• Alda Pharmaceuticals Corp., of Vancouver, British Columbia, raised C$220,500 (US$183,567) through a brokered private placement of about 2.2 million units at C10 cents each, and it raised C$79,500 through a non-brokered private placement of 795,000 units at C10 cents each. Each unit consists of one common share and one share purchase warrant. Canaccord Capital Corp. served as placement agent for the first transaction. Net proceeds will go toward the company's infection control products based on its T36 technology.

• Applied Biosystems, of Foster City, Calif., introduced its Advanced Gene Expression Service Provider Program, a new program for service providers who are interested in accessing Applied Biosystems' solution for gene expression analysis, including the Expression Array System for whole-genome analysis and TaqMan Gene Expression Assays for target validation.

• Ciphergen Diagnostics, of Fremont, Calif., renewed its multi-year research collaboration with the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine aimed at the discovery of novel protein biomarkers in the field of cancer. Terms were not disclosed.

• CollaGenex Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Newtown, Pa., said a judge issued a report recommending denial of its motion seeking to prevent the launch of generic forms of Periostat by Miami-based Ivax Pharmaceuticals Inc. and CorePharma LLC. CollaGenex has 10 days within which to file objections to the report. Periostat is sold as 20-mg tablets of doxycycline hyclate and is the only systemic adjunct to scaling and root planning for the treatment of adult periodontitis. CollaGenex' stock (NASDAQ:CGPI) dropped 12.9 percent Thursday, or 69 cents, to close at $4.68.

• Connetics Corp., of Palo Alto, Calif., intends to raise about $125 million through an offering of convertible senior notes to institutional buyers. The company also plans to grant the initial purchasers an option to purchase up to an additional $25 million in aggregate principal amount of the notes. Connetics said the notes will be convertible, in special circumstances, into consideration based on the market price of its common stock, and conversion consideration will include shares of common stock. The notes will mature in 2015. Connetics develops and commercializes dermatology products.

• Cytogen Corp., of Princeton, N.J., said that researchers at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center will investigate the use of Quadramet in combination with docetaxel for the treatment of metastatic bone disease rising from prostate cancer. The study will evaluate the safety profile and preliminary incidence and duration of clinical benefits of docetaxel plus Quadramet, and be carried out under Cytogen's investigational new drug application. Quadramet is designed to pair the targeting ability of a small-molecule, bone-seeking phosphate with the therapeutic potential of radiation.

• Exelixis Inc., of South San Francisco, initiated a Phase I trial to evaluate the safety, tolerability and pharmacokinetic profile of XL880, an orally administered, small-molecule cancer compound. The trial will be conducted in patients with solid tumors for whom there are no available therapies to prolong survival. Developed as a spectrum selective kinase inhibitor, XL880 is designed to simultaneously inhibit Met and VEGFR2, two receptor tyrosine kinases that play synergistic roles in promoting tumor growth and angiogenesis.

• Genpathway Inc., of San Diego, said recently completed studies demonstrated the ability of TranscriptionPath, a component of Genpathway's suite of gene transcription analysis tools, to detect gene expression changes associated with toxic drug effects. Genpathway's tools measure the process of transcription directly, rather than accumulated RNA levels. The company presented those and other results involving applications of TranscriptionPath to toxicology and pharmaco/toxicogenomics at the 2005 Society of Toxicology annual meeting in New Orleans.

• GTC Biotherapeutics Inc., of Framingham, Mass., expects to receive a list of outstanding issues with additional questions from the European Medicines Agency as part of the review of its market authorization application for ATryn, a recombinant form of the human antithrombin protein. Discussions will be held with the EMEA to determine the extent of data necessary to provide a sufficient response. GTC said it expects to provide a further update before the end of April. The company is requesting approval for ATryn in patients with a hereditary deficiency of antithrombin who are undergoing high-risk procedures, such as surgery or childbirth. The company's stock (NASDAQ:GTCB) fell 47 cents Thursday, or 26 percent, to close at $1.34.

• Iceland Genomics Corp., of Reykjavik, Iceland, entered a cancer biomarker discovery collaboration with Basel, Switzerland-based Roche Diagnostics, to analyze patient samples to validate molecular markers for diagnostic tests to predict recurrence of cancer for selected tumor entities. The agreement provides IGC access to certain gene expression data and support for further biological characterization of the patient samples in Iceland. Financial terms were not disclosed.

• ImmunoGen Inc., of Cambridge, Mass., said the Sanofi Aventis Group, of Paris, initiated clinical testing with the anti-CD33 tumor-activated prodrug compound, huMy9-6-DM4, that it licensed from ImmunoGen, triggering a $2 million milestone payment. HuMy9-6-DM4 is in development for the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia. The compound comprises the engineered antibody, huMy9-6, which binds specifically to the CD33 target found on the cancer cells, and DM4, a cell-killing agent. ImmunoGen's collaboration with Sanofi Aventis, signed in July 2003, calls for ImmunoGen to receive $50.7 million over three years in research support payments, as well as milestone payments and possible royalties.

• Innovive Pharmaceuticals Inc., of New York, licensed worldwide rights for the use of opioid growth factor in oncology from Penn State University. OGF is a naturally occurring molecule found in the human body that has been shown to significantly reduce the proliferation of pancreatic cancer cells. The company plans to initiate a Phase I trial this year of INNO-105, which inhibits cell growth and division by interacting with OGFr, a receptor found on the nuclear membrane of several cells and tissues, it said.

