• Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Cheshire, Conn., said one-year results of an ongoing open-label Phase Ib trial evaluating the use of eculizumab in 11 paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria patients showed statistically significant reductions in the need for blood transfusions. Eculizumab produced a clinical response within one week of administration, as well as durable improvement in blood transfusion requirements over the course of a year. The most common reported adverse events were flu-like symptoms, sore throat, headache and upper respiratory infection.

• Alliance Pharmaceutical Corp., of San Diego, signed a licensing, development and marketing agreement through its wholly owned subsidiary, PFC Therapeutics LLC, with Korea-based IL Yang Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. IL Yang gains exclusive rights to distribute and commercialize Oxygent in South Korea. Oxygent is a perfluorochemical-based synthetic oxygen therapeutic being developed by Alliance to help avoid red-blood-cell transfusions during surgery. PFC Therapeutics is responsible for commercial supply of Oxygent, and it will receive a royalty on all Oxygent sales in South Korea. IL Yang also will make certain regulatory milestone payments to PFC, which will retain exclusive rights to Oxygent in the U.S. and the rest of the world, excluding South Korea and Europe. Earlier this month, Alliance signed a collaboration with Nycomed Danmark ApS, of Roskilde, Denmark, for the European rights.

• Alteon Inc., of Parsippany, N.J., began a Phase II trial of its A.G.E. crosslink breaker alagebrium, formerly called ALT-711, at Baylor Heart Clinic in Houston. The new trial - called Pedestal - will evaluate alagebrium on diastolic function and ventricular mass in patients with significant heart failure. The study will include men and women at least 30 years old with or without diabetes who have Grade II-IV heart failure.

• Anika Therapeutics Inc., of Woburn, Mass., began a pilot trial to test Incert-S for the prevention of internal adhesions or scarring following spinal surgery. The product is part of a family of bioabsorbable, chemically modified hyaluronic acid therapies in development at the company. The trial, which will involve about 45 patients, will be conducted at two UK centers.

• ASM Resources Inc., of Washington, said it has made four investments this year totaling $350,000 to date, including three new company financings and one follow-up investment. ASM Resources, the for-profit venture arm of the American Society for Microbiology that invests in early stage bioscience companies, provided funding for the first time to A&G Pharmaceutical Inc., of Columbia, Md.; Claragen Inc., of Rockville, Md.; and Marligen Biosciences Inc., of Ijamsville, Md. It also provided follow-up financing for Scientific Products and Systems Inc., of Baltimore.

• Bioreason Inc., of Santa Fe, N.M., named Andrew DePristo president and CEO. Most recently, he was the senior director of research and preclinical development information systems at Amgen Inc., of Thousand Oaks, Calif. Bioreason is developing software, services and collaborations for the drug discovery process.

• Cell Therapeutics Inc., of Seattle, began a Phase I/II trial of a polyglutamate-20S-camptothecin conjugate in colorectal cancer patients. The study combines CT-2106 with infused 5-fluorouracil/folinic acid in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer who have failed front-line therapy with oxaliplatinum. The study will enroll 45 patients.

• Cellomics Inc., of Pittsburgh, said its Cellomics Store high-content screening database is being used by Hoffmann-La Roche Inc., of Nutley, N.J., in conjunction with the Centera content addressed storage system from EMC Corp., of Hopkinton, Mass. The integration of Cellomics Store with Centera, a storage archive platform for digital fixed content, is designed to provide Roche with a solution for the management, storage, analysis and archival of cellular image data.

• Cougar Biotechnology Inc., of Los Angeles, gained worldwide exclusive rights to develop and commercialize abiraterone acetate, a potential therapeutic for advanced prostate cancer, from BTG plc, of West Conshohocken, Pa. Abiraterone was first synthesized at The Institute of Cancer Research in the UK as part of a BTG-funded program to discover a selective, orally active drug to inhibit an enzyme key to testosterone synthesis, 17a hydroxylase/C17,20-lyase. BTG will receive an up-front cash payment and will benefit from further development milestones as well as royalties. More detailed financial terms were not disclosed.

• CytRx Corp., of Los Angeles, received a $100,000 milestone payment from Vical Inc., of San Diego, pursuant to the latter's license of the former's TranzFect technology. CytRx's technology is incorporated in a plasmid DNA vaccine for cytomegalovirus, being developed by Vical, which recently began a Phase I trial to trigger the milestone fee.

• DynPort Vaccine Company LLC, of Frederick, Md., demonstrated the efficacy of its recombinant F1V (rF1V) plague vaccine candidate in mice. In initial testing, the vaccine protected mice against both the bubonic and pneumonic forms of plague. DynPort said the study, which began in December and ended in late February, showed good correlation between the antibody response of the mice and their survival rates. The material used in the studies was manufactured by ID Biomedical Corp., of Vancouver, British Columbia.

• FASgen Inc., of Baltimore, reported data at the Ray Fuller Symposium, an event sponsored by the American Society of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics in Washington, showing that its C-75 compound can be used to treat obesity and related disorders through two targets: the nuclei in the brain stem that control feeding behavior principally through the effects of neuropeptide Y, and in peripheral tissues, especially adipose tissue, where the rate of fatty-acid oxidation is increased by the stimulatory effect of C-75 on carnitine palmitoyl transferase-1. The company said both mechanisms produce a significant loss of body weight in diet-induced obese mice that results from a marked reduction in body-fat deposits, while lean tissues are spared.

• Gilead Sciences Inc., of Foster City, Calif., plans to expand and simplify its U.S. patient-assistance program, which provides certain patients access to Gilead medications free of charge. The Commitment to Access program will offer HIV patients who have limited payment options access to antiretroviral medications on the same day they visit their physician and receive a prescription. The program also helps individuals find insurance coverage for their medications. The program provides patients with Viread and Emtriva for HIV, Hepsera for chronic hepatitis B and Vistide for cytomegalovirus retinitis in patients with AIDS.

