WASHINGTON -- A bill that would have imposed a two-year moratorium on animal patents "is in the Judiciary Committee, where it will die a slow death," a staffer for the bill's sponsor, Sen. Mark Hatfield, R-Ore., told BioWorld. "It never had any action there," the staffer lamented. "I don't know if anyone in Congress shares the senator's concerns on this issue." "I'm rather pleased," David Winter, president and chief operating officer of GenPharm International Inc. of Mountain View, Calif., told
The first animal model for sickle cell anemia was announced this week at the annual meeting of the National Sickle Cell Disease Program in Philadelphia. Developed by biologists at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, the genetically engineered mice carry defective hemoglobin that can cause red blood cells to warp and clog capillaries. "It's a significant achievement," said hemoglobin researcher Marty Emanuele, vice president of preclinical research and
Michael Kishbauch was appointed president and chief operating officer of MedImmune Inc. of Gaithersburg, Md. Kishbauch, who joined the company as executive vice president last December, succeeds Wayne Hockmeyer, who is now chairman and chief executive officer. Nils Johannesson was elected president of Viratek Inc. of Costa Mesa, Calif., the pharmaceutical development subsidiary of ICN Pharmaceuticals Inc. Johannesson is also vice president of research and development and new products for SPI
British Bio-technology Group plc (BBG) and InSite Vision Inc. announced Tuesday that they have agreed to evaluate BB-882, British Bio-tech's PAF antagonist, as an ocular anti- inflammatory agent. This is an expansion of the agreement between the two companies on developing ocular delivery methods for BBG's platelet activating factor (PAF) antagonists, which it develops using computerized molecular modeling and rational drug design techniques. InSite Vision of Alameda, Calif., and British Bio
CellPro Inc. announced Tuesday that it has completed patient enrollment in the Phase III licensing trial of its Ceprate SC stem cell concentration system in autologous bone marrow transplantation to treat patients with breast cancer. The multicenter Phase III trial, which enrolled a total of 94 patients since its inception in June 1992, was designed to determine whether stem cells purified from bone marrow with CellPro's system engraft as well as whole bone marrow, and whether they show a
A private blood-preservation company has added another arrow to its quiver of patents covering freezing and use of blood cells with its eighth patent, issued Tuesday, which covers freeze-drying of human platelets. The process will have its main application in cancer patients, in whom aggressive chemotherapy suppresses bone marrow that creates platelets essential to clotting and prevention of internal bleeding, said Roger Hackett, Cryopharm Corp.'s corporate development director. The ability to
Focal Inc. announced Tuesday that it has been awarded a U.S. patent on a biodegradable, polymer-based system for "paving" the inner surfaces of body organs. The system, Pavent, is applied inside tubular organs such as blood vessels, the trachea or biliary ducts through catheters, after which it is thermally molded to conform to the lining of the vessel or organ. Once in place, Pavent is intended to act as a reconstructive support, a replacement for natural barriers eroded by disease or a means
Seragen Inc. (NASDAQ:SRGN) of Hopkinton, Mass., reported early data from its ongoing Phase I/II clinical trial of DAB389IL-2, an interleukin-2 receptor targeted fusion toxin, at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research in Orlando, Fla. The data showed early indications that the drug has anti-tumor activity in patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, cutaneous T cell lymphoma or Hodgkin's disease. (c) 1997 American Health Consultants. All rights reserved.
