• ACT Holdings and Advanced Cell Technology Inc., of Worcester, Mass., published research online in The Lancet showing the derivation of human embryonic stem cells in completely feeder-layer-free and serum-free conditions. The research described a system for producing embryonic stem cells that reduced the risk of contamination with pathogens that could be transmitted to patients.

• Altachem Pharma Ltd., of Edmonton, Alberta, closed the first tranche of its private placement with the sale of about 1.8 million units for gross proceeds of C$443,000 (US$365,223). The company is offering an aggregate of 6 million units at C25 cents per unit. Each unit consists of one common share and one-half of a non-transferable share purchase warrant. Using its sonolight and CDK platforms, Altachem is developing a series of products to treat cancer and other proliferative diseases.

• Basilea Pharmaceutica AG, of Basel, Switzerland, moved into preclinical testing its topical antibiotic BAL19403, part of a new class of bacterial macrolides with activity against antibiotic-resistant Propionibacterium acnes and anti-inflammatory properties found in acne and rosacea.

• Corautus Genetics Inc., of Atlanta, published two-year follow-up results of Corautus' earlier Phase I study of VEGF-2 in patients with severe angina. In the trial, vascular endothelial growth factor-2, in the form of naked plasmid DNA, was delivered in defined doses by direct injection into the heart muscle. Results of the follow-up study, as reported in the current issue of the Journal of Interventional Cardiology, demonstrated prolonged clinical benefit as measured by improvement of patients' angina two years following treatment (p<0.05) with no reported complications directly related to the gene therapy procedure.

• CoTherix Inc., of South San Francisco, said top-line safety and efficacy results from the STEP clinical study showed that the combination of Ventavis (iloprost) inhalation solution added to Tracleer (bosentan) therapy was well tolerated and provided clinical benefit in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension. About 65 patients in the double-blind, placebo-controlled trial were randomized to receive either Ventavis or inhaled placebo in combination with Tracleer for 12 weeks. Patients treated with Ventavis plus Tracleer walked a mean difference of 26 meters farther than patients treated with only Tracleer in a six-minute walk test.

• Cytomedix Inc., of Rockville, Md., entered a second licensing agreement with DePuy Spine Inc., a unit of Johnson & Johnson, of New Brunswick, N.J. The additional license of Cytomedix's Knighton patent is for all applications of its autologous platelet releasate therapy, excluding treatment of chronic wounds, such as pressure ulcers, venous stasis and diabetic foot ulcers. The company also said that DePuy Spine's existing exclusive licensing agreement for spinal, orthopedic and neurosurgical applications would be converted to a nonexclusive license to practice in those fields. Financial details were not disclosed.

• Cytyc Corp., of Marlborough, Mass., closed the acquisition of Proxima Therapeutics Inc., of Alpharetta, Ga., a private company that develops and markets radiation delivery systems to treat cancer. The acquisition allows Cytyc, which focuses on women's health products, to expand its portfolio to include breast cancer treatment.

• diaDexus Inc., of South San Francisco, presented findings from two studies at the American College of Cardiology scientific session held in Orlando, Fla., this week. The first study concluded that elevated levels of Lp-PLA2 (lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A2) appear to be independently predictive of future coronary events in patients with coronary heart disease. An additional study confirmed that Lp-PLA2 predicts risk of coronary artery disease as diagnosed by angiography, as well as future ischemic death.

• Ecopia BioSciences Inc., of Montreal, completed its previously announced C$9.9 million (US$8.2 million) bought-deal private placement. About 11 million units were sold to private investors, and underwriters had the option to purchase an additional 1 million units. Each unit consisted of one common share and one-third of one common share purchase warrant. The company said proceeds will be used for working capital and general corporate purposes, as well as continuing to advance its lead compound, ECO-4601, through preclinical trials. (See BioWorld Today, Feb. 28, 2005.)

• GenVec Inc., of Gaithersburg, Md., said three-year follow-up data from a Phase I study of its myoblast cell-transplantation therapy for congestive heart failure indicated evidence of safety with no increased risk of arrhythmia, as well as evidence of myocardial remodeling. The results were presented at the 2005 American College of Cardiology 54th annual meeting in Orlando, Fla.

• Geron Corp., of Menlo Park, Calif., published studies that demonstrate that human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) can be propagated in culture using defined growth factors without the need for feeder cells or media conditioned by feeder cells. The studies are reported in the March 2005 issue of Stem Cells. The technology of feeder-free growth of hESCs is covered by a U.S. patent issued to Geron in 2004.

• Guilford Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Baltimore, said additional data from the ADVANCE trial showed that a single high-dose bolus regimen of Aggrastat injection (tirofiban hydrochloride) improved the outcomes in diabetic patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention, compared to placebo. Results were presented at the 2005 American College of Cardiology annual meeting in Orlando, Fla. Aggrastat, in combination with heparin and aspirin, is indicated for acute coronary syndrome.

• Inotek Pharmaceuticals Corp., of Beverly, Mass., initiated enrollment in a Phase Ib/IIa trial of its lead compound, INO-1001, in patients with glioblastoma multiforme. In addition to tolerability, safety and pharmacokinetics, the study will assess the pharmacodynamics of the product, including its ability to transverse the blood-brain barrier and to inhibit poly (ADP ribose) polymerase in glioblastoma multiforme tumors. Inotek said it is studying INO-1001 in a variety of scheduled procedures with a high incidence of ischemia and reperfusion injury, as well as in the treatment of certain late-stage cancers that are refractory to existing chemotherapy.

