turned its attention to other candidates in its pipeline...In a preliminary prospectus supplement filed with the SEC May 7, the company said proceeds will be used to expand its drug development activities and to move certain candidates to later stages of development prior to partnering...continue to view shares as undervalued based on the >$1B potential of ISIS-SMN-Rx, as well as the promise of ISIS-TTR-Rx and Isis' 20+ other pipeline candidates," he wrote

In separate news, another Galapagos unit, Argenta, inked a deal with Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH, of Ingelheim, Germany, to apply its respiratory drug discovery services to an undisclosed target within Boehringer's respiratory disease portfolio...In other news, BioInvent said the first patient has been treated in a Phase II study of BI-505 for smoldering multiple myeloma, or asymptomatic myeloma

The news also adds to the growing fear that biosimilar drug development will prove trickier – and, perhaps costlier – than previously envisioned

In other news, law firm Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman LLC, of New York, said it is investigating claims on behalf of purchasers of Spectrum securities, after shares (NASDAQ:SPPI) fell as much as 38 percent on March 13 on news that the company slashed its revenue projections for colon cancer drug Fusilev (levoleucovorin...Sunshine Biopharma Inc., of Montreal, said it started negotiations with several contract manufacturing organizations for the GMP manufacturing of 1 kg of Adva-27a, its drug in

Celtic Therapeutics Management LLLP, of New York, changed its name to Auven Therapeutics Management LLLP to overcome confusion related to other Celtic entities...Clinigen Group plc, of Burton-on-Trent, UK, and Theravance Inc., of South San Francisco, entered an exclusive commercialization agreement in the European Union and certain other countries located in Europe for Vibativ (telavancin) in nosocomial pneumonia, including ventilator-associated pneumonia, known or suspected to be caused by

Zhangjiang Biotech Pharmaceutical Base will be able to consult with HUYA's experts in drug development and commercialization, while HUYA will have the first opportunity to evaluate certain R&D projects conducted at the base

Allergan intends to effect a short-form merger of Groundhog into MAP under Delaware law, with MAP becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of Allergan...QIDP designation is under the GAIN Act included in the 2012-passed FDASIA legislation and is designed to provide drug development with incentives for creating new antibacterial and antifungal drugs

Domainex Ltd., of Cambridge, UK, is seeking to raise £1.5 million (US$2.32 million) to advance its kinase-based drug development programs for TBK1/KKe and epigenetics targets...In both studies the JE vaccine was shown to be highly immunogenic in children/adolescents age 2 months to younger than 18 years with a safety profile comparable to pediatric vaccines licensed for other diseases

Net proceeds are expected to total about $314.5 – about $338.7 million if the underwriters' option is exercised in full – and will be used to pay the cost of note hedge transactions and for general corporate purposes...OPKO Health Inc., of Miami, priced its offering of $175 million aggregate amount of 3 percent convertible senior notes due 2033 in a private offering, OPKO said it intends to use proceeds for general corporate purposes, including R&D, acceleration of clinical trials, acquisitions of

Cancer Research UK's Drug Development Office in London and partner AstraZeneca plc, of London, opened a three-armed study testing AZD0424 in a Phase I trial expected to recruit up to 30 patients, initially across all solid tumor types...In other news, Boehringer Ingelheim said it enrolled the first patients in its Phase III interferon-free (IFN-free) program, HCVerso, testing its IFN-free polymodal regimen combining faldaprevir (BI 201335), a next-wave once-daily protease inhibitor, and BI 207127

In other news, Evotec said a compound identified and optimized in a research collaboration with Osaka, Japan-based Ono Pharmaceutical Co...In separate news, Janssen reported that the FDA's Endocrinologic and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee voted 10-5 late Thursday to recommend approval of canaglifozin, a selective sodium glucose co-transporter 2 inhibitor, to treat Type II diabetes in adults

It also licensed rights to an oral calcitonin tablet to Tarsa Therapeutics Inc., of Philadelphia, which is developing it for postmenopausal osteoporosis...Velocity Pharmaceutical Development LLC, of South San Francisco, entered a licensing agreement with EuMederis Pharmaceuticals Inc., of San Diego, to pursue a drug development program using EuMederis' EuPort technology, which optimizes the pharmaceutical properties of peptide drugs

to Firdapse, a drug in development for Lambert-Eaton myasthenic syndrome BioMarin agreed to invest $5M in Catalyst under a promissory note and note purchase agreement 11/1/12 Colby Pharmaceutical Co. (San Jose, Calif.) MannKind Corp. (Valencia, Calif.) $140 Deal for disease-specific antigen compounds and intra-lymph node injection (INLI) technologies from its MKC1106 cancer vaccine program Colby is paying up to $140M in up-front and milestone payments to MannKind, which also will receive tiered

BIT225 is designed to specifically target HIV in reservoir cells to stop the ongoing cycle of infection in the body...Those and other data were presented at the American Society of Hematology meeting in Atlanta

The HexaBody platform will be used to create differentiated antibody therapeutics, to improve the efficacy of existing antibody products and potentially to repurpose drug candidates that were unsuccessful in previous clinical trials due to lack of potency...The technology has the potential to enhance antibody therapeutics for a broad range of applications in cancer and infectious diseases, according to the company

The company expects to receive about $725,200 after sales commission and other expenses...SK Biopharmaceuticals, of Seoul, South Korea, said YKP10811, its treatment for chronic idiopathic constipation, was awarded funding from the Korea Drug Development Fund to support clinical development for the next two years...The Korea Drug Development Fund was established in September 2011 with assets of $1 billion to develop at least 10 new drugs by 2020

Distribution of Prothena ordinary shares in the demerger is conditioned upon, among other conditions to the demerger, a registration statement filed with the SEC, having been declared effective by the SEC and the affirmative vote of the Elan shareholders...Gentium SpA, of Villa Guardia, Italy, inked an agreement with the National University Corporation Hamamatsu University School of Medicine (HUSM), Fukushima Medical University and LINK Healthcare to provide drug and technical support to a clinical

Gentium SpA., of Villa Guardia, Italy, inked an agreement with the National University Corporation Hamamatsu University School of Medicine (HUSM), Fukushima Medical University and LINK Healthcare to provide drug and technical support to a clinical trial of defibrotide, a drug in development for veno-occlusive disease, in healthy adults

Lorus Therapeutics Inc., of Toronto, partnered with Cancer Research UK's Drug Development Office (DDO) and the charity's commercial arm, Cancer Research Technology, to move a cancer treatment into clinical testing...Spectrum has continued to increase the number of qualified third-party manufacturing sites approved for Fusilev production since the product was approved in 2011 for use in combination chemotherapy with 5-fluorouracil in the palliative treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer...The