• Array BioPharma Inc., of Boulder, Colo., reported interim Phase I results showing that its oral HER2 (ErB2) inhibitor, ARRY-380, produced a partial response or stable disease in 29 percent of patients for six months or longer. Thirteen of 17 patients had measurable disease as defined by the RECIST criteria and of those patients, seven (54 percent) had regressions in target lesions. Results were presented at the 2010 ASCO Breast Cancer Symposium in National Harbor, Md.

• CureVac GmbH, of Tuebingen, Germany, reported data from a Phase I/IIa trial of its mRNA vaccine, CV9103, in hormone-refractory prostate cancer patients, showing that the vaccine was safe, well tolerated and biologically active. More than 70 percent of patients responded to at least one antigen out of the four antigens in CV9103. The trial evaluated a five-dose regimen delivered via intradermal injection in 44 patients.

• Enzo Biochem Inc., of New York, is starting a trial of Optiquel, its oral therapeutic for chronic noninfectious uveitis. The randomized, double-masked, placebo-controlled study will have a long-term follow-up. Optiquel, a specific immune modulator, has been awarded orphan drug status in the European Union.

• Neurologix Inc., of Fort Lee, N.J., reported data from its Phase II trial of NLX-P101, an investigational gene therapy product for advanced Parkinson's disease, showed that, in addition to statistically significant improvements over the entire blinded study period in the off-medication motor scores between the treated and sham groups on the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Sale Part 3, 75 percent of patients in the treatment group were considered to have had a meaningful response to NLX-P101, which is comparable to a response rate of 71 percent in a recent study of deep brain stimulation. Data were presented at the World Parkinson Congress in Glasgow, Scotland.

• VentiRx Pharmaceuticals Inc., of San Diego, completed a Phase I study of VTX-2337, its Toll-like receptor 8 agonist for oncology. The drug was found to be safe and well tolerated with a predictable pharmacokinetic profile in 33 patients and also showed dose-dependent pharmacologic activity. Data were presented at the International Society of Biological Therapy of Cancer meeting in Washington.