• Active Biotech AB, of Lund, Sweden, said its board intends to raise a debenture loan for about SEK150 million (US$20.9 million) through the issue of about 3.7 million convertible debentures. The loan will carry 2 percent interest from Jan. 1, and will mature on June 30, 2009, if the debentures have not yet been converted. The conversion price will be SEK40. The transaction is subject to approval by a general meeting.

• Artemis Pharmaceuticals GmbH, of Cologne, Germany, signed an agreement with Merck & Co. Inc., of Whitehouse Station, N.J., to construct RNA interference (RNAi)-modified genetically engineered mice for the in vivo functional analysis of selected disease-related genes. Artemis will generate RNAi knock-down genetically engineered mice for Merck. Merck will provide selected shRNA sequences that correspond to genes that might play a central role in human diseases. Artemis will use its technologies for functional down-regulation of the expression of the gene targets provided by Merck. Financial terms were not disclosed.

• Astex Technology Ltd., of Cambridge, UK, achieved a goal in its collaboration with Schering AG, of Berlin. The four-year deal, announced in 2003, centers on drug discovery, with a focus on orally available small-molecule drugs targeting solid tumors. Schering is funding Astex's related research, providing discovery and clinical milestone payments plus eventual royalties. Schering would be responsible for clinical development and has an option to retain worldwide, exclusive marketing rights for identified compounds.

• Axaron Bioscience AG, of Heidelberg, Germany, reported positive results regarding its stroke compound, AX200, which is in Phase II testing. In presentations for the German Neurology Society's congress and the Society for Neuroscience's annual meeting, the company reported on AX200's ability to stop apoptosis following a stroke and on the compound's regenerative effects. The Phase II trial began in August.

• Benitec Ltd., of St. Lucia, Australia, granted a worldwide nonexclusive license to Panomics Inc., of Redwood City, Calif., to make and sell DNA-directed RNAi-based products. Panomics specializes in tools for decoding the proteome, including arrays for global analysis of transcriptional regulation and cell signaling.

• Biacore International AB, of Uppsala, Sweden, signed its first commercial deal for its new Surface Plasmon Resonance array technology, which is designed to allow researchers to perform parallel analyses of interactions between biomolecules and panels of proteins. The company's first customer is Tokyo-based Japan Biological Information Research Center, which plans to use the technology in a screening program involving cDNA expression libraries.

• Biocon Ltd., of Bangalore, India, and Nobex Corp., of Research Triangle Park, N.C., entered an agreement for the global co-development of an oral insulin product for diabetes. The deal calls for Nobex to combine its peptide oral delivery and process technology with the peptide production capabilities of Biocon. The companies expect to have meaningful clinical data and progress toward manufacturing within two years. Financial terms were not disclosed.

• BioPartners, of Zug, Switzerland, submitted a marketing authorization application to the European Medicines Evaluation Agency for its interferon-alpha product. If approved, the product might be available to treat hepatitis C in Europe beginning in 2005.

• BioProgress plc, of March, UK, a drug delivery specialist, completed a listing on Nasdaq. No new shares were issued, but the company said the move would increase its visibility with U.S. investors. The stock is trading under the "BPRG" ticker symbol.

• Bioscience Managers Ltd., of London, and Teachers' Private Capital, the private equity arm of the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan, closed the BML International Maple Leaf Fund I to focus on private equity investments in mid-stage Canadian life science companies. The fund is expected to be a lead investor in syndicated rounds worth $20 million to $30 million.

• Cambrex France SARL, the wholly owned subsidiary of Cambrex Corp., of East Rutherford, N.J., paid about $6 million in cash to acquire Genolife SA, of Saint Beauzire, France. Genolife specializes in microbial-detection testing for the pharmaceutical, agricultural, food and cosmetic industries. Cambrex will use Genolife's technology internally for in-process testing of its media, biologics and cell-therapy production to cut product costs and cycle times.

• Cancer Research UK in London has used RNA interference to inactivate the gene Type 1 insulin-like growth factor (IGF1R) in chemotherapy-resistant prostate cancer cells, and said that the cells became sensitive to radiotherapy and chemotherapeutics that work by damaging DNA. Cancer Research said the work supports blocking IGFIR in treating cancer.

• Cell Therapeutics Inc., of Seattle, said its Japanese licensee, Nippon Shinyaku Co. Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan, received Japanese approval to market Trisenox (arsenic trioxide) for patients with relapsed or refractory acute promyelocytic leukemia. Nippon expects to launch the product in the coming months after receiving pricing approval. CTI Technologies Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Cell Therapeutics, will receive a $500,000 milestone payment. CTI also has rights to future payments based on the achievement of milestones and from royalties on product sales.

• Cellartis AB, of Gothenburg, Sweden, said it received a second year of infrastructure research funding from the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Md., to continue its work on the characterization and expansion of human embryonic stem cell lines. The cell lines were derived before the Aug. 9, 2001, cut-off point and, thus, are eligible for U.S. federal funding. Cellartis is carrying out the research in collaboration with the University of Lund and the Sahlgrenska Academy at Gothenburg University.

