalem, was awarded a $3.1 million research grant from the U.S. Department of Defense to jointly develop and commercialize treatment that would prevent the deadly sequelae of toxic shock caused by Staphylococcal and...

Biotie Therapies Oyj. (Other News To Note).(Brief Article)
May 8, 2002... * Biotie Therapies OyJ, of Turku, Finland, said the district court of Helsinki dismissed an action brought against it by Orion Corp., of Espoo. Orion, Finland's largest pharmaceutical company, had sought to have transferred to it a set of...

Cambridge Antibody Technology Group plc, of Melbourn, UK, said it bought out its royalty agreement with Drug Royalty Corp. Inc., of Toronto. (Other News To Note).(Brief Article)
May 8, 2002... * Cambridge Antibody Technology Group plc, of Melbourn, UK, said it bought out its royalty agreement with Drug Royalty Corp. Inc., of Toronto. The move follows CAT's offer to buy DRC, which failed last week when Inwest Investment Ltd. acquired...

Cyprotex plc. (Other News To Note).(Brief Article)
May 8, 2002... Cyprotex plc, of Macclesfield, UK, said Mark Egerton, formerly vice president of European business operations for Incyte Genomics Inc., will become its CEO. Cyprotex, which joined the Alternative Investment Market in London in February,...

Diversys Ltd. (Other News To Note).(Brief Article)
May 8, 2002... * Diversys Ltd., of Cambridge, UK, said it is changing its name to Domantis. The company said the change reflects its focus on domain antibody technology. Diversys was established in December 2000 to develop domain antibodies, the smallest...

Inforsense Ltd. (Other News To Note).(Brief Article)
May 8, 2002... * Inforsense Ltd., of London, announced the latest version of Kensington Discovery Edition, a software platform for industrial-scale discovery management, which provides a unified platform for data integration, data analysis and discovery...

Ionix Pharmaceuticals Ltd., of Cambridge, UK. (Other News To Note).(Brief Article)
May 8, 2002... * Ionix Pharmaceuticals Ltd., of Cambridge, UK, signed an agreement with Tripos Inc., of St. Louis, to collaborate on the design and synthesis of inhibitors of an Ionix drug target. The companies will work on an ion channel target that is...

IsoTis BV. (Other News To Note).(Brief Article)
May 8, 2002... * IsoTis BV, of Bilthoven, the Netherlands, said it exercised its option to acquire the PolyActive patent portfolio from the U.S. company Osteotech Inc., for $1 million. PolyActive is a family of biodegradable and biocompatible polymers, which...

Proteome Sciences' data show sensitivity, specificity in test.(Brief Article)
May 8, 2002... LONDON -- Proteome Sciences plc announced new data for its stroke proteomics marker in blood that show the test is sensitive and specific enough to be used in clinical applications. The latest results, based on trials at the University...

Personal Chemistry purchases ESyTech to extend platform.(Brief Article)
May 8, 2002... Personal Chemistry Uppsala AB, a privately held Swedish firm that has developed an automated platform for medicinal and combinatorial chemistry, made its first acquisition, ESyTech AB, of Lurid, Sweden. Financial terms were not disclosed,...

Cerep completes drug target validation under 1999 BMS deal.(Brief Article)
May 8, 2002... PARIS -- Cerep SA completed the validation of drug targets for Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. under the research collaboration agreement they signed in October 1999. The most advanced leads Cerep provided the New York-based pharmaceutical...

MMI raises 1.6m [pounds sterling] in placement to finance start-ups, incubators.(Brief Article)
May 8, 2002... LONDON -- The technology management company MMI Group raised 1.6 million [pounds sterling] (US$2.3 million) in a placing of 4 million new shares with three new institutional investors, to finance further development of its biotechnology...

Oxford GlycoSciences plc. (Other News To Note).(Brief Article)
May 8, 2002... * Oxford GlycoSciences plc, of Abingdon, UK, announced a 36-month update on its monotherapy trial of Vevesca (OGT 918) in the treatment of type 1 Gaucher's disease, showing the 13 patients who continued to take the orally available drug showed...

