Pentose Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Cambridge, Mass., received a Small Business Innovation Research grant of $100,000 from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute to support the development of Inactine compounds for eliminating viruses in red blood cell concentrates used for transfusion. The company recently received approval from the FDA for its investigational new drug application for use of Inactine in red blood cells.
Third Wave Technologies, of Madison, Wis., entered into a research and license agreement with the University of Guelph in Guelph, Ontario, involving Third Wave's Invader technology and other patented technologies. Under the agreements, Guelph and Health Canada will have access to the technologies for developing assays for detecting and typing verocytotoxin-producing E. coli. Third Wave has an option to obtain exclusive worldwide commercial rights to the developed technology.
Amylin Pharmaceuticals Inc., of San Diego, said that its second diabetes drug candidate, AC2993 (synthetic exendin-4), received positive results in a Phase II study in people with type II diabetes. In this crossover study, participants received subcutaneous AC2993 or placebo twice daily for five days. On the first and last days a standard liquid meal was injected. The plasma glucose concentration during the first five hours following meals was reduced on average by 34 percent when treated with AC2993, compared with placebo.
Corvas International Inc., of San Diego started a second, multi-center Phase II trial of its injectable anticoagulant, rNAPc2. The study will determine the safety of the compound in patients undergoing elective percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty. rNAPc2 is a small protein that was originally discovered in blood-feeding hookworms and is manufactured as a proprietary recombinant protein.
Creative BioMolecules Inc., of Hopkinton, Mass., said at the Annual Symposium of the National Neurotrauma Society new data support the company's development of OP-1 to treat stroke. Data indicate OP-1 can reduce the extent and severity of tissue damage in preclinical models of stroke.
Genta Inc., of Lexington, Mass., said the FDA granted fast-track designation to its bel-2 antisense compound, G-3139, for use in combination with dacarbazine for the treatment of advanced malignant melanoma. G-3139 was designed to reduce the Bcl-2 protein level in cancer through an antisense mechanism that specifically targets the messenger-RNA produced by the bcl-2 gene.
Human Genome Sciences Inc., of Rockville, Md. will call a special stockholders meeting seeking approval to increase the number of its authorized shares of common and preferred stock. The company wants to increase the number of common stock shares to 250 million, up from 50 million shares, and the amount of preferred stock to 20 million shares, up from 1 million. The purpose is to provide increased flexibility for a variety of possible transactions, including stock splits or dividends, acquisitions, establishing new collaborations or other strategic relationships. The meeting should take place around Dec. 16.
Hyseq Inc., of Sunnyvale, Calif., and Affymetrix Inc., of Santa Clara, Calif., each said a U.S. District Judge granted a favorable interpretation of Hyseq's patents, Nos. 5,202,231, 5,525,464 and 5,695,940, which cover Hyseq's "sequencing by hybridization" technology. Hyseq claims Affymetrix uses the same method in its GeneChip technology. Affymetrix said the judge's decision showed Hyseq's patents only cover technologies in which oligonucleotide probes are in solution and not bound to a filter or substrate. Although Hyseq plans on disputing a few of the court's interpretations, it said the judgment clearly defined the term "sequencing" to include nucleic acid fragments of the length used by Affymetrix. The case is expected to go to trial early next year.
LJL BioSystems Inc., of Sunnyvale, Calif., signed an agreement with London-based AstraZeneca plc allowing AstraZeneca access on a priority basis to LJL's assay development services and emerging advanced technologies. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Lorus Therapeutics Inc., of Toronto, completed a private placement of 30.3 million special warrants at a price of 33 cents each for aggregate gross proceeds of C$10 million (US$6.8 million). The proceeds will be escrowed and released to the company once it completes the acquisition of Toronto-based GeneSense Technologies Inc. by Nov. 1. (See BioWorld Today, April 15, 1999, p. 1.)
Rigel Inc., of South San Francisco, entered into its second, five-year drug discovery collaboration with Novartis Pharma AG, of Basel, Switzerland, to identify and validate small-molecule drug targets that can mediate specific functions of B cells. The collaboration triggers an undisclosed cash payment to Rigel. Rigel also will receive milestones and certain royalty payments for any products developed out of the collaboration. The two companies signed a deal worth up to $100 million in June to collaborate on five research products. The other three will be determined within the next two years. (See BioWorld Today, June 9, 1999, p. 1.)
Salus Therapeutics Inc., of Salt Lake City, received a $100,000 Phase I Small Business Innovation Research grant from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke of the National Institutes of Health. The grant will support the company's multiple sclerosis drug discovery program.
The Medicines Co., of Cambridge, Mass., initiated an expanded access study to determine the safety and efficacy for use of Angiomax, formerly Hirulog (bivalidrudin), as an intravenous anticoagulant in coronary intervention procedures. The study allows patients at risk for heparin-induced thrombocytopenia and heparin-induced thrombocytopenia and thrombosis syndrome to receive the investigational drug during coronary surgeries.
Vical Inc., of San Diego, said its lead product candidate, Allovectin-7, received orphan drug status by the FDA for the treatment of invasive and metastatic melanoma. Allovectin-7, a lipid-DNA complex, is in Phase III and Phase II registration trials for metastatic melanoma, and in Phase II tests for patients with unresectable head and neck cancer.