Marion Merrell Dow Inc. could pay more than $60 million to ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. under a deal announced Wednesday to jointly develop ImmuLogic's allergy therapeutics. Under the preliminary agreement, MMD will purchase 1 million ImmuLogic shares for $18 million. In addition, MMD on Wednesday paid $1.2 million for a three-year option to buy 250,000 additional shares at $35 per share. ImmuLogic of Cambridge, Mass., has 8.8 million shares outstanding before the deal. The stock (NASDAQ
American Home Products Corp. and Alza Corp. have signed an agreement to develop and market pharmaceutical products using Alza's proprietary drug delivery systems. The agreement is a cash deal and "is a very long-term arrangement," said John Skuls, AHP's vice president of corporate affairs. Alza shares (AMEX:AZA) jumped $1.50 to $77.50 on the announcement. AHP and Alza will jointly select a large number of off-patent, generic drugs that appear most promising for use with Alza's drug delivery
Shares of U.S. Bioscience Inc. posted a second day of large gains Wednesday, rising $9.63 to close at $56.75, following Tuesday's announcement that the Food and Drug Administration will review the company's Ethyol product to protect normal cells from chemotherapy. The shares jumped $7.50 on Tuesday. The Ethyol announcement, coupled with news that U.S. Bioscience granted Schering-Plough Corp. marketing rights to five products, prompted analysts to raise earnings estimates for U.S. Bioscience
Genelabs Technologies Inc. has received a patent for diagnostic reagents that detect HTLV-I infection, a retrovirus that causes adult T cell leukemia/lymphoma, and HTLV-I associated myelopathy, a degenerative neurologic disorder. Testing for HTLV-I infection is required for all blood donated in the United States, France and Japan. The market exceeds $100 million worldwide, most of which is in the United States, said Dr. Edgar Engleman, chief scientific officer. The patent issued Tuesday, No. 5
Oncor Inc. on Wednesday said it has signed an exclusive worldwide licensing agreement with the University of Alabama for the p58 protein kinase gene, a potential tumor suppressor and an agent for diagnosis of certain cancers. "The p58 protein appears to be a gene that regulates the cell cycle, and very preliminary data strongly suggests that this is a tumor suppressor," said Jay George, Oncor vice president of research and development. "We will start preclinical studies in March to try to
Ribi ImmunoChem Research Inc. said Wednesday that a simple blood test may help predict which subgroup of patients will benefit most from its Melacine melanoma theracine. An interim analysis of Ribi's multicenter Phase II study showed a median survival of 41 months for the 50 percent of patients who had a 150 percent increase in white blood cells known as Leu 7 positive CTL after receiving Melacine. Patients who didn't show the same Leu positive response survived a median of 19 months. All
ImClone Systems Inc. defied the gravity of the market on Tuesday and raised $35 million through an initial public offering of 2.5 million shares of stock priced at $14 per share. The company, which is developing anti-idiotypic antibodies to treat cancers, recombinant hematopoietic growth factors and an interleukin-1 inhibitor, increased the offering by 500,000 shares. The IPO came on a day when biotech stocks again declined in morning trading before making a partial recovery. "The fact that
Shares of U.S. Bioscience Inc. rose $7.50 to $47.13 on Tuesday after the company announced that a Food and Drug Administration advisory panel will review Ethyol by Jan. 31. Ethyol protects normal tissue, including stem cells, from the effects of chemotherapy. Dr. Philip Schein, chairman and chief executive, said the drug's toxicity profile compares favorably with that of colony stimulating factors. CSFs, which stimulate stem cells to produce white blood cells, and Ethyol could be complementary
Iterex Pharmaceuticals announced Tuesday that it has closed a deal with Miles Inc. to collaborate on drug discovery using the start-up company's proprietary peptide screening, which can significantly cut the time needed to discover active peptides. Terms of the agreement and diseases to be targeted were not disclosed. Iterex technology creates mixtures of peptides that are systematically varied at each amino acid position along the sequence. The mixtures are then tested in established assays
ICN Pharmaceuticals Inc. on Tuesday said it has received approval from Hungary to sell the capsule form of its anti-viral ribavirin to delay onset of AIDS. The Costa Mesa, Calif. company (NYSE:ICN) in 1990 won authorization from Ireland to market the drug there for AIDS treatment. The patent on ribavirin, trade named Virazole, is held by Viratek Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRA), an ICN subsidiary. The drug is approved for use in the United States as an aerosol in infants and young children hospitalized for