Pharming Group NV. (Other News To Note).(Brief Article)
May 8, 2002... * Pharming Group NV, of Leiden, the Netherlands, said it is making significant progress on restructuring following its filing for legal protection from bankruptcy in August. Announcing its annual results last week, the company said it has...

Trigen Ltd. (Other News To Note).(Brief Article)
May 8, 2002... * Trigen Ltd., of London, transferred the drug discovery group of the Thrombosis Research Institute, also in London, to its own operations. The transfer involves a group of scientists who were involved in the development of Trigen's lead...

Government details growth of German biotechnology industry.
May 15, 2002... MUNICH, Germany -- Presenting the German government's annual report on the biotechnology sector's development, Edelgard Bulman, federal minister for research, said the number of biotech companies in Germany rose from 332 to 365 in 2001. ...

ESBATech raises CHF10.5m for yeast cell screening assays.
May 15, 2002... Swiss biotechnology firm ESBATech AG closed its first major funding round, six months after originally disclosing the investment. The Zurich-based firm raised a total of CHF10.5 million (US$6.5 million) from a consortium led by Lombard...

ExonHit, Roche to develop BSE tests for live cattle.(bovine spongiform encephalopathy)
May 15, 2002... PARIS -- French gene profiling company ExonHit Therapeutics SA signed a research contract with Roche Applied Science for the development of tests to diagnose bovine spongiform encephalopathy in living animals. The collaboration will bring...

Matrix Therapeutics PLC, of Nottingham, UK, agreed to a research deal with Glycores SRL. (Other News to Note).(Brief Article)
May 15, 2002... * Matrix Therapeutics plc, of Nottingham, UK, agreed to a research deal with Glycores SRL, of Milan, Italy, giving Matrix rights to a number of oligosaccharide drug candidates developed by Glycores, in the treatment of cancer and inflammatory...

Oxford BioMedica PLC. (Other News to Note).(has research collaboration with London's Institute of Ophthalmology)(Brief Article)
May 15, 2002... * Oxford BioMedica plc, of Oxford, UK, announced a research collaboration with the Institute of Ophthalmology in London to develop products to treat age-related macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy based on Oxford BioMedica's gene...

ReNeuron Holdings PLC. (Other News to Note).(receives two gene therapy patents)(Brief Article)
May 15, 2002... * ReNeuron Holdings plc, of Guildford, UK, which uses stem cells to treat central nervous system diseases, said it received notices of allowance on two U.S. patents. The first relates to a way to make cells divide indefinitely using two...

Ark delays initial public offering due to unfavorable conditions.
May 22, 2002... LONDON -- Ark Therapeutics Group plc postponed its initial public offering on the London Stock Market, blaming "unusually adverse market conditions." The move is a blow for the European biotechnology sector overall. Several other companies...

Rational drug discovery approach looks promising for Alzheimer's.
May 22, 2002... LONDON -- Hopes that there will one day be a safe and effective drug to treat Alzheimer's disease have been boosted by news of a compound that can strip a protein that plays a key role in the disease from the blood and tissues. Researchers...

European Parliament endorses part of Biotech spending plan.
May 22, 2002... BRUSSELS, Belgium--Biotechnology's chances of major European Union research funding moved two steps forward--but one step back--when the European Parliament voted last week on the EUR16 billion (US$14.7 billion) program the EU is planning for...

Genome Express offers bacterial genomics sequencing service.
May 22, 2002... PARIS -- Genome Express is developing a platform for the sequencing and annotation of bacterial genomes and plans to offer a "one-stop-shop" service to the health care, agro-food and environmental industries. Genome Express supplies...

Speedel moves SPP 301 into Phase II pilot studies.
May 22, 2002... Speedel Development AG, a subsidiary of Speedel Holding AG, of Basel, Switzerland, moved its oral endothelin A receptor antagonist SPP 301 into Phase II pilot studies following the successful conclusion of Phase I studies in healthy volunteers....

Celltech picks Amgen to help advance osteoporosis program.
May 22, 2002... LONDON -- Celltech Group plc and Amgen Inc. entered a collaboration to develop antibody treatments for osteoporosis, focusing on sclerostin, a protein target involved in the regulation of bone deposition that was discovered at Celltech's...

