GW Pharma plc (NASDAQ:GWPH) commenced trading on May 1, pricing at $8.90, and closed at $8.88 Wednesday...And Lyon, France-based Erytech Pharma SA commenced trading in Paris at €11.60 per share, raising €16.7 million (US$21.4 million) for the company...The company's platform technology is designed to improve drug delivery into internal body cavities.

SONAR is a multinational, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical study that is expected to enroll more than 4,000 patients with diabetic nephropathy...Destiny Pharma Ltd., of Brighton, UK, reported progress in the Phase I U.S...The trial, sponsored by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), is being conducted at the NIAID Phase I Clinical Trials Unit at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland

Proceeds will be used to fund ongoing and new clinical trials and development and commercialization efforts for pimavanserin, as well as activities for other product candidates and for general corporate purposes...Kite Pharma Inc., of Los Angeles, said it closed a $20 million private placement of shares of its Series A preferred stock...Receptos will use the proceeds to support clinical work in multiple sclerosis, inflammatory bowel disease and allergic/immune-mediate disorders. (See BioWorld Today

BioAlliance Pharma SA, of Paris, reported the International Independent Board of Experts' data and safety monitoring board (DSMB) again recommended continuing the ReLive Phase III trial without modification...Mirna Therapeutics Inc., of Austin, Texas, has initiated a Phase I study of MRX34, the first miRNA to advance to a clinical trial for cancer

Eisai Inc., of Woodcliff Lake, N.J., said antiepileptic drug Fycompa (perampanel) showed a clear therapeutic benefit in difficult-to-treat patients with partial epilepsy, according to two new analyses of early clinical experience

clinical development plan and financial terms relating to ISIS-TTRRx to reflect an accelerated development plan for that antisense drug...Isis has 28 candidates in preclinical and clinical development across a wide variety of indications, with nine scheduled to report data in the next 12 months

The study, dubbed Gammaglobulin Alzheimer's Partnership, was conducted in collaboration with the Alzheimer's Disease Cooperative Study, a clinical trial consortium supported by the National Institute on Aging

Astellas Pharma Inc., of Tokyo, and Drais Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Bridgewater, N.J., will repeat for the third time a spinout maneuver that has been successful with two other programs in the past...In April 2012, Astellas transferred ownership of ASP3291, a melanocortin receptor agonist for ulcerative colitis, to Telsar Pharma Inc., with a $14 million investment by InterWest and Sutter Hill, to begin Phase IIa testing. (See BioWorld Today, Nov. 1, 2013.) And in June 2012, Drais partnered with

shored up its balance sheet in a $36 million private offering to advance pipeline work, including planned clinical trials of ARC-520, an RNAi-based drug in chronic HBV infection...The firm also has programs in two big pharma partnerships...Shares of Supernus (NASDAQ:SUPN) lost 3 cents Monday to close at $5.12.

Critics of the firm, too, have pointed to the lack of a big pharma partner to expand Qsymia's reach. (See BioWorld Today, Oct. 23, 2012.) Lief said Belviq already has picked up some momentum...The drug was included in a recent diabetes management report from the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists

AG014 comprises oral delivery of an anti-TNF antibody with proven clinical efficacy in IBD, resulting in local efficacy and an improved safety profile over systemic drugs...That's the sweet spot for a number of pharma companies...ERYtech Pharma SA, of Lyon, France, has had its prospectus accepted for a proposed initial public offering on the NYSE Euronext exchange in Paris

Coronado plans to use the proceeds to fund R&D, clinical trials and manufacture of supply as well as other corporate purposes...Eyevensys, of Paris, received an equity investment from the Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund, the venture arm of Ingelheim, Germany-based Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH, and said the big pharma's head of nonclinical R&D, Michel Pairet, was appointed to its board

The study was carried out to explore previous clinical findings with cabozantinib in castration-resistant prostate cancer patients with bone metastases showing a 67 percent rate of bone scan response and other clinical signs of effect...MEI Pharma Inc., of San Diego, presented data showing the ability of its mitochondrial inhibitor drug candidate, ME-344, to decrease tumor burden and delay recurrence in a preclinical in vivo model of recurrent epithelial ovarian cancer

Last month, it inked a deal with AbbVie, of Chicago, giving the big pharma firm an option to RPC4046 following the Phase II proof-of-concept trial in EoE...MEI Pharma Inc., of San Diego, priced a public offering of about 2 million shares of common stock at $7.50 apiece, a 9.5 percent discount to Thursday's closing price...Funds will be used to progress the clinical development program for lead candidate, Pracinostat, its oral histone deacetylase inhibitor for advanced hematologic malignancies, and for

Array BioPharma Inc., of Boulder, Colo., reported clinical data at the International Myeloma Workshop in Kyoto, Japan, showing that ARRY-520, a selective KSP inhibitor, demonstrated single-agent activity in heavily pretreated patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma, with 19 months median overall survival and a 16 percent overall response rate...Cerulean Pharma Inc., of Cambridge, Mass., will present Phase II data for investigational nanopharmaceutical product CRLX101 at the American

Erytech Pharma SA, of Lyon, France, said it received clearance of its investigational new drug application for a Phase I trial of Eryasp (L-asparagainase-loaded erythrocytes) in patients 40 years and older with newly diagnosed acute lymphoblastic leukemia...Novavax Inc., of Rockville, Md., said top-line data from its Phase II dose-ranging study testing its respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine candidate in women of childbearing age hit its protocol-specified objectives, supporting progression

The financing included both new and existing institutional investors, including Essex Woodlands, NovaQuest Pharma Opportunities Fund, Delphi Ventures, Vivo Ventures, Technology Partners, Shepherd Ventures, Bio*One Capital, Pac-Link Ventures and Palo Alto Fund...The latest round is expected to support ongoing clinical development of lead candidate, LiRIS (lidocaine releasing intravesical system), in development for patients with interstitial cystitis.

A big pharma partner could ease some of the pressure on Vivus...The funds will be used to advance Theraclone's clinical programs and support its I-STAR technology platform.

Another $406 million could come in the form of clinical, regulatory and commercial milestones, and Enanta would be eligible for tiered, double-digit royalties and a U.S...and London-based GW Pharma plc, which is seeking a Nasdaq listing and a capital raise. (See BioWorld Today, March 11, 2013, March 12, 2013, and March 20, 2013.) In other financings news...Net proceeds are expected to support clinical trial costs and acquisition of manufacturing equipment, leasehold improvements and general corporate