BioWorld International articles from September 2005

BioWorld International archives from September 2005

Algeta's series a gets 23m [euro] for alpha-emitting isotope.
September 7, 2005... Algeta ASA raised 23 million [euro] (US$28.8 million) in a Series A funding to continue development of its lead product, Alpharadin, a cancer therapeutic based on radium-223 (Ra-223), which is undergoing Phase II studies in skeletal metastases...

Genetically altered parasites give hope for malaria vaccine.
September 7, 2005... LONDON -- A live, genetically modified malaria parasite can induce immunity that protects against malaria infection in a laboratory model of the disease. All the mice given the altered parasites were protected against subsequent infection with...

Xigen raises CHF26m for peptide stroke therapeutic.
September 7, 2005... Xigen SA raised CHF26 million (US$21.1 million) in a Series A round to bring XG-102, a peptide-based stroke therapy, through proof-of-concept studies in man and to advance an early stage portfolio of oncology products toward the clinic. ...

Cerenis building pipeline with PPAR agonists from Nippon.
September 7, 2005... PARIS -- Cerenis Therapeutics SA signed a license agreement with Nippon Chemiphar Co. Ltd. for the development of small-molecule therapies based on PPAR delta agonists. The deal gives Cerenis, of Toulouse, France, and Ann Arbor, Mich.,...

SpinX Technologies raises 10m [euro] for microfluidics work.
September 7, 2005... SpinX Technologies SA raised 10 [euro] (US$12.5 million) in a Series B funding to continue development of its programmable microfluidics platform. The company will unveil its first prototype at the Society for Biomolecular Screening meeting in...

Ablynx NV, of Ghent, Belgium, said the European Patent Office upheld key claims for its Nanobodies platform in response to proceedings initiated by Domantis Ltd., of Cambridge, UK.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... Ablynx NV, of Ghent, Belgium, said the European Patent Office upheld key claims for its Nanobodies platform in response to proceedings initiated by Domantis Ltd., of Cambridge, UK. Nanobodies, a class of antibody-derived therapeutic proteins,...

Allergy Therapeutics plc.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... Allergy Therapeutics plc, of Worthing, UK, started in Canada a Phase II trial of an advanced formulation of its ragweed allergy vaccine. The new formulation incorporates MPL, an adjuvant that drives the balance of the immune response from TH2...

NovaThera produces lung cells from embryonic cells.
September 7, 2005... LONDON -- NovaThera Ltd. has produced lung cells from embryonic stem cells, bringing to three the number of different types of cells it has succeeded in generating, and paving the way for the development of large-scale, standardized GMP...

Antisoma plc.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... Antisoma plc, of London, reopened the Phase I trial of its aptamer drug AS141 1 and began enrolling patients with renal and non-small-cell lung cancer. The compound has orphan drug status in both indications.

Apollo Life Sciences Ltd.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... Apollo Life Sciences Ltd., of Adelaide, Australia, said its human-expressed interleukin-2, a protein involved in stimulating T-cell growth, performed six times better in a recognized test of bioactivity than a leading competitor's protein, and...

Arakis Ltd.(Other News To Note)(Brief Article)
September 7, 2005... Arakis Ltd., of Little Chesterford, UK, began a Phase IIb trial of AD452 in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. The 12-week study is designed to evaluate safety and efficacy of AD452 in patients with active RA who are receiving standard...

Astex Therapeutics Ltd., of Cambridge, UK, signed a new alliance with Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH, of Ingelheim, Germany, to discover, develop and commercialize drug candidates against undisclosed targets in different therapeutic areas.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... Astex Therapeutics Ltd., of Cambridge, UK, signed a new alliance with Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH, of Ingelheim, Germany, to discover, develop and commercialize drug candidates against undisclosed targets in different therapeutic areas. Under the...

Biacore International AB.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... Biacore International AB, of Uppsala, Sweden, launched its Biacore A100 and Flexchip systems. Both systems offer array-based protein interaction analysis.

