• Advanced Life Sciences Holdings Inc., of Woodridge, Ill., said the FDA granted orphan drug status to its oncology product, ALS-357, for the topical treatment of metastatic melanoma, which would provide the company with financial and regulatory assistance and guarantee ALS-357 seven years of marketing exclusivity upon approval. ALS-357, which is designed to work by inducing apoptosis, is expected to enter Phase I/II testing in early 2008.

•Affymetrix Inc., of Santa Clara, Calif., signed a Powered by Affymetrix agreement giving Ipsogen, of Marseille, France, nonexclusive access to its microarray technology for the worldwide development and marketing of in vitro diagnostic tests, initially for breast cancer. The deal enables Ipsogen to incorporate Affymetrix arrays into its diagnostic products. Financial terms were not disclosed.

• Agendia BV, of Amsterdam, the Netherlands, raised €25 million (US$34 million) in a fourth financing round. The company is developing molecular diagnostics for cancer applications. Its MammaPrint breast cancer prognosis test, a microarray-based in vitro diagnostic, has been approved by the FDA. ING was a new investor in the company. Others that participated in the round included Van Herk Biotech BV, Gilde Healthcare Partners BV and Global Life Science Ventures.

• Avicena Group Inc., of Palo Alto, Calif., signed an exclusive distribution agreement with RITA Corp., of Crystal Lake, Ill. RITA got global rights to distribute certain Avicena compounds for use in the personal care industry. Avicena's dermaceutical compounds incorporate the company's cell-nourishing technology, which is designed to promote optimal cellular regeneration and cellular protection, as well as providing anti-aging skin benefits. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

• BioTrove Inc., of Woburn, Mass., said Charles River Laboratories Inc., of Wilmington, Mass., will use the BioTrove OpenArray system to detect rodent-specific pathogens as part of an effort to evaluate the health of rodent species. It was the second OpenArray instrument purchased by Charles River since 2006. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

• Cleveland BioLabs Inc., of Cleveland, said its application to upgrade its listing from the Nasdaq Capital Market to the Nasdaq Global Market was approved. The company's shares began treading there Tuesday under the same symbol.

• Compugen Ltd., of Tel Aviv, Israel, signed a deal with Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., of Petach Tikva, Israel, covering CGEN-54, a Compugen-discovered splice variant of MCP1 (monocyte chemoattractant protein 1). CGEN-54, one of a number of splice variants predicted in silico using Compugen's discovery engine, is in development for chronic inflammatory diseases. Under the terms of the agreement, the companies will collaborate on initial research, with Teva retaining an option for a worldwide exclusive development and commercialization license in exchange for milestones and royalties. Further terms were not disclosed.

• Curis Inc., of Cambridge, Mass., was notified by Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, a division of Wyeth, of Madison, N.J.,that preliminary data with a protein agonist of the Sonic Hedgehog (Shh) signaling pathway showed promising results in an established, early preclinical cardiovascular animal model. The results are consistent with previously published third-party data in which upregulation of the Shh pathway were demonstrated to be efficacious. Research using Shh protein agonists in various cardiovascular disease models is ongoing at Wyeth.

• EPIX Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Lexington, Mass., received a $500,000 milestone payment from Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Therapeutics Inc. (CFFT), the nonprofit drug discovery and development affiliate of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, for successfully identifying a hit compound that corrects the functionality of the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) ion channel in a cell-based model system. It's the company's third milestone in its ongoing collaboration with CFFT signed in 2005 to discover potential therapies targeting the CFTR ion channel. EPIX is using its computational drug discovery capabilities to discover drug candidates that can help restore proper functioning of the CFTR protein.

• Gene Logic Inc., of Gaithersburg, Md., entered a drug repositioning and development agreement with Merck Serono, a division of Merck KGaA, of Darmstadt, Germany. They will seek alternative development paths for several Merck Serono drug candidates that were discontinued or de-prioritized in clinical trials for reasons other than safety. Gene Logic is entitled to success-based milestone payments, as well as royalties on any resulting sales. The agreement also provides Gene Logic the option to receive an exclusive license to any drug candidate for which it identifies a new potential therapeutic use that Merck Serono chooses not to develop.