• Invitrogen Corp., of Carlsbad, Calif., said it is the exclusive worldwide source of cloning vectors for fluorescent proteins derived from Aequorea victoria. The company recently launched clones to help scientists use Emerald Green, the next-generation replacement for EFGP, and plans to launch a series of technology products that contain the optimized fluorescent proteins, which are used in imaging applications for disease research and drug discovery. In other news, Invitrogen's wholly owned subsidiary, BioReliance, launched an in vivo Comet assay, a technique that evaluates the genotoxic potential of a test compound to induce DNA damage in individual cells of different organ tissues.

• Millennium Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Cambridge, Mass., stands to receive licensing fees and milestone payments of about $40 million based on its collaborations. London-based GlaxoSmithKline plc paid $19.9 million in cash upon the transfer to GSK of the central marketing authorization of Integrilin in Europe. The payment, expected during this quarter, would be recognized as strategic alliance revenue throughout the remainder of 2005. In addition, Millennium is to receive two $10 million cash milestone payments based on its collaboration with Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research and Development LLC, a unit of New Brunswick, N.J.-based Johnson & Johnson, following the achievement of thresholds in year-to-date Velcade sales outside the U.S. Integrilin is a therapeutic in a class of blood-clot inhibitors known as glycoprotein IIb-IIIa inhibitors launched in the U.S. in 1998 and in Europe in 1999. Velcade, which is approved for multiple myeloma patients who have received prior therapies, is being developed by Millennium and J&JPRD to treat hematologic and solid tumors.

• Miravant Medical Technologies Inc., of Santa Barbara, Calif., finalized a convertible debt line-of-credit agreement for up to $15 million with a long-standing Miravant investor. The funds will be available at the company's discretion in increments of up to $1 million per month, with any unused monthly borrowings to be carried forward. The borrowings are convertible into shares of common stock based on a premium of 110 percent of the average monthly closing price of the month preceding each borrowing request. Additionally, the company will issue a warrant to purchase one-quarter of a share of common stock for each convertible share of common stock issued. The exercise price of each warrant also will be equal to 110 percent of the average monthly closing price of the month preceding the borrowing request.

• MIV Therapeutics Inc., of Vancouver, British Columbia, completed pilot preclinical studies of hydroxyapatite-coated stents in pig coronary arteries. The histopathology studies that followed angiographic and intravascular ultrasound evaluation confirmed excellent biocompatibility and safety of its hydroxyapatite coating for vascular applications.

• The North Carolina Biotechnology Center in Research Triangle Park, N.C., awarded nearly $300,000 to two North Carolina companies through its Small Business Research Awards program. ArrayXpress Inc., of Raleigh, received $149,858 to develop a diagnostic test for swine disease, and Asklepios BioPharmaceutical Inc., of Chapel Hill, received $150,000 to develop a gene-therapy treatment for congestive heart failure.

• Pepscan Systems BV, of Lelystad, the Netherlands; ServiceXS, of Leiden, the Netherlands; and Solvay Pharmaceuticals, of Weesp, the Netherlands, entered a research agreement for the de-orphanization of a series of proteases. Pepscan and ServiceXS will use their expertise in peptide arrays and peptide microarrays to identify peptide substrates for a series of proteases proprietary to Solvay. Financial details of the collaboration were not disclosed.

• Predix Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Woburn, Mass., initiated a Phase II tolerability study of PRX-00023 in patients with moderate to severe generalized anxiety disorder. The product is a serotonin 1A receptor agonist that has shown induction of surrogate biomarkers and was well tolerated in Phase I studies. The company plans to conduct additional studies in major depression.

• Prestwick Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Washington, said that new data show tetrabenazine might be a safe and viable treatment option for patients with hyperkinetic movement disorders who have a prior history of depression, according to research presented this week at the 9th International Congress of Parkinson's Disease and Movement Disorders in New Orleans. The company said that previous studies demonstrated that tetrabenazine, a dopamine depleter designed to work by selectively blocking vesicular monoamine transporter 2, improves the symptoms associated with a number of hyperkinetic movement disorders.

• Rexahn Corp., of Rockville, Md., expanded its research and development activities by licensing intellectual property from Indianapolis-based Revaax Pharmaceuticals to begin focusing on central nervous system diseases. Rexahn said it plans to file an investigational new drug application within the year for the lead compound, RX-10,100, shown to be active in animal models and biochemical markers for anxiety/depression. Financial terms were not disclosed.

• United Therapeutics Corp., of Silver Spring, Md., said French authorities issued an approval letter for Remodulin (treprostinil solution) injection for subcutaneous treatment of NYHA Class III primary pulmonary hypertension. The letter did not request any additional clinical trials and indicated that the mutual recognition approval process with other European Union countries will be initiated in May. The product was approved in the U.S. in May 2002, but it was denied by French authorities in September 2003 due to insufficient demonstration of clinical efficacy. (See BioWorld Today, Sept. 24, 2003.)

• Xenomics Inc., of New York, reported new clinical results that demonstrate for the first time the detection of proviral HIV-DNA in the urine of AIDS patients. The discovery was made at the company's joint venture with the National Institute for Infectious Diseases in Rome. The research conducted at the Spallanzani Institute is based on the company's patented Trans-renal DNA technology. The company said that Xenomics' team of scientists was the first to discover the existence of DNA that has passed through the kidneys and is excreted in the patient's urine.