• Adventrx Pharmaceuticals Inc., of San Diego, said the FDA cleared its investigational new drug application to begin a Phase Ib/IIa trial of its HIV-1 entry inhibitor, BlockAide/CR. The study will assess the drug in HIV-1-positive individuals with evidence of increasing viral load despite treatment with other antiretroviral therapy. BlockAide/CR is a synthetic 15-amino-acid peptide that mimics a portion of HIV-1 responsible for entry into the immune system cell.

• AngioGenex Inc., of New York, completed an $875,000 convertible bridge note and warrant financing led by Atypical BioVentures Fund, which is affiliated with Aurora Capital LLC. AngioGenex is developing a platform based on inhibitors of differentiation genes, which it said might represent targets for cancer treatment and diagnosis.

• BioTrove Inc., of Woburn, Mass., completed a $13.7 million round of financing, closing a second tranche of an oversubscribed round for $2.8 million. The first tranche closed at $10.9 million. The company said it would use the funds to accelerate commercialization of its micro- and nano-scale products and services, the Living Chip and Momentum Assay Development and Screening, respectively. It also plans to use the funds to support construction of a 10,000-square-foot manufacturing facility. Catalyst Health and Technology Partners led the round, supported by new investors Echelon Ventures and Fletcher Spaght. Original investors from the first tranche include CB Health Ventures, Zero Stage Capital and BioFrontier Partners.

• Cepheid Inc., of Sunnyvale, Calif., was granted an export license for its GeneXpert Anthrax test cartridge and GeneXpert system by the U.S. State Department. The export license provides government clearance for Cepheid to market its technology for biothreat use to specific government agencies in the UK, Germany, France, Belgium and Switzerland. The system was designed to allow users to detect the presence of anthrax.

• DeCode Genetics Inc., of Reykjavik, Iceland, completed its offering of 3.5 percent senior convertible notes due 2011. In addition to the $125 million of notes offered, the company issued a further $25 million of notes pursuant to the exercise of an overallotment option by the notes' initial purchasers. The notes are convertible into shares of DeCode common stock, at the option of the holder, at a price of $14 a share, which is equivalent to an initial conversion rate of about 71.4 shares per $1,000 of the notes. DeCode, which may redeem the notes beginning April 20, 2009, said it expects to use the proceeds principally for advancing its drug development programs, as well as for general corporate purposes. (See BioWorld Today, April 9, 2004.)

• DUSA Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Wilmington, Mass., said all the investors from its recently completed private placement exercised their option to purchase an additional 337,500 common shares at $11 apiece. The company is developing Levulan Photodynamic Therapy and Photodetection for multiple medical indications, with a primary focus in dermatology.

• Endovasc Inc., of Montgomery, Texas, said research suggests that nicotine, given at low doses, might be useful in treating heart failure. The research directed by Yong-Jian Geng at Texas Heart Institute's Heart Failure and Stem Cell Research Laboratory was published in the spring edition of Heart Watch. The studies confirm and extend earlier studies suggesting that nicotine can boost the regenerative abilities of stem cells in patients with heart failure.

• Enhance Biotech Inc., of New York, said it teamed with SoleRx LLC to advance the development of products in Enhance's EBOI, LI 412 group of treatments for urticaria and itch. Enhance is in the process of developing a dermatology and skin care portfolio of products that include treatments for moderate to severe atopic dermatitis, psoriasis, eczema and allergy itch, cellulite and gum disorders.

• Insmed Inc., of Richmond, Va., acquired a lease to operate a recombinant protein manufacturing facility in Boulder, Colo., formerly operated by Baxter Healthcare Corp., of Deerfield, Ill. Insmed will use it for the commercial manufacture of its Phase III product, rhIGF-I/rhIGFBP-3, also known as SomatoKine. Avecia Ltd., of Billingham, UK, will continue to provide commercial manufacturing. Insmed is retaining several executives and scientists formerly employed by Baxter to operate the facility. Insmed's operational expenses will increase by about $4.5 million this year due to the acquisition SomatoKine is a delivery composition of insulin-like growth factor-I in a pivotal Phase III trial for growth hormone insensitivity syndrome.

• InterMune Inc., of Brisbane, Calif., completed enrollment in its pivotal Phase III trial evaluating the safety and efficacy of Actimmune (interferon gamma-1b) in combination with standard chemotherapy for advanced ovarian cancer. Initiated in 2001, the GRACES (Gamma Interferon and Chemotherapy Efficacy Study) trial enrolled 847 patients to evaluate interferon gamma-1b in combination with carboplatin plus paclitaxel for the treatment of patients with newly diagnosed advanced ovarian cancer or primary peritoneal carcinoma.

• Kiwa Bio-Tech Products Group Corp., of Zoucheng City, China, signed agreements to acquire a bio-fertilizer patent from the China Agricultural University, with which it also established a strategic alliance. The patent covers six different species of bacillus that have been tested as bio-fertilizers to enhance yield and plant health. At the same time, the parties will form Kiwa-CAU Bio-Tech Research and Development Center, which will eventually include several major agricultural research institutions and universities in the U.S. The university will provide research facility, staff, information and training to Kiwa.

• MDS Pharma Services, of Montreal, entered an agreement with Solvo Biotechnology Inc., of Hungary, to provide in vitro multidrug resistance transporter assays for screening and lead optimization, as well as preclinical absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion studies. Solvo's ATP Binding Cassette transporter protein assays are relevant to almost all therapeutic areas, particularly cancer. Solvo is an early stage biopharmaceutical company active in the field of ABC transporters and drug resistance.

