• Helsinn Group, of Lugano, Switzerland, said new data presented at the European Haematology Association Congress in Berlin showed that a single dose of palonosetron, a second-generation 5-HT3 receptor antagonist, was effective and safe in preventing chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting in patients with aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, treated with cytotoxic agents. The result comes from a study conducted in Italy on behalf of the Italian Group of Study on Lymphomas. Palonosetron is a selective and potent serotonin antagonist.

• Merck & Co. Inc., of Whitehouse Station, N.J., said rolofylline missed its endpoints in a Phase III study in acute heart failure. Results from the 2,033-patient study showed the drug failed to improve symptoms of acute heart failure vs. placebo. Merck acquired rolofylline in its 2007 acquisition of San Diego-based NovaCardia Inc. for $350 million. (See BioWorld Today, July 26, 2007.)

• PolyMedix Inc., of Radnor, Pa., initiated dosing in a second Phase I clinical trial with its defensin mimetic antibiotic compound, PMX-30063. This second Phase I trial will assess the safety of PMX-30063 given repeatedly to healthy volunteers over a period of several days. Upon successful completion, PolyMedix plans to seek regulatory permission to test the drug on hospitalized patients with infection in Phase II studies. PMX-30063 is the first of a new class of antibiotic drugs that is believed to work in such a way that makes bacterial resistance unlikely to develop.