• Amphora Discovery Corp., of Los Altos, Calif., agreed to sell its entire program for an unnamed oncology target to South San Francisco-based Genentech Inc. Under the terms, Genentech acquired all of the intellectual property for the program, including the preclinical lead and several backup series. Specific financial terms were not disclosed.

• Anthera Pharmaceuticals Inc., of San Mateo, Calif., said the FDA approved the investigational new drug application for use of A-001 in hospitalized patients with sickle cell disease. The IMPACTS (Investigation of the Modulation of Phospholipase in Acute ChesT Syndrome) trial will be a multicenter Phase II study aimed at preventing a severe respiratory complication of sickle cell disease, acute chest syndrome. The double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, dose-escalation study will enroll up to 75 patients, ages 12 through adult, at various U.S. centers.

• AVI BioPharma Inc., of Portland, Ore., signed a cross-license agreement with Eleos Inc., of Omaha, Neb., for the development of antisense drugs targeting p53. Under the terms, AVI agreed to grant Eleos an exclusive license to its Neugene third-generation antisense chemistry to treat cancer with p53-related drugs. In return, Eleos is providing AVI an exclusive license to patents relating to the treatment of most viral diseases with p53-targeting drugs. Each company will make milestone and royalty payments, and Eleos is making an up-front payment of $500,000 to AVI.

• BaroFold Inc., of Boulder, Colo., said it granted a multisite research license to New York-based Pfizer Inc. for its PreEMT high pressure technology for solubilizing, disaggregating and refolding proteins. The technology is designed to provide improved, safety protein therapeutics. Financial terms were not disclosed.

• BioServe Biotechnologies, of Laurel, Md., signed a distribution deal with Merck Specialties Private Ltd., an Indian subsidiary of Darmstadt, Germany-based Merck KgaA. Under the terms, the Merck subsidiary will market and distribute BioServe's genomic products and services, including DNA and RNA purification reagents, DNA sequencing, oligonucleotide synthesis and molecular biology teaching kits in India, with plans to extend coverage across Asia this year. Financial terms were not disclosed.

• BioWa Inc., of Princeton, N.J., and Medarex Inc., also of Princeton, said the FDA allowed an investigational new drug application for MDX-1401, a fully human antibody that targets CD30-positive lymphomas. The drug is enhanced for greater Fc receptor mediated antibody activity, a critical mechanism in tumor lysis by antibodies, using BioWa's Potelligent technology. The dose-escalation Phase I trial is expected to enroll up to 36 patients with relapsed or refractory Hodgkin's disease.

• Chemokine Therapeutics Corp., of Vancouver, British Columbia, said its wholly owned subsidiary, Chemokine Therapeutics (B.C.) Corp. is acquiring certain assets from Globe Laboratories Inc., also of Vancouver, consisting mainly of laboratory equipment and leasehold improvements, for about C$375,935 (US$319,318). The acquisition also resulted in the termination of a 2003 agreement calling for Globe to handle Chemokine's research work. Chemokine said it aims to concentrate research and development in-house through its subsidiary.

• Epidauros Biotechnologie AG, of Bernried, Germany, and Osmetech plc, of London, signed a strategic partnership to develop pharmaceutical companion diagnostics and molecular diagnostic products. The deal covers diagnostics for new and existing pharmaceuticals, as well as pharmacogenomic biomarkers. Financial terms were not disclosed.

• InterMune Inc., of Brisbane, Calif., signed a multiyear license to use Raleigh, N.C.-based Qualyst Inc.'s B-CLEAR system for drug discovery programs. B-CLEAR is a sandwich-cultured hepatocyte system for the in vitro assessment and in vivo prediction of critical pharmacokinetic properties, including hepatobiliary disposition, hepatic uptake, hepatic accumulation, biliary clearance and drug transport. Financial terms were not disclosed. In separate news, InterMune successfully completed large-scale synthesis and delivery to partner F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd., of Basel, Switzerland, of active pharmaceutical ingredient for ITMN-191, a hepatitis C virus candidate in Phase Ia development. That milestone triggered a $10 million payment to InterMune as part of the companies' October 2006 collaboration to develop protease inhibitors for HCV. (See BioWorld Today, Oct. 18, 2006.)

• Mirus Bio Corp., of Madison, Wis., entered a two-year, multimillion dollar agreement with New York-based Pfizer Inc. to investigate and optimize gene silencing methods in animal models. The studies will use Mirus Bio's nucleic acid delivery platforms to target and suppress the expression of genes of interest to Pfizer. Specific terms were not disclosed. Mirus Bio has two delivery platforms: a hydrodynamic intravascular injection platform, which delivers nucleic acid through the bloodstream to surrounding cells and tissues, and a platform involving the formulation of small-interfering RNA into nanoparticles to be delivered via injection.

• Peregrine Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Tustin, Calif., said a study was published in the Jan. 1 issue of Clinical Cancer Research demonstrating that microbubbles targeted to tumor blood vessels can be used to monitor patient response to anti-angiogenesis therapy. The information could allow oncologists to modify patient treatment regimens soon after starting therapy so that non-responders could be switched to other therapies that might be more effective. The article demonstrates the potential of Peregrine's Vascular Targeting Agent technology platform for imaging and diagnosis of solid tumors using agents targeted to tumor blood vessels.