VimRx Pharmaceuticals Inc. on Tuesday said it will expand Phase I testing of its hypericin drugs in AIDS to Boston Beth Israel and the University of Minnesota hospitals. In vitro studies of the drug showed it to prevent the spread of HIV from infected to uninfected cells. Stamford, Conn.-based VimRx has exclusive rights to all applications of hypericin technology developed at New York University and the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel. Phase I trials began in October at NYU and are
CellPro Inc. on Tuesday said it will expand Phase I/II trials of its stem cell concentrator to the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle. The Bothell, Wash., company said results of its initial trials at the University of Colorado, Denver, were "encouraging." The Ceprate SC System is used to concentrate and purify stem cells, the precursors of all blood cells, for reinfusion into cancer patients. Additional clinical sites for testing will be added early next year, the company said
Biotech stocks recouped some of Friday's losses during a Monday afternoon rebound, but market watchers predicted the sector has seen its high for the year and the next few months as well. Amgen Inc. gained back $3 after losing $5.50 on Friday. Gensia Pharmaceuticals Inc. rose $3 after falling $6, Immunex Corp. was up $3.63 after losing $6.75, and Synergen Inc. was up $4.25 after declining $8.75. Somatogen Inc. made up its $3.50 loss from Friday. Among the more speculative issues, Immune
Centocor Inc. said Monday that it has signed an agreement with Corvas International Inc. to jointly develop and commercialize monoclonal antibody products. Under the agreement, Centocor of Malvern, Pa., will acquire a worldwide exclusive license to Corsevin M, Corvas' first therapeutic product, which is in Phase I clinical trials to prevent and treat blood clotting in sepsis and shock. Corsevin M is a monoclonal antibody-based anti-thrombotic that binds to Factor VII, a factor involved in the
Noven Pharmaceuticals Inc. on Monday said it has granted Ciba-Geigy Corp. an exclusive U.S. and Canadian license to its transdermal estrogen delivery system. In exchange, Ciba-Geigy acquired warrants to purchase an undisclosed equity stake in Noven and has options to buy further warrants of Noven common stock. No further details were disclosed. The Miami biotech company (NASDAQ:NOVN) has a patented method to move drugs through the skin from the adhesive of a plastic skin patch. Cygnus
Mayo Clinic researchers have reported that patients who received California Biotechnology Inc.'s Auriculin peptide were less likely to develop signs of kidney impairment following radiocontrast diagnostic procedures. The preliminary results from Phase II tests of the atrial natriuretic peptide, used to prevent the kidney toxicity that can result from use of radiocontrast dyes, were reported Sunday at a meeting of the American Society of Nephrology. Defining dye-induced nephropathy as a 25
OncoRad 103 ovarian cancer treatment showed therapeutic responses among trial patients in ongoing Phase I testing, according to preliminary results announced Monday by Cytogen Corp. The trials also have enabled the company to devise a strategy for increasing the dosage of the isotope-linked monoclonal antibody. Of nine patients with advanced ovarian cancer enrolled in the trial so far, three showed encouraging responses to the antibody-linked Yttrium 90. All trial patients had failed to
Schering-Plough Corp. on Monday said it has sued Sterling Winthrop Inc., alleging that Sterling infringed Schering's patent on interleukin-4 by using the immune stimulant in the United States. The suit charges that Sterling intends to sell IL-4 in the United States prior to the patent's expiration. Immunex Corp. of Seattle had licensed its IL-4 to Montvale, N.J.-based Sterling, but has no patent on the protein, Immunex spokesman Jason Rubin told BioWorld. "I would say this suit is unnecessary
Stryker Corp. and Creative BioMolecules Inc. on Monday said they have received Food and Drug Administration approval to begin clinical trials of Stryker's Osteogenic Protein Device to repair non-union fractures. The device consists of a human recombinant osteogenic protein (OP-1) developed by Hopkinton, Mass.-based Creative BioMolecules and a bioresorbable carrier to provide a scaffold for bone growth. OP-1 probably stimulates the commitment of undifferentiated cells to induce the formation of
Genzyme Corp. said Monday that recombinant beta- glucocerebrosidase (r-GCR) has received orphan designation from the Food and Drug Administration to treat patients with types I, II and III Gaucher disease. The Cambridge, Mass., company plans to begin Phase I trials in the first quarter. Gaucher disease is a genetic disorder caused by insufficient activity of the beta-glucocerebrosidase enzyme. Genzyme's Ceredase, which is derived from human tissue, received FDA marketing approval in April for
Marion Merrell Dow Inc. could pay more than $60 million to ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. under a deal announced Wednesday to jointly develop ImmuLogic's allergy therapeutics. Under the preliminary agreement, MMD will purchase 1 million ImmuLogic shares for $18 million. In addition, MMD on Wednesday paid $1.2 million for a three-year option to buy 250,000 additional shares at $35 per share. ImmuLogic of Cambridge, Mass., has 8.8 million shares outstanding before the deal. The stock (NASDAQ