Poison oak and poison ivy are plants that nearly everybody in North America loves to loathe. But for the workers who cannot avoid the rash-inducing weeds, Allergene Inc. thinks it has an answer. The private San Mateo, Calif., company is presenting results today at the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists in Denver showing how mice were able to down-regulate their allergic reaction after treatment with a monoclonal antibody (MAb) that is expected to work more rapidly in
Celgene Corp. (NASDAQ:CELG) of Warren, N.J., has delivered to a customer the first of its fully equipped, mobile in-process biotreatment demonstration units. The unit, which provides automatic bioreactor controls and on-line monitoring of systems operations, is intended to demonstrate whether a company's biotreatment systems can effectively destroy certain toxic chemicals from process waste streams before the chemicals are released to the atmosphere or before the waste stream leaves the factory
Isis Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:ISIP) of Carlsbad, Calif., has been issued two new U.S. patents for novel chemical intermediates useful in the production of oligonucleotide drugs. The patents cover process chemistries that are aimed at increasing the capacity and lowering the cost of manufacturing oligonucleotides. One patent addresses a chemical intermediate for use with solution-phase synthesis of oligos, while the other covers certain chemical intermediates useful for either solid- phase or
Matrix Pharmaceutical Inc. initiated Phase III clinical trials today on its therapeutic implant for treating genital warts, MPI 5003. The Menlo Park, Calif., company said it expects to enroll about 400 patients with genital warts in the randomized, double- blind, placebo controlled, multicenter study. Patients will be evaluated for complete and partial treatment responses and will be monitored for an extended period after the end of treatment. Matrix (NASDAQ:MATX) reported the Phase II data on
Interneuron Pharmaceuticals Inc. announced Monday that it has submitted a new drug application (NDA) to the FDA on its anti-obesity drug dexflenfluramine. In connection with this submission, the Lexington, Mass., company (NASDAQ:IPIC) will receive $3 million, consisting of $2.5 million in cash and $500,000 through the purchase of Interneuron convertible preferred stock as a milestone payment from its sublicensee, American Cyanamid Co. (NYSE:ACY) of Wayne, N.J. Dexfenfluramine, which is an
Editek Inc. (ASE:EDI.EC) of Burlington, N.C. has begun shipping its Verdict One-Step Cannabinoid assay. (c) 1997 American Health Consultants. All rights reserved.
Immunomedics Inc. (NASDAQ:IMMU) of Morris Plains, N.J., announced that its monoclonal antibody-based colorectal cancer diagnostic imaging agent, ImmuRAID-CEA, was able to identify occult cancers in 80 percent of patients in whom tumors were strongly suspected but were undetected by conventional diagnostic imaging. Yehuda Patt of the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston presented the clinical data from the 15-patient Phase III study at the American Association for Cancer Research conference in
Genzyme Corp. has expanded its European presence in diagnostic products and services by signing an agreement with Luc Van den Brande, the prime minister of Flanders, Belgium, to open an office in Leuven. "Flanders has been traditionally renowned for innovative research in biotechnology through its extensive network of academic research institutions," commented Erik Tambuyzer, vice president, diagnostic business development, Europe, who is establishing the new European office for the Cambridge
Unigene Laboratories Inc. of Fairfield, N.J., said Monday that it plans to construct a Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) facility to produce pharmaceutical-grade calcitonin. The 32,000-square-foot facility, to be located in Boonton, N.J., will cost between $7 million and $8 million, the company said. The plant initially will be able to produce one-half to 1 kilogram annually of calcitonin, currently valued at about $5 million per kilogram. The plant may eventually produce up to 10 kilograms of
DynaGen Inc. announced Monday that it has netted close to $4 million in two separate private placements, totaling more than 1 million shares of common stock. RAS Securities Corp. and Thomas James Associates Inc. were the independent agents for the placements, which grossed about $4.02 million. DynaGen of Cambridge, Mass., is developing improved diagnostic tests for tuberculosis (TB), among other diseases. The company reported last week at the American Society of Microbiology annual meeting in
CytRx Corp. (NASDAQ:CYTR) of Norcross, Ga. has initiated a preliminary study in humans of its dermatological agent TherMax in experimentally induced allergic skin reactions. The study is designed to assess the anti-itching and anti- inflammatory properties of the drug. (c) 1997 American Health Consultants. All rights reserved.
United Biomedical Inc. of Hauppauge, N.Y., has received approval from the Ministry of Health of the People's Republic of China to begin clinical trials of its prototype synthetic AIDS vaccine. The trial, which will be in Yunnan Province, will evaluate the safety and immune-stimulating capacity of the vaccine in volunteers at high risk for HIV infection. Epidemiological investigations conducted by the Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine confirmed a high prevalence of HIV infection among
WASHINGTON -- A bill that would have imposed a two-year moratorium on animal patents "is in the Judiciary Committee, where it will die a slow death," a staffer for the bill's sponsor, Sen. Mark Hatfield, R-Ore., told BioWorld. "It never had any action there," the staffer lamented. "I don't know if anyone in Congress shares the senator's concerns on this issue." "I'm rather pleased," David Winter, president and chief operating officer of GenPharm International Inc. of Mountain View, Calif., told