• Presidio Pharmaceuticals Inc., of San Francisco, has licensed the rights to a series of preclinical-stage compounds for treatment of HIV-1 from Cytokine PharmaSciences, of King of Prussia, Penn. The agreement also includes the Cytokine's Nuclear Exclusion Technology, which allows treatment of viruses via inhibition of nuclear importation. Details of the agreement were not disclosed. Nuclear exclusion is the process by which small-molecule inhibitors prevent the translocation of viral genetic material from the cytoplasm of an infected cell to the cell's nucleus, where integration and replication occur. Nuclear translocation is an established cell trafficking pathway used to transport critical proteins, such as transcription factors and cell cycle regulators, into the nucleus.

• pSivida Limited, of Perth, Australia, has entered into a licensing agreement with Faber Research to develop pSivida's Durasert, Zanisert and Co-Drug drug delivery technologies for infectious diseases and diseases of the ear. Boston-based Faber will make payments totaling $990,000 to pSivida for the right to exclusively negotiate a licensing agreement with the company for a period of three months and to fund the cost of a preclinical study. The commencement of licensing negotiations follows a 12-month evaluation of pSivida's technologies by the large global pharmaceutical company. Faber receives exclusive rights to pSivida's technologies for diseases of the ear and for five specific infectious diseases, namely malaria, HIV/AIDS, influenza, tuberculosis and osteomyelitis. Faber and its operating company Auritec Pharmaceuticals Inc will pay all development costs, and pSivida will receive unspecified royalties and milestone payments. In addition, Faber received co-exclusive rights to the Durasert, Zanisert and Co-Drug drug delivery technologies for other infectious diseases. The companies also can convert their co-exclusive rights to exclusive rights for specific infectious disease indications.

• Ryogen LLC, of Suffern, N.Y., entered a nonexclusive license agreement to grant Carlsbad, Calif.-based Invitrogen Corp. rights to a patent directed to the aminopeptidase P gene. The patent covers the XPNPEP2 gene that codes for aminopeptidase P, a protein that serves as a significant biomarker for hypertension, angioedema, kidney transplant rejection, certain tumors and other diseases. Financial terms were not disclosed.

• Scynexis Inc., of Research Triangle Park, N.C., earned a $1 million payment from Whitehouse Station, N.J.-based Merck & Co. Inc. for meeting preclinical achievements in the companies' collaboration to develop antifungal agents. The companies began working together in 2002 and, a year later, broadened the scope of their research collaboration. Terms of the deal call for Scynexis to use its Medchem-Factory and Heos technologies to help accelerate the identification of drugs active against Merck's screening targets. Merck would receive exclusive worldwide rights to any products developed, and Scynexis would be eligible for milestones and royalties. (See BioWorld Today, June 27, 2002.)

• Stallergenes SA has entered into a development, promotion and distribution agreement with Paladin Labs in Canada for Oralair, Stallergenes' allergen extract immunotherapy sublingual tablets. Stallergenes, of Antony, France, and Paladin, of Montreal, plan to submit the first product under this agreement, Oralair Grasses, for Canadian regulatory approval this year. Paladin will assume responsibility for Canadian clinical trials, registration, marketing, sales and distribution of Stallergenes' sublingual tablets, which include Oralair Grasses, Oralair recombinant Bet V 1 (birch) and Oralair Mites. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

• XOMA Ltd., of Berkeley, Calif., started an open-label, dose-escalating Phase I/II trial of Neuprex (opebacan) in adults and children undergoing allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. It will be conducted at Harvard Medical School, and the company expects to add other sites this year. The trial will establish the appropriate dosing and safety parameters for using Neuprex in the transplant indication. XOMA intends to enroll 40 patients.

• Xytis Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Irvine, Calif., has received approval to initiate a Phase II clinical trial with Anatibant for the treatment of traumatic brain injury in the United Kingdom and South Africa. Anatibant is a selective, very potent, small-molecule Bradykinin B2 receptor antagonist that has been shown to be safe and effective in animal models of TBI. Enrollment of the first patient is expected this month. The trial will be conducted in 19 centers in 11 countries and will enroll 400 patients by the first quarter of 2008. Patients with moderate to severe TBI will receive one of three doses of Anatibant or placebo for five days. Endpoints for the trial include safety and tolerability, mortality, as well as functional assessment at days six and 15 post-injury.

• ZIOPHARM Oncology Inc., of New York, administered ZIO-101, a proprietary organic arsenic, to the first patient in a Phase II trial in blood and bone marrow cancers. Designed to confirm the anticancer activity of ZIO-101 seen in the Phase I hematological trial, patients will receive intravenous ZIO-101 once daily for five consecutive days every four weeks for up to six cycles. The company said it anticipates enrolling up to 40 patients at five U.S. clinical sites, and also expects to file an Investigational New Drug application for a phase I study with an oral formulation of ZIO-101.