• Adolor Corp., of Exton, Pa., was cleared to start Phase I testing in the first quarter of 2008 of ADL5747, an oral compound targeting the delta opioid receptor. That product is the second delta compound that will enter the clinic under the company's potential $265 million collaboration with New York-basedPfizer Inc., signed earlier this month with a focus on pain products. The lead compound, ADL5859, is in Phase II trials in several pain conditions. (SeeBioWorld Today, Dec. 6, 2007.)

• MorphoSys AG, of Martinsried, Germany, submitted a clinical trial application to start Phase I testing of MOR103, a HuCAL-derived antibody for rheumatoid arthritis. The company said it plans to reveal the target molecule of its lead antibody program MOR103 and additional information on the Phase I design in mid-January.