BTG plc, of London, agreed to a collaboration with Collegium Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Cumberland, R.I., to develop CP-141, a modified oral formulation of an existing asthma drug.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... BTG plc, of London, agreed to a collaboration with Collegium Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Cumberland, R.I., to develop CP-141, a modified oral formulation of an existing asthma drug. The aim is to develop an extended-release product that can be...

DxS Ltd.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... DxS Ltd., of Manchester, UK, completed a pilot study for UK Biobank, showing the company's method of extracting, transporting and storing DNA from blood samples of volunteers taking part in the population genomics study produced material...

Evolutec Group plc, of Reading, UK, said the veterinary products company Merial Ltd., completed initial testing of Evolutec's anti-tick vaccine in cattle.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... Evolutec Group plc, of Reading, UK, said the veterinary products company Merial Ltd., completed initial testing of Evolutec's anti-tick vaccine in cattle. In the trial, levels of infestation with Boophilus ticks were significantly reduced....

Evolva SA, of Allschwil, Switzerland, acquired the pharmaceutical assets of Poalis A/S of Copenhagen, Denmark.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... Evolva SA, of Allschwil, Switzerland, acquired the pharmaceutical assets of Poalis A/S of Copenhagen, Denmark. Financial terms were not disclosed. The transaction does not include Poalis' flavor chemicals, food or agriculture activities.

ExonHit Therapeutics SA, of Paris, and Agilent Technologies Inc., of Palo Alto, Calif., signed an agreement for Agilent to distribute ExonHit's SpliceArrays.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... ExonHit Therapeutics SA, of Paris, and Agilent Technologies Inc., of Palo Alto, Calif., signed an agreement for Agilent to distribute ExonHit's SpliceArrays. ExonHit launched its SpliceArrays last February. Customers now can obtain the...

InforSense Ltd.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... InforSense Ltd., of London, said the National Cancer Institute selected the company's InforSense technology for high-throughput genetic data analysis in its oncology research.

Innate Pharma SAS.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... Innate Pharma SAS, of Marseille, France, received ISO9001:2000 certification for its research and development activity in immunotherapy. Innate Pharma specializes in cancer immuno-therapeutics and had developed immuno-modulating agents...

Inyx Inc., of New York, completed the acquisition of all of the outstanding shares of Ashton, UK-based Celltech Manufacturing Services Ltd., from UCB Group SA, of Brussels, Belgium.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... Inyx Inc., of New York, completed the acquisition of all of the outstanding shares of Ashton, UK-based Celltech Manufacturing Services Ltd., from UCB Group SA, of Brussels, Belgium. The companies agreed on a purchase price of 27.5 million...

Neuren Pharmaceuticals Ltd.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... Neuren Pharmaceuticals Ltd., of North Sydney, Australia, initiated a Phase II trial of its lead drug Glypromate. Recruitment has begun for the 30 patients involved in the trial, which is scheduled for completion at the end of 2005. The trial is...

Novagen Ltd.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... Novagen Ltd., of Sydney, Australia, expanded its U.S. subsidiary, Glycotex Inc., a business based on the development of wound-healing glucan compounds. The intellectual property used by Glycotex was developed by Graham Kelly, who agreed to step...

Peplin Ltd.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... Peplin Ltd., of Brisbane, Australia, initiated its U.S.-based Phase IIa trial to study increasing doses of its PEP005 topical product on actinic keratosis (AK), lesions that can lead to skin cancer. The trial is expected to assist in the...

Pharmacopeia Drug Discovery Inc., of Princeton, N.J., extended its 2002 collaboration with NV Organon, of Oss, the Netherlands, through 2007.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... Pharmacopeia Drug Discovery Inc., of Princeton, N.J., extended its 2002 collaboration with NV Organon, of Oss, the Netherlands, through 2007. The partnership has delivered multiple lead drugs that are moving into or have completed preclinical...