• Micrologix Biotech Inc., of Vancouver, British Columbia, entered an agreement to acquire MitoKor Inc., of San Diego, for about 5.5 million common shares. The transaction also would include the payment of 4 million Series E preferred shares - worth about $4 million - to MitoKor for potential milestone payments. If completed, MitoKor will bring its candidates for neurological, metabolic and degenerative diseases to Micrologix's pipeline. Together the companies would have two candidates in or entering Phase III development, three candidates in Phase I/II development and seven preclinical programs. Jim DeMesa, Micrologix's president and CEO, would lead the combined company. The transaction is expected to close in June. Micrologix's stock (OTC BB:MGIXF) closed unchanged Thursday at $0.73.

• MorphoSys AG, of Munich, Germany, achieved a fourth milestone in its deal with Centocor Inc., of Horsham, Pa., triggering a payment from Centocor. MorphoSys said it developed several optimized fully human IgG antibodies against a disease-associated target provided by Centocor. As part of the collaboration milestone, MorphoSys applied its HuCAL Gold antibody library to generate antibodies that passed predefined criteria. No further financial details were disclosed.

• Peninsula Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Alameda, Calif., began patient enrollment in the fourth pivotal Phase III trial of its lead product candidate, doripenem (S-4661). It is the second pivotal study of the antibiotic, a new member of the carbapenem class of beta-lactam antibiotics, for complicated urinary tract infections including pyelonephritis. The trial will evaluate intravenous doripenem's safety and efficacy, with a primary endpoint of microbiological response at the test of cure visit (five to nine days following completion of therapy) in patients with a confirmed bacterial pathogen.

• Peplin Biotech Ltd., of Brisbane, Australia, and the Queensland Institute of Medical Research said data in Cancer Research detail five years of research on Peplin's new cancer drug, PEP005. The data show three daily topical applications of the drug onto the skin above a tumor resulted in complete clearance in a panel of aggressive mouse and human tumors growing subcutaneously in mice. They include melanoma and squamous-cell carcinoma, as well as lung, cervical and prostate cancers. Data also demonstrated that PEP005 induces primary necrotic cell death rather than apoptotic cell death.

• Pharmacopeia Inc., of Princeton, N.J., said its board declared a dividend of all of the outstanding shares of common stock of Pharmacopeia Drug Discovery Inc. (PDD), which is being spun off by Pharmacopeia. The dividend will be distributed to stockholders at the ratio of one share of PDD common stock for every two shares of Pharmacopeia common stock held. The dividend is expected to be payable on April 30. PDD has filed with the SEC to list its shares on the Nasdaq National Market under the symbol "PCOP" upon completion of the spin-off. Pharmacopeia will continue to trade under the "ACCL" symbol and will change its name to Accelrys Inc.

• Samaritan Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Las Vegas, said its independent auditors removed the "going concern" qualification related to an independent audit of the company's 2003 annual financial statements. Samaritan, which is developing drugs to target AIDS, Alzheimer's and cardiovascular disease, said it has raised more than $4.3 million in gross proceeds from institutional and accredited individual investors since the beginning of the year.

• Santarus Inc., of San Diego, said the underwriters of its initial public offering fully exercised their overallotment option for an additional 900,000 common shares at $9 each. SG Cowen Securities Corp. and UBS Investment Bank acted as joint bookrunning managers, while Thomas Weisel Partners LLC and RBC Capital Markets acted as co-managers. With the overallotment exercise, the company raised a total of $62.1 million in the IPO. (See BioWorld Today, April 2, 2004.)

• Spectrum Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Irvine, Calif., began preclinical studies to evaluate the antitumor activity of EOquin in combination with radiation therapy in multiple cancer types. Previous in vitro data indicate that EOquin might have preferential cytotoxic activity against hypoxic cells. In addition, the company said that updated results from a previously completed Phase I trial of EOquin as a single agent for superficial bladder cancer, its initial indication, will be presented at the British Association of Urological Surgeons conference in Harrogate, UK, in June.

• Theratechnologies Inc., of Montreal, reported results from a Phase II trial testing ThGRF in patients with HIV-associated lipodystrophy. Highlights include a good safety profile, a positive effect on body composition and a clinically relevant reduction in visceral fat while subcutaneous fat was preserved, the company said. While the selectivity of action on fat distribution appears to have prevented the study from meeting one of its primary endpoints, the company said it likely would be an advantage in treating HIV-associated lipodystrophy patients who generally experience an accumulation of visceral fat. Of particular importance was good glycemic control, the company noted, including glucose-intolerant and diabetic patients, who represented 28 percent of the subjects enrolled.

• VaxGen Inc., of Brisbane, Calif., began a Phase II trial of its recombinant anthrax vaccine, rPA102. The 13-month study, which will take place at up to 12 U.S. centers, is one of two trials VaxGen intends to begin this year under an $80.3 million U.S. government contract from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases in Bethesda, Md. The study will evaluate the safety and immunogenicity of different formulations of rPA102 among 480 healthy volunteers. VaxGen plans to conduct the second Phase II trial later this year.

• Viragen Inc., of Plantation, Fla., said Viragen Ltd. in Scotland was awarded an $833,000 grant from the Scottish government to support the research and development of its anti-CD55 antibody. The product is designed to treat a range of cancers as a monotherapy or in combination with other antibodies. Viragen holds an option from Cancer Research Technology Ltd., of London, to acquire an exclusive worldwide license to the platform technology with potential applications in a number of cancer types.

• ViRexx Medical Corp., of Edmonton, Alberta, completed a public offering of 11 million units for gross proceeds of $8.8 million, including an exercised overallotment option. Canaccord Capital Corp. acted as exclusive agent on the offering. Each unit consists of one common share and one-half common share purchase warrant. Each whole warrant entitles the holder to acquire one common share of ViRexx for $1 until Oct. 14, 2005. ViRexx is focused on the development of therapeutics to treat chronic hepatitis B, hepatitis C and selected solid tumors.