• Eli Lilly and Co., of Indianapolis, said it opened the Lilly China Research and Development Center, with the goal of discovering innovative diabetes treatments with new mechanisms of action that can be tailored specifically for the Chinese population to delay the progression of the disease. The center will employ about 150 scientists and staff, hired primarily from China, and marks Lilly's latest investment in the country.

• Forest Laboratories Inc., of New York, issued a statement in response to a Form 13D filing from entities affiliated with activist shareholder Carl Icahn stating an intention to nominate a minority slate of candidates to the company's board. The firm said it would evaluate any nominations from Icahn and make a recommendation, though executives took issue with Icahn's "method of engagement."

• Janssen Research & Development LLC, of Raritan, N.J., a unit of Johnson & Johnson, said it submitted a new drug application seeking approval of canagliflozin, an oral, once-daily selective sodium glucose co-transporter 2 inhibitor, for treating adults with Type II diabetes. Janssen has marketing rights in North America, South America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Australia, New Zealand and parts of Asia.

• Ventana Medical Systems Inc., of Tucson, Ariz., a member of the Roche Group, said it signed an exclusive license agreement with the German Cancer Research Center and University Hospital Heidelberg, Germany, to commercialize an immunohistochemistry primary antibody developed to detect the V600E BRAF mutation protein.