• Chroma Therapeutics Ltd., of Oxford, UK, appointed Leon Hoffman, former head of clinical development at Celltech Group plc, chief medical officer, and Richard Bungay, director of corporate communications at Celltech, chief financial officer. In June, Ian Nicholson, also an ex-Celltech employee, became CEO of Chroma, which applies chromatin biology to cancer treatments, while Peter Allen, Celltech's chief financial officer, became a nonexecutive director. All moves follow Celltech's acquisition by UCB Pharma, of Brussels, Belgium.

• CollaGenex Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Newtown, Pa., said its wholly owned UK subsidiary, CollaGenex International Ltd., will receive $3.3 million for selling rights to its UK and European dental assets to Alliance Pharma plc, of Chippenham, UK. The assets primarily consist of trademarks, UK and European governmental marketing authorizations, distribution agreements and other intangible assets related to the sale of Periostat in Europe; the compounds sales in that territory last year were about $560,000. CollaGenex also agreed to supply Periostat tablets to Alliance, which received an option to acquire a license to register and market Periostat MR, a once-daily, modified-release form of Periostat in Phase III trials in the U.S. and UK for adult periodontitis. CollaGenex retains all rights to Periostat MR in other indications.

• ComGenex Inc., of Budapest, Hungary, and Echelon Biosciences Inc., of Salt Lake City, said they are extending and expanding their collaboration. Over the two-year relationship to date, ComGenex has provided Echelon small molecules and drug discovery chemistry know-how, while Echelon has contributed its biology knowledge of lipid cell signaling of cancer targets. In the expanded agreement, Echelon can acquire ComGenex's share of jointly held intellectual property from the deal with an up-front and milestone payments. Specific details were not disclosed. The companies will continue joint discovery in other oncology target areas.

• Cytos Biotechnology AG, of Schlieren, Switzerland, initiated a combined Phase I/II trial with the Immunodrug candidate CYT007-TNFQb, a vaccine to treat psoriasis. The study will involve 48 patients with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis and is designed to test safety, tolerability and efficacy. Initial results are expected in the first half of 2006.

• DeCode Genetics Inc., of Reykjavik, Iceland, reported the principal results from its Phase IIa trial of DG031, its developmental compound being studied for the prevention of heart attack. The trial was designed to examine the effect of various doses of DG031 on certain biomarkers linked to arterial inflammation and the risk of heart attack in patients with a history of heart attack and one or more of the gene variants DeCode has linked to increased risk of disease. The trial achieved its primary efficacy endpoint of demonstrating a reduction in one or more of the key biomarkers.

• Dong-A PharmTech Co. Ltd., of Seoul, South Korea, said Phase II results reported at the World Congress of the International Society for the Sexual and Impotence Research in Buenos Aires, Argentina, showed that DA-8159 produced a significant improvement in erectile function after 12 weeks of drug therapy. Use of the oral phosphodiesterase type-5 inhibitor resulted in up to a 91 percent vaginal penetration success rate and up to 67 percent intercourse completion rate, compared to 29 percent for the placebo group. The study evaluated 319 men, and DA-8159 was well tolerated at both the 100-mg and 200-mg dose levels.

• Evogene Ltd., of Rehovot, Israel, entered an agreement with Compugen Ltd., of Tel Aviv, Israel, to evaluate the production of three of Compugen's therapeutic protein candidates using Evogene's Plant-Made Pharmaceutical platform. Compugen will supply the sequence information of the candidates. Financial terms were not disclosed.

• The German Society for Trauma Surgery and the German Society of Orthopedics and Orthopedic Surgery recommended autologous cartilage transplants as first-line treatment for serious cartilage damage. Co.don AG, of Berlin, is the primary provider of that treatment.

• Hameln Pharmaceuticals GmbH, of Hameln, Germany, and Akorn Inc., of Buffalo Grove, Ill., signed an exclusive binding term sheet by which Hameln will license and supply to Akorn two orphan drugs, Calcium-DTPA and Zinc-DTPA. FDA approved in August, they are indicated for the treatment of radioactive poisoning. Hameln will provide Akorn an exclusive license for five years, with automatic successive two-year extensions. Akorn paid €100,000 to enter the deal, and the companies intend to enter a binding contract by Nov. 30, at which time Akorn will pay a €1.5 million license fee. Akorn will be responsible for marketing and distributing the drugs in the U.S. and Canada, and the companies will share revenues evenly. Hameln will be responsible for manufacturing and Akorn will be responsible for paying any annual FDA-establishment fees and for the cost of any post-approval studies.

• Jerini Peptide Technologies GmbH, a wholly owned subsidiary of Jerini AG, of Berlin, has taken up residence at the Fairfax County BioAccelerator business incubator. JPT will expand into the North American market from its new location in Virginia. JPT manufactures tools and arrays made of synthetic peptides which consist of consecutive amino acids.

