Proceeds will fund a Phase III combination Reolysin and paclitaxel/carboplatin trial with platinum-failed head and neck cancers, as well as other clinical and R&D activities and general corporate purposes...The company expects to use the net proceeds of about $7.3 million to focus on regulatory and partnering activities for picoplatin, clinical development, other general corporate purposes and working capital...Those funds will be used for business development activities and other general corporate

The clinical trial, titled "CopperProof 2," will test the effects of a gastro-retentive, sustained-release zinc/cysteine combination tablet on the amelioration of subclinical zinc deficiency, and elevated percentage serum-free copper, associated with Alzheimer's disease...Noxxon Pharma AG, of Berlin,, has begun dosing healthy volunteers in a first-in-human trial with Spiegelmer NOX-A12 for use in autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma or multiple

In August, specialty pharma Cumberland Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Nashville, Tenn. - another company already pulling in revenues - made its $85 million debut. (See BioWorld Today, Aug. 12, 2009, and Oct. 2, 2009.) In other financings news...Stem Cell Therapeutics Corp., of Calgary, Alberta, entered an agreement with J.F. Mackie & Co

AspenBio Pharma Inc., of Castle Rock, Colo., priced a public offering of 4.5 million shares of common stock at $1.70 each...Human Stem Cell Institute, of Moscow, set the preliminary price range of between RUB 9 and RUB 11 (US30 cents and 37 cents) for its initial public offering on the Moscow Interbank Currency Exchange

The study is the second neural stem cell clinical trial for neurodegenerative diseases to be conducted in the U.S. A Phase I trial using the same type of neural stem cells was completed in January, with reported positive safety results and evidence that the cells engrafted into the brain

Acceleron Pharma Inc., of Cambridge, Mass., and Celgene Corp., of Summit, N.J., initiated a Phase II trial of ACE-011 in metastatic breast cancer patients with chemotherapy-induced anemia...MyoCell SDF-1 is a composition of myogenic stem cells derived from a patient's thigh muscle and modified to over-express the SDF-1 protein

The announcement came on a day that saw biotechs and their specialty pharma cousins announce news of more than $180 million in financings...Allostera Pharma Inc., of Montreal, secured a Series A financing of C$17 million (US$14.5 million...Zosano Pharma Inc., of Fremont, Calif., closed a new round of financing in the amount of $30 million

Stephen Parker, a partner in Celtic Pharma, said that assuming all milestones are met, the money is sufficient to take the three products through to clinical proof of concept and partnering...Stem Cell Therapeutics Corp., of Calgary, Alberta, has begun a program to encourage the early exercise of up to 17.2 million outstanding share purchase warrants for gross proceeds of up to $2.76 million

Acacia Pharma Ltd., of Cambridge, UK, said it started a Phase II study of APD405 in the prevention of postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV...Secondary clinical endpoints include time to clinical progression, safety and to measure changes in prostate-specific antigen blood levels

Amarillo Biosciences Inc., of Amarillo, Tex., has selected Accelovance Inc., a clinical research organization based in Rockville, Md., to conduct a human clinical study of the company's oral interferon product during the upcoming 2009-2010 influenza season in the U.S. The new Phase II trial will be a follow-up to the ongoing study at the University of Western Australia, which is already under way...Sucampo Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Bethesda, Md., a unit of Sucampo Pharma Ltd., has begun enrollment

BioAlliance Pharma SA, of Paris, said preclinical results of its oral irinotecan nanoparticle formulation in advanced colorectal cancer showed that the product was well tolerated when administered to animals...Geron Corp., of Menlo Park, Calif., said imetelstat (GRN163L), now in six clinical trials examining the safety, pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of the drug, alone or in combination with standard therapies, in solid tumors, chronic lymphoproliferative diseases, multiple myeloma, lung and

Staff Writer While both the investment and clinical communities eagerly await detailed data expected next week from Dendreon Corp.'s confirmatory Phase III trial of cancer vaccine Provenge (sipuleucel-T) in late-stage prostate cancer, the company presented data from an ongoing Phase III trial in earlier-stage patients...In addition to tracking the gene expression and molecular pathway change through the preclinical and clinical development of a drug, the Erlotinib results open up the possibility

Pluristem Therapeutics Inc., of New York, said it has completed several key steps in preparation for the upcoming clinical trial in Germany of its placental-derived stem cell product candidate PLX-PAD...Solasia Pharma KK, of Tokyo, has begun a Phase I study of SP-01, a long-acting transdermal granisetron patch branded as Sancuso) in Japanese volunteers

Deforolimus is being studied in multiple clinical trials, both alone and in combination with other therapies, in patients with several different types of cancer...Astellas Pharma Inc., of Tokyo, and XenoPort Inc., of Santa Clara, Calif., announced preliminary top-line results from a Phase II trial of ASP8825/XP13512 for the treatment of symptoms in moderate-to-severe primary restless legs syndrome patients...That is a first-in-man study of cardiopoietic stem cells developed to heal heart injury

Cardium Therapeutics Inc., of San Diego, reported clinical findings demonstrating the success of a DNA-based approach for the introduction of a normal adenosine deaminase gene into the hematopoietic stem cells of children with a rare form of severe combined immunodeficiency...Zealand Pharma A/S, of Glostrup, Denmark, said it moved ZP1848, a glucagon-like peptide-2 agonist, into a Phase I study designed to test the drug first as a single subcutaneous dose in healthy volunteers, followed by multiple

Acacia Pharma Ltd., of Cambridge, UK, reported the completion of its Phase I study of its product candidate APD 405, which is being developed for the prevention and treatment of nausea and vomiting, which remains a common problem after surgery and after treatment with many cancer chemotherapy drugs...The first Phase II trial will study the effects of multiple doses of CMX001 given to stem cell and kidney transplant recipients with BK viruria, a condition which may eventually lead to loss of the

The London-based pharma firm originally filed the NDA in September, based on data from three Phase III studies showing that the drug effectively treated symptoms of RLS, a condition characterized by burning, creeping, tugging or tingling sensations in the legs that forces movement to alleviate discomfort and often disrupts sleep...International Stem Cell Corp., of Oceanside, Calif., said it received the first $1 million tranche of an anticipated private equity financing of up to $5 million to be

Acceleron Pharma Inc., of Cambridge, Mass., and Celgene Corp., of Summit, N.J., said data from the ACE-011 Phase I study demonstrated that it increased biomarkers of bone formation, decreased biomarkers of bone resorption and increased hemoglobin levels in postmenopausal women...Cytokinetics said it anticipates that in early 2009 it will complete the delivery of the clinical data relating to the compound to Amgen Inc...Sucampo Pharma Ltd., of Japan, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sucampo Pharmaceuticals

The company's lead product, CPI-003, is an autologous adult stem cell product for myocardial infarction and is set to start clinical testing next year...LifeCycle Pharma A/S, of Horsholm, Denmark, reported positive data on LCP-AtorFen obtained in a 12-week Phase II study in approximately 220 patients with dyslipidemia