• Insmed Inc., of Richmond, Va., entered an exclusive option agreement with the University of California at San Francisco School of Medicine, for the patented use of IGF-1 receptor antagonists to treat prostate cancer. The company said the application complements the ongoing clinical studies with INSM-18, a small-molecule IGF-1 tyrosine kinase inhibitor, in a Phase I study in patients with relapsed prostate cancer.

• Introgen Therapeutics Inc., of Austin, Texas, said data from a Phase I trial of INGN 241 in patients with solid tumors was published in Molecular Therapy. The data demonstrate that direct injection of INGN 241 induced programmed cell death in all of the tumors treated, even in patients who had failed prior therapy with other cancer drugs. Clinical responses were observed in 44 percent of the treated lesions, and patients treated with INGN 241 had increases in a subset of T cells.

• Inverness Medical Innovations Inc., of Waltham, Mass., extended the expiration of its exchange offer to March 23. The company's 8.75 percent senior subordinated notes due 2012 are offered for exchange for the $150 million of outstanding 8.75 percent senior subordinated notes due 2012, which were issued in February 2004. About $90.8 million, or 60 percent, of the old notes have been tendered pursuant to the exchange offer.

• KineMed Inc., of Emeryville, Calif., said the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke branch of the National Institutes of Health awarded it a Phase I Small Business Innovation Research grant to develop applications of a KineMarker assay for myelin disorders. The company's KineMarkers are in vivo, stable isotope kinetic biomarkers that measure the flux of molecule through biological pathways.

• Ligand Pharmaceuticals Inc., of San Diego, said it will require additional time to file its annual report on Form 10-K and to release fourth-quarter and full-year earnings. Ligand reported that the audit committee of the board is conducting a review, with the assistance of management, of the company's revenue recognition policies and accounting for product sales. The firm's stock (NASDAQ:LGND) fell $1.12 Thursday, or 12.6 percent, to close at $7.75.

• MerLion Pharmaceuticals, of Singapore, and DowAgroSciences LLC, of Indianapolis, entered a collaboration to identify candidates for new agrochemical agents. The collaboration will bring together MerLion Pharma's collection of natural product samples, natural product chemistry and bioprocessing expertise with Dow AgroSciences' research and discovery engine. DowAgroSciences will apply their existing screens to candidates selected from the MerLion sample collection.

• Morgenthaler, of Menlo Park, Calif., a national venture capital and management buyout firm, has established a Boston office in which its general partners Jim Broderick and Daniel Farrar will be located. The company has provided capital to biotech companies such as Replidyne Inc. and GlobeImmune Inc. The firm has $2 billion under management and has funded more than 225 companies over its 36-year history.

• Serono SA, of Geneva, said researchers at the Serono Genetics Institute have achieved a milestone in identifying and creating a register of genes involved in multiple sclerosis. The company reported that 80 genes involved in the inflammatory and neurodegenerative pathways of the disease have been identified, based on a 40 percent genome scan that compared the genetic profile of 1,800 people with MS and healthy individuals in different populations.

• Targacept Inc., of Winston-Salem, N.C., withdrew its filing for an initial public offering due to difficult marketing conditions. The company had filed for an $86.25 million IPO last May. Targacept is developing a new class of drugs to treat diseases and disorders of the nervous system by targeting neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors. (See BioWorld Today, May 18, 2004.)

• The Medicines Co. Inc., of Parsippany, N.J., said the European Society of Cardiology published guidelines recommending that the anticoagulant bivalirudin replace heparins in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary interventions. The recommendation was based on data from the Replace-2 trial, which showed that patients taking bivalirudin monotherapy had fewer complications and a lower mortality rate than patients treated with heparin plus GP IIb/IIIa inhibitors. Nycomed Group, of Roskilde, Denmark, and Grupo Ferrer, of Barcelona, Spain, market bivalirudin as Angiox in Europe, while the Medicines Co. markets it as Angiomax in the U.S.

• Valera Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Cranbury, N.J., filed an initial public offering to raise $74.8 million to expand its sales and marketing capabilities and to fund research and development efforts, including clinical trials. The company has not yet released the number of shares to be offered or the proposed share price. New York-based firms UBS Securities LLC, Banc of America Securities LLC, First Albany Capital LLC and Fortis Securities LLC are serving as underwriters. Valera, which focuses on developing and commercializing products to treat urological and endocrine diseases and disorders, also intends to use the proceeds to expand manufacturing capabilities and for general corporate purposes. Following the offering, Valera anticipates a Nasdaq listing under the symbol "VLRX." Valera's first product, Vantas, a 12-month implant to treat advanced prostate cancer by delivering the luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone agonist, histrelin, was approved by the FDA in October. The company has in development other products based on the polymer Hydron technology for indications including central precocious puberty, acromegaly and opioid addiction.

• Viragen Inc., of Plantation, Fla., said its cancer product, an anti-CD55 antibody, was found to significantly enhance the activity of Rituxan (Biogen Idec Inc., Genentech Inc.) when both drugs were used in a cell-based evaluation study. The anti-CD55 antibody is under an exclusive option from UK-based Cancer Research Technology, and is being developed for the treatment of solid tumors. In the in vitro study, the antibody was combined with Rituxan and demonstrated a significant increase in the destruction of cancer cells compared to Rituxan alone. Viragen's stock (AMEX:VRA) rose 13 cents Thursday, or 20.3 percent, to close at 77 cents.