• Inverness Medical Innovations Inc., of Waltham, Mass., and Matritech Inc., of Newton, Mass., have entered into an asset purchase agreement in which Inverness will acquire substantially all of Matritech's assets for $36 million, payable in shares of Inverness common stock. In addition, Inverness would pay Matritech up to $2 million in cash and/or Inverness common stock, depending on the achievement of revenue targets for the 12-month period following the closing. The Matritech board of directors has approved the dissolution of the corporation, subject to stockholder approval, after the closing of the sale. Matritech said the complete dissolution process may take several years. Matritech said it expects to sell all of the Inverness shares as promptly as practicable. Proceeds will be first used for creditors and preferred stockholders, as well as payments to management personnel not transferring to Inverness. Matritech estimated that after those expenses are paid it expects to have $10 million to $12 million, or approximately $0.16 to $0.19 per share for common share stockholders.

• KineMed, Inc., of Emeryville, Calif., and Merck Serono, a division of Merck KGaA, of Darmstadt, Germany, have entered into a collaboration to discover new applications for drug candidates. KineMed will identify new therapeutic uses in in vivo preclinical models by applying its translational medicine technologies. Once a disease target is established for a selected drug candidate, KineMed and Merck KGaA will jointly determine the best development and commercialization path for the candidates being studied. Under the terms of the agreement, KineMed will receive from Merck an upfront payment, milestones and royalty payments on products advanced with KineMed's technology. Additional terms of the deal were not disclosed.

• Medicis, of Scottsdale, Ariz., and Hyperion Therapeutics Inc., of South San Francisco, announced a collaboration between Hyperion and Medicis' subsidiary, Ucyclyd Pharma Inc., in which Hyperion will conduct research and development of a compound referred to as "GT4P" for the treatment of urea cycle disorder, hepatic encephalopathies and other indications, and additional indications for Ammonul (sodium phenylacetate/sodium benzoate). Under terms of the agreement, Hyperion has paid Ucyclyd $10 million for the rights and licenses granted to Hyperion. If certain conditions are met, Hyperion will have purchase rights for the Ucyclyd development products as well as Ucyclyd's existing on-market products, Ammonul and Buphenyl. and will pay Ucyclyd royalties and regulatory and sales milestone payments.

• Neuro-Hitech Inc., of New York, named Gary Shearman as president and CEO. Shearman, a biotech veteran who most recently served as a venture capitalist and consultant, also joined the company's board.

• PharmAthene Inc., of Annapolis, Md., said the Delaware Chancery Court determined that the merger between PharmAthene and Healthcare Acquisition Corp. had been validly approved and authorized in full compliance with the company's charter and Delaware corporate law. The decision will be subject to appeal for 30 days in accordance with Delaware law.

• Sunesis Pharmaceuticals Inc., of South San Francisco, said it is reducing its workforce by about 25 percent, or 35 employees, and implementing a revised operating plan that focuses its efforts on generating definitive data from its lead programs while streamlining the company's operations and extending its financial resources beyond 2008. Sunesis said its top priority is the advancement of its lead product candidate, SNS-595, for treating acute myeloid leukemia. Phase I trials are ongoing. It said it intends to initiate a registration trial for the treatment of elderly AML patients by the end of 2008. Sunesis also expects to continue to advance ongoing studies of SNS-595 in ovarian cancer, SNS-032 in B-cell malignancies and SNS-314 in solid tumors. Annual expenses are expected to be reduced by more than $10 million for the next several years.

• Tripos Discovery Research Ltd., a subsidiary of Richmond, Va.-based Commonwealth Biotechnologies Inc., entered a service agreement with CombinatoRx Inc., of Cambridge, Mass. Tripos will provide computational and medicinal chemistry services. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

• Vermillion Inc., of Fremont, Calif. (formerly Ciphergen Biosystems Inc.), said published data detailed how a protein biomarker called beta-2 microglobulin may aid in the diagnosis of peripheral artery disease. Findings suggest beta-2 microglobulin is elevated in patients with PAD and that the level of the protein is correlated with the severity of the disease. Data are available online and will be published in September in Circulation. Vermillion intends to develop a blood test for the diagnosis of PAD.

• XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd., of New York, has been notified by Nasdaq that the company no longer complies with the minimum $10 million shareholders' equity requirement for continued listing on Nasdaq. The company said it intends maintain its listing on the Nasdaq Global Market, but has the option to transfer its listing to the Nasdaq Capital Market listing.