Pharmaxis Ltd.(Other News To Note)(Brief Article)
September 7, 2005... Pharmaxis Ltd., of Sydney, Australia, said results of its Phase II trial in cystic fibrosis patients showed that those receiving the company's Bronchitol had statistically significant improved lung function compared to placebo at the end of a...

Sareum Holdings.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... Sareum Holdings, of Cambridge, UK, launched Crystal Bank, a database of protein structure information for use in drug discovery. The bank contains therapeutically relevant protein targets, allowing Sareum to generate structural data showing how...

Solbec Pharmaceuticals.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... Solbec Pharmaceuticals, of Perth, Australia, said it was successful in securing an industry collaboration scheme grant from Edith Cowan University in Perth to identify a specific melanoma gene and allow for the potential development of a...

Tel Aviv Stock Exchange.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... Tel Aviv Stock Exchange changed rules for registration to better facilitate R&D companies to listing for trading. The change is part of an effort to encourage new high-tech and biotech companies to raise money in Israel, it said. The definition...

University College Dublin.(Other News To Note)(Brief Article)
September 7, 2005... University College Dublin will be the location of a 72 million [euro] National Institute for Bioprocessing, Research and Training (NIBRT), following a competitive bid process organized by IDA Ireland, the state agency responsible for foreign...

Vernalis plc.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... Vernalis plc, of Reading, UK, completed enrollment of 550 patients in a Phase III study of frovatriptan in the treatment of menstrually related migraine. First data from the trial are expected in the first half of 2006.

Xechem International Inc.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... Xechem International Inc., of New Brunswick, N.J., has formed Xechem UK Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary based in the UK, to expedite the distribution of Nicosan/Hemoxin for the treatment of sickle cell disease. The drug has been designated an...

Xenova Group plc, of Slough, UK, expects its listing on the London Stock Exchange to be cancelled as of Sept. 1.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... Xenova Group plc, of Slough, UK, expects its listing on the London Stock Exchange to be cancelled as of Sept. 1. Xenova board members agreed to a buyout in June for up to 26.1 million [pounds sterling] (US$47.5 million) by Celtic Pharma Group,...

York Pharma plc.(Other News To Note)
September 7, 2005... York Pharma plc, of Hitchin, UK, said it validated novel protease inhibitors discovered through its skin-barrier repair technology platform. The company is developing the inhibitors, which are non-steroidal and nonimmunomodulatory, in the...

Speedel gains stock listing in Zurich but raises no cash.
September 14, 2005... In keeping with its habit of doing things differently, Speedel Holding AG gained a stock market presence without raising any cash, simply by listing all of its issued shares Thursday on the Swiss Stock Exchange in Zurich. By the end of the...

TAP Pharmaceuticals ends license deal with Flamel.
September 14, 2005... PARIS -- TAP Pharmaceutical Products Inc. terminated the license agreement it started with Flamel Technologies in September 2004 for the use of the latter's Micropump technology to deliver Prevacid. Prevacid contains lansoprazole, a proton...

'Sorting protein' in brain might be risk factor for Alzheimer's.
September 14, 2005... LONDON -- The discovery of a molecule that might influence the development of Alzheimer's disease could open up new strategies for drugs to treat or even prevent it. The molecule, called sorLA, reduces the risk of senile plaques forming in...

NYSE stops Life Sciences Research IPO, rankles BIA.
September 14, 2005... LONDON -- The UK Biotechnology Industry Association wrote to the New York Stock Exchange to express "astonishment and disappointment" at the decision to pull the listing of Life Sciences Research Inc., the U.S. embodiment of the animal testing...

Agencies attempt to thwart research misuse by terrorists.
September 14, 2005... LONDON -- The UK's three leading bioscience agencies agreed to a common policy to prevent research they fund from being misused by bioterrorists. The Medical Research Council (MRC), the Wellcome Trust and the Biotechnology and Biological...

