• aaiPharma Inc., of Wilmington, N.C., secured a two-year, $135 million credit facility from Silver Point Finance, of Greenwich, Conn. The credit, subject to the consent of a majority of the holders of aaiPharma's 11 percent senior subordinated notes due 2010, and in conjunction with its pending sale of its M.V.I. and Aquasol product line, will replace its existing senior revolving and term debt facilities. Banc of America Securities LLC acted as the transaction's sole arranger.

• Aurora Discovery Inc., of San Diego, said it installed its Discovery System platform at an unnamed pharmaceutical customer. The product is a modular automation platform providing high-throughput performance for biochemical and cell-based assays.

• Avanir Pharmaceuticals Inc., of San Diego, filed a shelf registration statement with the SEC, enabling the company to sell up to $50 million in common stock from time to time over two years. Avanir is developing treatments for chronic diseases.

• The Baylor Research Institute in Dallas received a $1.3 million grant from the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Md., to study a common virus suspected to play a role in causing colon cancer. Researchers believe that when the JC virus replicates, it likely causes chromosomal instability that can start the process that leads to colorectal cancer.

• Centocor Inc., of Horsham, Pa., completed its acquisition of a biopharmaceutical manufacturing facility in St. Louis, Mo., from Wyeth, of Madison, N.J. Centocor, which will use the site to increase clinical material production for products in its pipeline, now owns and operates four manufacturing facilities on two continents.

• Halozyme Therapeutics Inc., of San Diego, signed a manufacturing agreement with Avid Bioservices Inc., of Tustin, Calif., a wholly owned subsidiary of Peregrine Pharmaceuticals Inc., for its first recombinant human enzyme. Halozyme's enzyme will be used in the development of Cumulase and Enhanze SC, which offer synthetic alternatives to impure slaughterhouse-derived enzymes used in the infertility and ophthalmology markets. Avid will manufacture the enzyme from cell bank production to delivery of cGMP-manufactured bulk material.

• The Indiana Future Fund I completed its first round of investments in local and national venture capital funds, including Burrill & Co., A.M. Pappas & Associates, Pearl Street Venture Funds and REI, a joint venture between Rose-Hulman Ventures and EDF Ventures. The Indiana Future Fund is a $73 million fund designed to attract venture capital to life science opportunities in the Hoosier State.

• Quantum Dot Corp., of Hayward, Calif., appointed George Dunbar CEO and a director. Dunbar has more than 25 years experience as CEO, director and senior manager with several bioscience companies, including Epic Therapeutics Inc., of Norwood, Mass., which was acquired in November 2002 by Baxter Healthcare Corp., of Deerfield, Ill. He recently worked as CEO of Palo Alto, Calif.-based Targesome, an early stage targeted drug delivery start-up. Privately held Quantum Dot is focused on life science research, clinical diagnostics and clinical imaging.

• Sangart Inc., of San Diego, said it received Swedish regulatory approval to conduct a Phase II trial of Hemospan (MP4), a hemoglobin-based oxygen carrier designed to serve as an alternative for blood transfusions. The company said the multisite study, which it expects to begin later this month, will include up to 90 patients undergoing elective and emergency orthopedic surgeries.

• Sanofi-Synthelabo SA, of Paris, said the registration statement filed with the SEC for its proposed acquisition of Aventis SA, of Strasbourg, France, was declared effective, allowing the U.S. offer to commence on Monday. The offer is open to holders of Aventis ordinary shares who are located in the U.S. and to all holders of Aventis American depository shares wherever located. The French offer, the U.S. offer and the German offer are being made on the same terms. Completion is subject to the same conditions, and all three offers will expire at the same time. Aventis is the subject of a $60 billion takeover bid by Sanofi.

• Telik Inc., of Palo Alto, Calif., filed a $200 million shelf registration with the SEC to periodically sell up to that amount worth of common stock. The company said it would use any subsequent proceeds for research and development, and general corporate purposes. Telik works to discover, develop and commercialize small-molecule drugs to treat cancer and other serious diseases.