HGS gets exclusive development rights to CAT cancer antibody.
May 22, 2002... LONDON -- Cambridge Antibody Technology Group plc said that Human Genome Sciences Inc. exercised an option for the exclusive development of TRAIL-R2 MAb, discovered by CAT, in the treatment of cancer. TRAIL-R2 MAb is the third CAT antibody...

CeNeS releases positive interim results of CNS5161 in Phase II.
May 22, 2002... LONDON -- CeNeS Pharmaceuticals plc announced positive interim results from Phase II trials of CNS5161, an ion channel blocker for the treatment of neuropathic pain, and said it would go ahead with a multicenter Phase II proof-of-concept trial....

Enact acquires rights to cytoxic, prepares to file for approvals.
May 22, 2002... LONDON -- Enact Pharma plc said it acquired marketing rights to CPG2 for the treatment of methotrexate toxicity from the Centre for Applied Microbiology and Research (CAMR) and is now ready to file for U.S. and European marketing approval of...

Amaxa GmbH, of Cologne, Germany, entered into an open-ended strategic partnership with Wako Pure Chemical Industries, of Osaka, Japan, under which Wako will exclusively distribute Amaxa's technology in Japan. (Other News To Note).
May 22, 2002... Amaxa GmbH, of Cologne, Germany, entered into an open-ended strategic partnership with Wako Pure Chemical Industries, of Osaka, Japan, under which Wako will exclusively distribute Amaxa's technology in Japan. Founded in 1998, Amaxa focuses on...

Berna Biotech Ltd. (Other News To Note).
May 22, 2002... Berna Biotech Ltd., of Berne, Switzerland, said it received orphan status in the U.S. for its Aerugen vaccine against Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection. It attained the same designation for the product, which targets up to 95 percent of P....

GeneScan Europe AG. (Other News To Note).
May 22, 2002... GeneScan Europe AG, of Freiburg, Germany, introduced to the market a service for pharmacogenetic profiling test subjects and patients taking part in clinical trials. The genotyping is based on a proprietary biochip technology that identifies 39...

MorphoSys AG, of Martinsried, Germany, extended its antibody development agreement with ProChon Biotech Ltd., of Rehovot, Israel. (Other News To Note).
May 22, 2002... MorphoSys AG, of Martinsried, Germany, extended its antibody development agreement with ProChon Biotech Ltd., of Rehovot, Israel. MorphoSys obtained exclusive rights to a portfolio of anticancer antibodies from ProChon for development and...

NST-NeuroSurvival Technologies Ltd. (Other News To Note).
May 22, 2002... NST-NeuroSurvival Technologies Ltd., of Petach Tikva, Israel, approved Eli Hurwitz as its company chairman. Hurwitz, the former chairman of Teva Pharmaceuticals Ltd., will focus on defining the business strategy for NST, which is developing...

Pharmexa A/S. (Other News To Note).
May 22, 2002... Pharmexa A/S, of Horsholm, Denmark, said it planned to undertake U.S. clinical trials of its AutoVacHER-2 Protein pharmaccine for breast cancer, following pre-investigation new drug consultations with the FDA. The company expects to initiate...

SkyePharma plc, of London, announced it is stepping up its collaboration with Kowa Company Ltd., of Japan, for the formulation and manufacture of NK-104, Kowa's lipid-lowering drug, which is currently in Phase III trials. (Other News To Note).
May 22, 2002... SkyePharma plc, of London, announced it is stepping up its collaboration with Kowa Company Ltd., of Japan, for the formulation and manufacture of NK-104, Kowa's lipid-lowering drug, which is currently in Phase III trials. Kowa will invest 25.3...

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (Other News To Note).
May 22, 2002... Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., of Jerusalem, said that the multiple sclerosis drug Copaxone (glatiramer acetate injection) Pre-Filled Syringe has received notice of compliance from Health Canada, clearing it for distribution.