Ardana plc.(Other News To Note)
September 14, 2005... Ardana plc, of Edinburgh, UK, had a pre-investigational new drug application meeting with the FDA to discuss the development plan for its gonadatrophin-releasing hormone antagonist Teverelix LA in the treatment of prostate cancer, at which the...

Arrow Therapeutics Ltd.(Other News To Note)
September 14, 2005... Arrow Therapeutics Ltd., of London, UK, obtained clearance for its first investigational new drug application submitted to the FDA, allowing it to extend the Phase IIa trial of A-60444 for the treatment of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) into...

Bayer Healthcare AG, of Wuppertal, Germany, and InfoSense Ltd., of London, agreed that Bayer will use InfoSense's computer technology to process its data and applications to identify and optimize potential drug leads.(Other News To Note)
September 14, 2005... Bayer Healthcare AG, of Wuppertal, Germany, and InfoSense Ltd., of London, agreed that Bayer will use InfoSense's computer technology to process its data and applications to identify and optimize potential drug leads. Financial terms were not...

BioAlliance Pharma SA.(Other News To Note)
September 14, 2005... BioAlliance Pharma SA, of Paris, obtained approval from the FDA for its investigational new drug application to conduct a Phase III trial in the U.S. of its antifungal agent, miconazole Lauriad. The once-daily, extended-release, 50- mg...

No stem cells yet, but embryos from unfertilized human eggs.(BA Festival Of Science)
September 14, 2005... DUBLIN, Ireland -- Scientists in the UK have induced unfertilized human eggs to form embryos, opening up a potential new source of embryonic stem cells. To date, Paul De Souza and colleagues at the Roslin Institute in Scotland have...

BioSyntech Inc., of Laval, Quebec, closed its private placement of 7.5 million shares at a price of 80 cents per share by Nicholas Piramal India Ltd., of Mumbai, India.(Other News To Note)
September 14, 2005... BioSyntech Inc., of Laval, Quebec, closed its private placement of 7.5 million shares at a price of 80 cents per share by Nicholas Piramal India Ltd., of Mumbai, India. The $6 million financing is expected to provide funds for the company to...

Biotage AB.(Other News To Note)
September 14, 2005... Biotage AB, of Uppsala, Sweden, is seeking about SEK48.3 million (US$6.4 million) via a preferential rights issue directed at its shareholders. The company priced the offering of about 8 million new shares at SEK6 per share. The subscription...

BioVisioN AG, of Hanover, Germany, signed an agreement with Abbott Laboratories, of Abbott Park, Ill., to collaborate on the discovery of biomarkers for lung cancer.(Other News To Note)
September 14, 2005... BioVisioN AG, of Hanover, Germany, signed an agreement with Abbott Laboratories, of Abbott Park, Ill., to collaborate on the discovery of biomarkers for lung cancer. BioVisioN will analyze biological samples provided by Abbott to discover tumor...

CellCentric.(Other News To Note)
September 14, 2005... CellCentric, of Cambridge, UK, received new funding of 150,000 [pounds sterling] (US$276,569) from the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts. The investment will be used to increase the company's discovery capacity for...

Crucell NV.(Other News To Note)
September 14, 2005... Crucell NV, of Leiden, the Netherlands, and Aeras Global TB Vaccine Foundation in Bethesda, Md., initiated a series of clinical studies for their AdVac-based tuberculosis vaccine. The studies, which follow promising results for the vaccine...

Evolutec Group plc.(Other News To Note)(Brief Article)
September 14, 2005... Evolutec Group plc, of Reading, UK, said its complement inhibitor rEV576 was effective in treating myasthenia gravis in an animal model. One dose of the compound prevented paralysis and weight loss completely for five days. The company said...

Sharp increase of GM corn growing in France in 2005.
September 14, 2005... PARIS -- Commercial plantings of genetically modified corn have jumped dramatically in France in 2005. According to information volunteered by farmers to the Ministry of Agriculture, the area being used for GM corn totals 493 hectares this...