• Immuno-Designed Molecules SA, of Paris, opened its first U.S. cGMP production center in Irvine, Calif. The site, which will be dedicated to the production of Cell Drugs intended for IDM-sponsored clinical trials in North America, received a manufacturing license from the California Department of Health Services. The first Cell Drugs being prepared in Irvine are for a clinical trial using Collidem, IDM's product candidate to treat colorectal cancer. The product process began in January.

• The La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology in San Diego received a seven-year, $25 million contract from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Md., to develop an immune epitope database. Data from the project will allow researchers to access information on the way the body responds to microbes, especially those responsible for emerging infectious diseases such as severe acute respiratory syndrome and West Nile virus, or that are part of potential bioterrorist threats.

• Memory Pharmaceuticals Corp., of Montvale, N.J., said the underwriters of its recent 5 million-share initial public offering fully exercised their overallotment option to purchase an additional 750,000 common shares at the IPO price of $7 per share, less an underwriting discount of 49 cents per share. The proceeds, after deducting underwriting discounts, total about $4.9 million, increasing the total proceeds from the equity offering to about $35.4 million. The company grossed $35 million in its IPO earlier this month. (See BioWorld Today, April 6, 2004.)

• Myriad Genetics Inc., of Salt Lake City, released new data on MPC-4505, a neurokinin-1 receptor antagonist for chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting. Preclinical testing demonstrated desirable pharmacokinetic characteristics. MPC-4505 achieved significant blood levels of drug after oral administration with a reasonable half-life, the company said. The company also said a Phase II study in 200 Alzheimer's disease patients indicated no serious safety concerns with Flurizan. An independent Data Safety Monitoring Committee recommended the trial continue. Myriad expects it will be completed in the first quarter of 2005.

• Nanobac Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Tampa, Fla., changed its name to Nanobac Life Sciences Inc. The company said its revised name reflects its mission to develop diagnostics and therapeutics to detect and treat nanobacterial infections, as well as to continue research into the role of nanobacteria in the formation of disease-causing calcified plaque in the circulatory system and vital organs.

• Nanogen Inc., of San Diego, said its all-stock acquisition of SynX Pharma Inc., of Toronto, was approved by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice. SynX shareholders and debenture holders met and approved the transaction April 15. The total consideration for SynX common shares is fixed at about C$16.3 million (US$12 million). With about 11.4 million SynX shares and share equivalents outstanding, it is expected that each SynX common shareholder will be entitled to receive about C$1.43 per SynX share in Nanogen common stock. The exchange ratio will be determined on the closing date. At closing, Nanogen will acquire the existing C$3.5 million principal amount of subordinated secured debentures of SynX in exchange for shares of Nanogen common stock. Nanogen develops and commercializes products for the in vitro diagnostics market.

• Neurogen Corp., of Branford, Conn., closed its $100 million sale of common stock following stockholder approval of a private placement led by Warburg Pincus LLC and Baker Brothers Investments. The company, which reported the financing last month, said it would use proceeds to expand its drug development programs. Stewart Hen and Jonathan Leff, both managing directors of Warburg, were named to Neurogen's board as part of the transaction. (See BioWorld Today, March 22, 2004.)

• Pharmacopeia Inc., of Princeton, N.J., said the SEC declared effective the registration statement, enabling the company to spin off Pharmacopeia Drug Discovery Inc. (PDD) to Pharmacopeia stockholders. Pharmacopeia stockholders will receive a dividend as part of the spin-off. PDD will trade on the Nasdaq National Market under the ticker symbol "PCOPV," while Pharmacopeia will change its name to Accelrys Inc. and trade on Nasdaq under the current ticker "ACCL."

• Plexon Inc., of Dallas, said its technology is being used by the East China Normal University in Shanghai. Its Shanghai Institute of Brain Functional Genomics is using four Multichannel Acquisition Processor Systems for neural signal acquisition and analysis research on Alzheimer's disease. Plexon said the system allows for the acquisition of neural data.

• Pluristem Life Systems Inc., of Haifa, Israel, said it would begin animal model studies of its hematopoietic stem cell expansion technology at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel. The research will focus on conducting stem call repopulation capabilities using the SCI-NOD model, or immune-deficient mice, for analyzing human hematopoietic stem cells.

• Rigel Pharmaceuticals Inc., of South San Francisco, began a Phase II study of R112, its lead candidate for allergic rhinitis. The intranasal therapy inhibits mast-cell activation, blocking pathways triggered in an allergic attack. The study will enroll about 300 patients who have experienced seasonal allergic rhinitis during the spring pollen season for the previous two years. Endpoints include nasal symptom scores and time to onset of the effect and safety measures. Results are expected in the second half of this year.

• Tishcon Corp., of Westbury, N.Y., said the FDA granted orphan drug designation to Ubiquinol (coenzyme Q10) for treating pediatric congestive heart failure and Huntington's disease. In 1999, the company was granted an orphan drug designation for coenzyme Q10 (Ubi-Q-Gel) in the treatment of mitochondrial cytopathies.

• Trinity Biotech plc, of Dublin, Ireland, completed its acquisition of Fitzgerald Industries International Inc., of Concord, Mass., for $16 million. The total is paid half in cash and half in Trinity shares. Fitzgerald provides a range of immunodiagnostic products to pharmaceutical companies, reference laboratories, diagnostic manufacturers, universities and research facilities worldwide. Trinity markets more than 500 products for the point-of-care and clinical laboratory segments of the diagnostic market.