Vernalis Group plc, of Winnersh, UK, said it has agreed to a third research agreement with F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd., of Basel, Switzerland, to discover and develop drugs for the treatment of anxiety and depression. (Other News To Note).
May 22, 2002... Vernalis Group plc, of Winnersh, UK, said it has agreed to a third research agreement with F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd., of Basel, Switzerland, to discover and develop drugs for the treatment of anxiety and depression. Roche is making a loan of 7...

Genset chairman resigns, is succeeded by Vasseur.
May 22, 2002... PARIS -- The chairman and CEO of Genset SA, Andre Pernet, resigned and has been succeeded by Marc Vasseur, who returned to the company in March as senior vice president, in charge of the development program for central nervous system diseases....

Australian states compete in separate biotech initiatives.
May 22, 2002... SYDNEY, Australia -- Two Australian states are continuing what amounts to a rivalry in biotechnology by recently announcing major, separate initiatives that add up to A$168.7 million (US$91 million) funding for biotechnology over a number of...

IDM receives approval for ovarian cancer therapy trial.
May 22, 2002... PARIS -- Immuno-Designed Molecules SA has been authorized by the FDA to conduct a Phase III trial in the U.S. of a cell therapy for ovarian cancer. The product, IDM-1 (or Osidem), is a cellular immunotherapy designed to eliminate residual...

Berna Biotech paying EUR279m in cash, shares for Rhein Biotech.
May 29, 2002... Switzerland's Berna Biotech Ltd. is acquiring Rhein Biotech NV, of the Netherlands, in a combined cash and shares deal valued at EUR279 million (US$257 million). The transaction would create a pan-European vaccines powerhouse that aims to...

Israeli Biotech industry would get boost from return of FDA.
May 29, 2002... ZICHRON YA'AKOV, Israel -- The U.S. FDA ban on sending authorized inspectors to Israel since December 2000 is about to be lifted, according to U.S. Embassy sources in Tel Aviv. Official visits will re-commence within a few months, with the...

Blair wants UK to be leader in stem cells, other scientific work.
May 29, 2002... LONDON -- Prime Minister Tony Blair vowed to make the UK "the best place in the world" to carry out stem cell research, attracting scientists from overseas to join UK researchers to develop therapies for brain and spinal cord repair and...

KS Biomedix stops development of KSB302, enters TransMID deal.
May 29, 2002... LONDON -- KS Biomedix Holdings plc said it is dropping its lead product in inflammatory diseases, KSB302 for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, after a Phase lib study failed to reach its primary endpoint. However, the company, based in...

Alizyme plc. (Other News To Note).
May 29, 2002... Alizyme plc, of Cambridge, UK, said the Phase Ib clinical trial of ATL-i04 in the treatment of mucositis, using healthy volunteers, showed repeat dosing with the compound was safe and well tolerated. The company is now seeking approval for a...

BioFocus plc of Sittingbourne, UK, signed an agreement with Japan-based Daiichi Pharmaceutical to undertake computational and synthetic chemistry of lead compounds identified by Daiichi. (Other News To Note).
May 29, 2002... BioFocus plc of Sittingbourne, UK, signed an agreement with Japan-based Daiichi Pharmaceutical to undertake computational and synthetic chemistry of lead compounds identified by Daiichi. It is BioFocus' fifth partnership with a Japanese...

BioProjects International plc. (Other News To Note).
May 29, 2002... BioProjects International plc, of London, a biotechnology investment specialist, joined the Alternative Investment Market, London's junior market, with a placing of 75 million shares at 6 pence per share, raising 4.5 million [pounds sterling]...

Biotie Therapies Oyj. (Other News To Note).
May 29, 2002... Biotie Therapies Oyj, of Turku, Finland, said the Finnish National Technology Agency (Tekes) provided EUR3.6 million (US$3.4 million) in funding to support its drug development projects. The cash, which covers the period from October 2001 to...

Celltech plc. (Other News To Note).
May 29, 2002... Celltech plc, of Slough, UK, reported that in a pilot study involving 92 patients with active Crohn's disease, 47 percent of patients treated with a single infusion of CDP 870 achieved remission, compared with 20 percent in the placebo group....