Gentium SpA.(Other News To Note)(Brief Article)
September 14, 2005... Gentium SpA, of Villa Guardia, Italy, will start a Phase III trial for Defibrotide for the treatment of hepatic venoocclusive disease, a life-threatening condition in which some of the veins in the liver are blocked as a result of toxic cancer...

Innocoll Inc., of Ashburn, Va., said its wholly owned subsidiary, Innocoll Technologies, entered an agreement with Medexis SA, of Athens, Greece, part of the Gerolymatos group of companies, for the development of a wound-healing product based on Innocoll's CollaRx membrane technology.(Other News To Note)(Brief Article)
September 14, 2005... Innocoll Inc., of Ashburn, Va., said its wholly owned subsidiary, Innocoll Technologies, entered an agreement with Medexis SA, of Athens, Greece, part of the Gerolymatos group of companies, for the development of a wound-healing product based...

Ipsogen SAS, of Marseille, France, and Genaissance Pharmaceuticals Inc., of New Haven, Conn., said they have signed agreements with two global pharmaceutical companies to focus on identifying biomarkers that might drive the response to cancer drugs.(Other News To Note)
September 14, 2005... Ipsogen SAS, of Marseille, France, and Genaissance Pharmaceuticals Inc., of New Haven, Conn., said they have signed agreements with two global pharmaceutical companies to focus on identifying biomarkers that might drive the response to cancer...

MorphoSys AG, of Martinsried, Germany, and Shionogi & Co. Ltd., of Osaka, Japan, signed a three-year agreement on the use of MorphoSys' HuCAL technology.(Other News To Note)
September 14, 2005... MorphoSys AG, of Martinsried, Germany, and Shionogi & Co. Ltd., of Osaka, Japan, signed a three-year agreement on the use of MorphoSys' HuCAL technology. MorphoSys grants Shionogi access to its HuCAL GOLD antibody library for drug discovery, in...

Nuevolution A/S.(Other News To Note)
September 14, 2005... Nuevolution A/S, of Copenhagen, Denmark, said Knud Aunstrup is stepping down as CEO, and he will be replaced by Alex Haahr Gouliaey. Nuevolution is a drug discovery firm that uses its Chemetics technology to generate small-molecule drug leads.

Peptech Ltd.(Other News To Note)
September 14, 2005... Peptech Ltd., of Sydney, Australia, signed an agreement with a biopharmaceuticals manufacturer to manufacture its anti-TNF domain antibody-based therapeutic for use in humans and in non-human preclinical studies. Peptech previously reported...

Plethora Solutions Holding plc.(Other News To Note)(Brief Article)
September 14, 2005... Plethora Solutions Holding plc, of London, said it completed enrollment for the Phase II study of PSD502 for the treatment of premature ejaculation. The double-blind, placebocontrolled trial is being conducted at eight centers in Europe to...

Prima Biomed Ltd., of Melbourne, Australia, agreed to allow its subsidiary, Arthron Pty. Ltd., to nonexclusively license use of its Fc receptor technology to Monrovia, Calif.-based Xencor Inc. for up to two years of research.(Other News To Note)(Brief Article)
September 14, 2005... Prima Biomed Ltd., of Melbourne, Australia, agreed to allow its subsidiary, Arthron Pty. Ltd., to nonexclusively license use of its Fc receptor technology to Monrovia, Calif.-based Xencor Inc. for up to two years of research. Terms call for...

Sangamo BioSciences Inc., of Richmond, Calif., agreed to provide Novo Nordisk A/S, of Bagsvaerd, Denmark, with access to its zinc finger DNA-binding protein (ZFP) technology to use in the field of enhanced protein production.(Other News To Note)
September 14, 2005... Sangamo BioSciences Inc., of Richmond, Calif., agreed to provide Novo Nordisk A/S, of Bagsvaerd, Denmark, with access to its zinc finger DNA-binding protein (ZFP) technology to use in the field of enhanced protein production. ZFPs are the...

