• Applera Corp., of Norwalk, Conn., said the registration statement relating to the proposed separation of its Celera business has been declared effective by the SEC, with the separation expected to be completed by July 1, subject to satisfaction of certain conditions, including receipt of certain consents and listing of Celera Corp.'s common stock on Nasdaq. Upon completion of the separation, Celera will hold all of the businesses, assets and liabilities attributed to the Celera Group.

• Clinical Data Inc., of Newton, Mass., said its Cogenics division published a study with researchers from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences confirming that gene expression data from blood samples can be used to discriminate different types of liver damage resulting from drug toxicity. The project was funded in part by the NIEHS. Results demonstrated that blood samples can be used as surrogates for tissue samples, which have been the standard for classifying toxicants. The paper was published in Genome Biology.

• Cytokinetics Inc., of South San Francisco, agreed to extend the research term under its strategic alliance with London-based GlaxoSmithKline plc to continue research activities focused on the mitotic kinesin centromere-associated protein E (CENP-E). The alliance, initiated in June 2001, included an initial five-year research term and has been extended on two prior occasions. The latest extension adds another year to the research program, during which each company, at its own expense, will continue to perform translational research directed toward CENP-E in accordance with an agreed plan.

• Intas Biopharmaceuticals Ltd., of Ahmedabad, India, acquired Biologics Process Development Inc., of Poway, Calif. With the acquisition process under way, both Intas and BPD are actively pursuing plans to work closely toward fulfillment of common business objectives in the areas of biologics contract research and manufacturing services. That development will facilitate Intas' foray into the U.S. market. Scott M. Brown will continue to serve as president and chief scientific officer of BPD.

• Rentschler Biotechnologie, of Laupheim, Germany, started operation of a 2,500-liter, multiprocess production suite. The bioreactor is designed to run batch, fed-batch or perfusion cell culture processes, and protein purification is performed in two suites for pre- and post-virus inactivation. Rentschler Biotechnologie now has nine stand-alone GMP suites with volumes of 30, 250, 500 and 2,500 liters, allowing the production of material for clinical trials and for market supply.

• Sigma-Aldrich Corp., of St. Louis, entered a five-year collaboration with the University of California in San Francisco to develop optimal cell lines for the production of monoclonal antibodies to be investigated in a variety of cancer targets, autoimmune diseases, stem cell characteristics and commonly neglected disease targets. Under the terms, research targets will be determined by a steering committee composed of leading scientists at UCSF, and the university will have free access to the antibodies resulting from the partnership for its ongoing immunology and disease research.

• Synthetic Blood International Inc., of Costa Mesa, Calif., said that grants awarded by the Department of Defense to study clinical applications for Oxycyte total more than $5.3 million. Oxycyte is the company's perfluorocarbon therapeutic oxygen carrier. Awards include a $1.6 million grant (over 3 years) to support research into Oxycyte's ability to treat and prevent organ damage from arterial gas embolism and about $1.2 million (over 3 years) for ongoing studies of perfluorocarbon emulsions in the treatment of severe decompression sickness. In addition, the total includes a $300,000 grant to sponsor a postdoctoral candidate to work in the microcirculation laboratories of the Virginia Commonwealth University Reanimation Engineering Shock (VCURES) center to support research in arterial gas embolism, decompression sickness and other work in traumatic brain injury (TBI). Another $300,000 was awarded to develop pilot studies into the effectiveness of Oxycyte in treating TBI secondary to a blast. The company also said that VCURES received $1.3 million under a previously awarded Office of Naval Research grant for the treatment and prevention of decompression sickness with Oxycyte. Also included is a subaward of $600,000 from the Army to support VCURES efforts in the human civilian brain injury trial.

• Trubion Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Seattle, said that Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, of Madison, N.J., exercised its option to extend the research period under their collaboration for an additional one-year period, through Dec. 22, 2009. Under the terms, Wyeth's obligations to Trubion include collaboration research funding commitments of about $3.2 million in exchange for committed research services through Dec. 22, 2009. In December 2005, Trubion entered a collaboration agreement with Wyeth for the development and worldwide commercialization of TRU-015 and other CD20-directed therapeutics. The agreement also includes the development and worldwide commercialization of certain other product candidates directed to a small number of targets other than CD20 that were established pursuant to the agreement. Trubion retains the right to develop and commercialize, on its own or with others, product candidates directed to all targets not included within the agreement, including CD37. (See BioWorld Today, Jan. 4, 2006.)