Cyclacel Ltd. (Other News To Note).
May 29, 2002... Cyclacel Ltd., of Dundee, UK, said it is expanding the focus of its cell cycle technology beyond the current interest in cancer. It started a trial of its lead drug CYC202 in glomerulonephritis, a group of inflammatory diseases of the kidney....

Immuno-Designed Molecules SA. (Other News To Note).
May 29, 2002... Immuno-Designed Molecules SA, of Paris; its Canadian subsidiary, IDM-Biotech Limitee, of Montreal; and McGill University inaugurated a cell preparation center at the Center for Experimental Cancer Therapies, part of the Hopital General Juif,...

Business leaders seek better climate for R&D support in EU. (European Union Roundup).
May 29, 2002... BRUSSELS, Belgium -- Europe's business leaders made a new plea to the European Union on Tuesday for greater support for innovation, particularly in the field of biotechnology and life sciences. Representatives of the EU business and...

EU designates three more drugs as orphan.
May 29, 2002... The European Union has designated three more biotechnology products as orphan medicines: Bryostatin-1 from GPC Biotech of Germany, for the treatment of esophageal cancer; recombinant human alpha-1-antitrypsin from Baxter of Germany, for the...

UNICE says new patent system inadequate.
May 29, 2002... The European business federation, UNICE, has also warned that the EU's plan for a simplified European patent application system may fall short of expectations unless further changes are made to the proposals. The new system, a "Community...

Bavarian Nordic seeks DKK83m in rights issue of 1.2m shares.
May 29, 2002... Danish vaccine development firm Bavarian Nordic A/S is looking to raise a maximum of DKK83 million in a rights issue of up to 1,185,115 new shares, which have been priced at DKK70 per share. Several existing shareholders have committed to...

NicOx enters licensing deal with Axcan covering NCX 1000.
May 29, 2002... PARIS -- NicOx SA signed a co-development and licensing agreement with the Canadian pharmaceutical company Axcan Pharma covering NCX 1000, a nitrate derivative of ursodiol7, which NicOx is developing for the treatment of chronic hepatic...

Shareholders maneuver shakeup on Amrad's board before meeting.
May 29, 2002... SYDNEY, Australia -- A major board fight in one of Australia's largest biotech companies has been settled peacefully by the parties involved, with the resignation and replacement of two board members and a change in the company's chairman. The...

Oxford GlycoSciences names Ebsworth to replace CEO.
May 29, 2002... LONDON -- Oxford GlycoSciences plc announced that a heavyweight from big pharma, David Ebsworth, former head of the Pharmaceutical Business Group of Bayer AG, is to be its new CEO. He replaces Michael Kranda, who announced in March that he was...

Genostar consortium unveils genomics, proteomics platform.
May 29, 2002... PARIS -- The French Genostar consortium unveiled its computerized research and analysis platform for exploratory genomics and proteomics before a gathering of bioinformatics specialists here last week. Described as an integrated tool for...

Euroscreen, Pfizer enter deal centered on CCR5 receptor.
May 29, 2002... PARIS -- Euroscreen SA signed a licensing agreement with Pfizer Inc. that gives Pfizer access to the Belgian company's patent rights covering CCR5, a specific G protein-coupled receptor. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. ...

Atugen, Byk Gulden collaborate on validation of genetic targets.
May 29, 2002... MUNICH, Germany -- Atugen AG began a three-year collaboration with Byk Gulden to validate a number of novel genetic targets associated with cancer and immunological diseases. The collaboration follows the successful completion of a target...

Meridian Bioscience Inc., of Cincinnati, said it signed a letter of intent to acquire the outstanding stock of Biotrin Holdings plc, of Dublin, Ireland. (Other News to Note).
May 29, 2002... Meridian Bioscience Inc., of Cincinnati, said it signed a letter of intent to acquire the outstanding stock of Biotrin Holdings plc, of Dublin, Ireland. Terms of the deal, which is expected to close early next month, were not disclosed,...

Modus Biological Membranes Ltd. (Other News to Note).
May 29, 2002... Modus Biological Membranes Ltd., of Rehovot, Israel, is planning a $15 million financing round this year, according to Tel Aviv-based Alon Technology Venture Fund CEO Dan Gilat. Modus Biological develops products and drugs that eliminate...