• MediGene AG, of Martinsried, Germany, has finished enrolling patients for the Phase II trial of its Polyphenon E ointment. The compound targets actinic keratosis, a skin cancer precursor. The company expects the trial to be completed in the second quarter of 2005. The ointment is in Phase III trials for treating genital warts.

• Neuropharma SA, a majority-owned subsidiary of Zeltia Group, of Madrid, Spain, said oral administration of its acetylcholinesterase inhibitor, NP0361, led to a decrease in amyloid plaque loads and an increase in cognitive functioning in animal models of Alzheimer's disease. The company disclosed its data at the 5th Neurobiology of Aging Conference in San Diego, and said it had initiated further preclinical studies required by regulatory authorities before moving the compound into Phase I studies.

• Newron Pharmaceuticals SpA, of Bresso, Italy, said it obtained preliminary evidence of efficacy in a Phase II trial of ralfinamide, an oral drug candidate in development for treatment of neuropathic pain. The observer-blinded study of 18 patients, who received ascending doses of drug over four weeks, resulted in a 26 percent improvement in Visual Analogue Scale vs. baseline. The result was statistically significant. The compound was safe and well tolerated, the company said. A placebo-controlled Phase II trial of ralfinamide is ongoing.

• OctoPlus Technologies BV, of Leiden, the Netherlands, entered a collaboration to develop and market a new injectable drug delivery platform with InnoCore Technologies BV, of Groningen, the Netherlands. The platform is based on SynBiosys, a biodegradable polymeric system that enables development of controlled-release formulations of peptides and small molecules, and complements OctoPlus' existing PolyActive and OctoDEX drug delivery platforms. Financial terms were not disclosed.

• Peplin Ltd., of Brisbane, Australia, completed the Phase I trial of its skin cancer treatment PEP005 Topical. The U.S.-based study produced no serious adverse events, and early next year the company plans to begin an Australian-based Phase II program to study the compound in actinic keratosis and basal-cell carcinoma.

• Royal Adelaide Hospital in Adelaide, Australia, reported data at the American College of Rheumatology meeting in San Antonio showing that bosentan (Tracleer, from Actelion Ltd.) improves patient quality of life in the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension related to connective tissue diseases. In a study called VITAL, patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension and scleroderma treated with bosentan significantly improved at three months compared to baseline measures, particularly in terms of physical function (p<0.0001), social function (p=0.002), vitality (p=0.02), emotional role (p=0.03) and physical role (p<0.0001). The results were maintained or improved out to six months.

• Ruhr University in Germany said its researchers reported data at the American College of Rheumatology meeting in San Antonio in which analysis of a magnetic resonance imaging study showed that significantly more ankylosing spondylitis patients treated with Enbrel (etanercept) had regression of spinal inflammation compared to placebo. Specifically, the MRIs showed 73 percent of Enbrel patients experienced a significant regression in active inflammatory spinal lesions, while 13 percent taking placebo experienced continued deterioration. The changes were detectable in as early as six weeks. The drug is marketed by Amgen Inc., of Thousand Oaks, Calif., and Wyeth, of Madison, N.J.

• Serono SA, of Geneva, said that in the first clinical trial to compare gonadotropin-releasing hormone antagonists, patients using Cetrotide (cetrorelix acetate for injection) required fewer injections compared to patients using Ganirelix Acetate (formerly known as Antagon) to prevent premature ovulation during infertility treatment. The data were presented at the 60th annual meeting of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine in Philadelphia.

• Skye Pharma plc, of London, received a $5 million milestone payment from Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Chadd's Ford, Pa., related to DepoDur. DepoDur, which was adopted by the FDA on May 18, is SkyePharma's single-dose, sustained-release, injectable formulation of morphine for the relief of pain after major surgery. Endo is SkyePharma's licensee for DepoDur in North America. Under the terms of an agreement signed in December 2002, SkyePharma is entitled to milestone payments from Endo.

• Synairgen plc, of Southampton, UK, completed its initial public offering on London's Alternative Investment Market, raising £10.5 million (US$19.3 million), to further develop its respiratory diseases portfolio.

• Transkaryotic Therapies Inc., of Cambridge, Mass., paid $61 million to complete the purchase of the 20 percent equity interest in TKT Europe-5S AB held by the founding European executives of TKT Europe-5S. The purchase price in the transaction, which gives TKT complete ownership, was based on a predefined formula. TKT formed TKT Europe-5S in April 2000 to market, sell and distribute Replagal (agalsidase alfa), its enzyme-replacement therapy for Fabry's disease, in Europe. The company will account for the acquisition of TKT Europe-5S's minority interest as a step acquisition in the fourth quarter and expects that the majority of the purchase price will be allocated to tangible and intangible assets.

• Tzamal Pharma, of Petah-Tikva, Israel, was granted by Insmed Inc., of Richmond, Va., exclusive marketing rights to SomatoKine for certain Middle Eastern territories including Israel. Insmed also granted Tzamal exclusive rights to expand Insmed's named-patient program for the IGF-I replacement therapy in those Middle Eastern territories. Financial terms were not disclosed.