SiBiono GeneTech Co. Ltd.(Other News To Note)
September 14, 2005... SiBiono GeneTech Co. Ltd., of Shenzhen, China, said a report in the September 2005 issue of Human Gene Therapy described the history of Gendicine, a recombinant adenovirus encoding p53 tumor-suppressor gene that has been approved to treat head...

Solbec Pharmaceuticals Ltd.(Other News To Note)
September 14, 2005... Solbec Pharmaceuticals Ltd., of Perth, Australia, said findings from its Phase I trail of Coramsine (SBP002) in the treatment of solid tumors showed that the primary endpoint of safety and tolerability was achieved, and that Coramsine was safe...

SpinX Technologies.(Other News To Note)(Brief Article)
September 14, 2005... SpinX Technologies, of Geneva, secured 10 million [pounds sterling] (US$12.5 million) in a Series B financing to support its "programmable microfluidics" platform to perform biological assays. The round was led by Bio Fund Management, with...

Stem Cell Sciences, of Edinburgh, Scotland, formed a major licensing deal with Deltagen Inc., of Redwood City, Calif., for use of SCS's internal ribosome entry site technology.(Other News To Note)
September 14, 2005... Stem Cell Sciences, of Edinburgh, Scotland, formed a major licensing deal with Deltagen Inc., of Redwood City, Calif., for use of SCS's internal ribosome entry site technology. In addition to an up-front license fee of $1.2 million, the...

TNO Pharma, of Leiden, the Netherlands, and Mitsubishi Pharma Corp., of Tokyo, entered a collaboration in which TNO will combine its expertise in siRNA-based, knockdown technology in disease models to further characterize a set of Mitsubishi's disease targets.(Other News To Note)
September 14, 2005... TNO Pharma, of Leiden, the Netherlands, and Mitsubishi Pharma Corp., of Tokyo, entered a collaboration in which TNO will combine its expertise in siRNA-based, knockdown technology in disease models to further characterize a set of Mitsubishi's...

Vernalis plc.(Other News To Note)
September 14, 2005... Vernalis plc, of London, said patient enrollment for its confirmatory Phase III efficacy study of frovatriptan for intermittent, short-term prevention of menstrually related migraine has been completed. Top-line data from the trial, and the...

Xigen SA.(finance)(Brief Article)
September 14, 2005... Xigen SA, of Lausanne, Switzerland, closed its Series A round, raising CHF26 million (US$21 million). The financing was led by Geneva-based Tilocor Life Sciences, Toronto-based Venture Incubator and Initiative Capital. Funds will be used to...

Sandoz files suit against FDA for non-action on Omnitrope.
September 21, 2005... LONDON -- Sandoz International filed a lawsuit against the FDA in a bid to force a ruling on the new drug application for Omnitrope, Sandoz's biogeneric form of recombinant human growth hormone. That matches a similar suit filed in Europe...

Speedel: SPP100 on track in U.S.; European filing delayed.
September 21, 2005... Speedel Holding AG remains on track to begin booking revenues in 2007 from sales of SPP100 (aliskiren), following the release Tuesday of positive data from several Phase III trials by its development partner, Novartis AG . However, the...

Synthetic particles aid cause of gene therapy systemic delivery.
September 21, 2005... LONDON -- Clusters of synthetic molecules can deliver a potent genetic therapy to tumors in laboratory tests, researchers working in Scotland showed. In preclinical models, the treatment caused tumors of the cervix and bowel to shrink and in...

Pharmagene changing focus through merger with Asterand.
September 21, 2005... LONDON -- Pharmagene plc is merging with its privately held U.S. counterpart Asterand Inc. and axing its therapeutics division in favor of becoming a dedicated human tissue supply and services company. Pharmagene will issue new shares worth...

RioTech brings in first funds: 750,000 [pounds sterling] for hepatitis C work.
September 21, 2005... LONDON -- RioTech Pharmaceuticals raised 750,000 [pounds sterling] (US$1.4 million) in its first private round, enabling it to finish preclinical development of a novel interferon product for treating chronic hepatitis C. The money, from...

Acadia Pharmaceuticals Inc.(Other News To Note)
September 21, 2005... Acadia Pharmaceuticals Inc., of San Diego, opened a chemistry research and development facility in Malmo, Sweden. The facility consolidates Acadia's presence in Scandinavia and provides increased access to a work force in the biotechnology hub...

Alkermes Inc.(Other News To Note)
September 21, 2005... Alkermes Inc., of Cambridge, Mass., said that its partner, Janssen-Cilag SpA, of Italy, received approval from the Italian Regulatory Authorities to market Risperdal Consta (risperidone) long-acting injection, an atypical antipsychotic...

Bio-Medisinsk Innovasjon AS.(enters into licensing agreement)(Brief Article)
September 21, 2005... Bio-Medisinsk Innovasjon AS, of Oslo, Norway, entered an exclusive global license and development agreement with London-based GlaxoSmithKline plc, concerning the 5-HT4 receptor antagonist piboserod (SB 207266). Under the agreement, BMI will be...

NicOx, Grupo Ferrer extend dermatology collaboration.
September 21, 2005... PARIS -- NicOx SA and the Spanish company Grupo Ferrer Internacional SA have renewed their research, development and marketing agreement covering the application of nitric oxide-donating corticosteroids to the treatment of dermatological...

Biomira Inc.(Other News To Note)
September 21, 2005... Biomira Inc., of Edmonton, Alberta, completed enrollment of a 20-patient Phase II, single-arm, multicenter, open-label study of BLP25 liposome vaccine, which is being developed with Merck KGaA, of Darmstadt, Germany. The trial will assess the...

Biovitrum AB.(Other News To Note)
September 21, 2005... Biovitrum AB, of Stockholm, Sweden, said its candidate drug for glaucoma, BVT.28949, entered a Phase I trial this month. The drug was developed within Biovitrum, and the trial will include about 60 healthy volunteers. The study is expected to...

Crucell NV.(Other News To Note)
September 21, 2005... Crucell NV, of Leiden, the Netherlands, received a 2 million [euro] (US$2.4 million) grant from the SenterNovem Innovation Subsidy for Collaborative Projects program of the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs. The grant supports a collaborative...

CuraGen Corp.(Other News To Note)
September 21, 2005... CuraGen Corp., of New Haven, Conn., and TopoTarget A/S, of Copenhagen, Denmark, started patient dosing in a Phase Ib, open-label, multicenter, proof-of-concept trial evaluating PXD101, a small-molecule histone deacetylase inhibitor, to treat...

Cyclacel Group plc.(Other News To Note)
September 21, 2005... Cyclacel Group plc, of Dundee, Scotland, agreed to grant an exclusive option to Cambridge, Mass.-based Genzyme Corp. to license two of Cyclacel's preclinical Cyclin-Dependent Kinase inhibitors for further development in renal diseases and...

Cytheris SA.(Other News To Note)
September 21, 2005... Cytheris SA, of Paris, started a fifth Phase I study in the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center of its lead compound, a recombinant interleukin-7, in patients with myeloid malignancies who underwent a T cell depleted allogenic hematopoietic...

Epitome Biosystems.(enters into licensing agreements)(Brief Article)
September 21, 2005... Epitome Biosystems, of Waltham, Mass., signed a licensing and development agreement with EMD Biosciences Inc., a unit of Darmstadt, Germany-based Merck KGaA, for products based on Epitome's EpiTag technology. Epitome will develop reagents for...

EvoGenix Ltd.(Other News To Note)
September 21, 2005... EvoGenix Ltd., of Melbourne, Australia, received worldwide licensing rights from South Korea-based DiNonA for an antibody for the treatment of leukemia. The antibody, discovered by researchers at the University of Seoul, targets certain forms...