• Aphton Corp., of Miami, said the underwriters of its recent 7 million-share offering fully exercised their overallotment option to purchase an additional about 1.1 million shares. The total funding, including the overallotment shares, is $52.3 million. The company intends to use proceeds to fund the clinical development of G17DT, for clinical and preclinical studies of other product candidates, for potential licenses and acquisitions of complementary products or technologies, and for working capital and other general corporate purposes. UBS Securities LLC was the offering's sole book-running manager, with Harris Nesbitt Gerard as co-manager. (See BioWorld Today, March 1, 2004.)

• Atrix Laboratories Inc., of Fort Collins, Colo., said the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois issued an order granting its motion to stay the patent-infringement suit filed by TAP Pharmaceutical Products Inc., of Lake Forest, Ill.; Takeda Chemical Industries Ltd., of Osaka, Japan; and Wako Pure Chemical Industries Ltd., also of Osaka, involving Atrix's Eligard (leuprolide acetate for injectable suspension). Atrix was granted the stay on the basis that two independent parties have requested the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to re-examine the Takeda- and Wako-held patent at issue in the case. Atrix said the court noted that there is a significant chance that the patent office will invalidate or drastically decrease in scope the plaintiff's patent claims and that the ruling will prevent resources from being expended on trying the validity of the plaintiff's patent claims, which might ultimately be canceled or amended by the patent office.

• Benitec Ltd., of Queensland, Australia, launched its siStrike vectors, a new line of gene-silencing products that mediate RNA interference using Benitec's DNA-directed RNA interference (ddRNAi) technology. Developed by Promega Corp., of Madison, Wis., the vectors are the first products to emerge from a worldwide exclusive licensing agreement between the companies reported last spring.

• BioPort Corp., of Lansing, Mich., sold BioThrax, its FDA-licensed anthrax vaccine, to the Taiwanese government. The company said officials in Taiwan will use the vaccine to immunize laboratory workers and to create a stockpile for emergency use. In January, BioPort received a $245 million contract from the U.S. Department of Defense for the continued supply of BioThrax in support of a military vaccination program.

• Cell Genesys Inc., of South San Francisco, filed a prospectus supplement with the SEC related to an underwritten public offering of 6 million shares of common stock under an existing shelf registration statement. The underwriters have been granted the option to purchase an additional 900,000 shares to cover any overallotments. JPMorgan and Lehman Bros. Inc. are acting as joint book-running managers. Needham & Co. Inc. and SG Cowen Securities Corp. are acting as co-managers. Cell Genesys is focused on biological therapies for cancer.

• Cellway Ventures Inc., of Calgary, Alberta, changed its name to Acrongenomics Inc. to reflect its emerging business in the biotechnology, pharmaceutical and diagnostics industries. Concurrently, its trading symbol will change from "CWYV" to "AGNM."

• Connetics Corp., of Palo Alto, Calif., completed its acquisition of exclusive U.S. rights to Soriatane (acitretin), an approved oral psoriasis therapy from F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd., of Basel, Switzerland. Last month, Connetics said it intended to pay $123 million in cash for Soriatane, a once-daily medication for initial and maintenance treatment of severe psoriasis in adults. (See BioWorld Today, Feb. 10, 2004.)

• DiscoveRx Corp., of Fremont, Calif., released a new range of kinase assay toolboxes to its line of assays for high-throughput screening. Covering a range of kinase targets, their components include proprietary antibodies, tracers, substrates and standards.

• Enhance Biotech Inc., of New York, conducted a 3-for-2 forward split of its common stock. The company, which is developing products for sexual dysfunction and dermatological indications, said the split was made in conjunction with its November financing.

• Exactech Inc., of Gainesville, Fla., received FDA clearance to produce and market a demineralized bone matrix-based human allograft bone paste. The material is based on a synthetic bioabsorbable polymer carrier technology that previously was licensed from Genzyme Corp., of Cambridge, Mass. Exactech focuses on orthopaedic implant devices, related surgical instruments and biologic materials and services.

• Introgen Therapeutics Inc., of Austin, Texas, plans to offer 5.5 million shares of common stock in an underwritten public offering under its existing shelf registration statement. The underwriters will have an option to purchase an additional 825,000 shares to cover overallotments. UBS Securities LLC is acting as the sole book-running manager and SG Cowen Securities Corp. and Leerink Swann & Co. are acting as co-managers. Introgen focuses on biopharmaceutical products designed to induce therapeutic protein expression using non-integrating gene agents for the treatment of cancer and other diseases.

• Large Scale Biology Corp., of Vacaville, Calif., entered an agreement under which Sigma-Aldrich Fine Chemicals, a division of Sigma-Aldrich Inc., of St. Louis, will distribute its Apronexin NP for research and development and manufacturing applications. A protease inhibitor, the plant-produced recombinant aprotinin product is marketed for medical, research and biomanufacturing applications. Large Scale Biology will produce it at its biomanufacturing facility in Owensboro, Ky. Financial terms were not disclosed.

• Nanogen Inc., of San Diego, raised gross proceeds of about $33.7 million after selling 4.25 million common shares to institutional investors at $7.94 apiece. Net proceeds will total about $31.5 million. Nanogen, which develops molecular diagnostic products for the gene-based testing market, plans to use the proceeds for working capital and other general corporate purposes. Seven Hills Partners LLC acted as exclusive placement agent in the financing.

• Pheromone Sciences Corp., of Toronto, raised $335,250 through a private placement of convertible debentures. At the holder's option, each $1 of debt is convertible into 10 common shares and 10 warrants that entitle the holder to acquire one common share for 10 cents at any time prior to Feb. 4, 2005. Pheromone is focused on the field of human reproduction.

• Shiprock Inc., of Apache Junction, Ariz., agreed to acquire Duska Scientific Co., of Bala Cynwyd, Pa. Following the transaction, Shiprock will change its name to Duska Therapeutics Inc. but will continue to trade on the OTC Bulletin Board under a new symbol to be issued after the merger, which remains subject to the completion of a private financing by Duska of at least $2.65 million. Privately held Duska is developing diagnostic and therapeutic products based upon technology related to adenosine 5'-triphosphate (ATP) and its receptors. Financial terms were not disclosed.

• SynX Pharma Inc., of Toronto, reacquired worldwide rights to its Alzheimer's diagnostic technology from Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics Inc., a unit of Johnson & Johnson, of New Brunswick, N.J. SynX, which out-licensed the technology in October 2002, said it would continue its development while seeking nonexclusive partners and might add the technology to its Nexus DX product line.

• The Medicines Co., of Parsippany, N.J., said findings published in the Annals of Thoracic Surgery showed that anticoagulation for off-pump coronary artery bypass graft surgery with Angiomax (bivalirudin) was feasible, with similar bleeding but with better graft flow 90 days after surgery, compared to heparin. The study was the first randomized, blinded trial to compare the company's approved anticoagulant with heparin and protamine reversal for anticoagulation during cardiac surgery.

• Transkaryotic Therapies Inc., of Cambridge, Mass., completed enrollment in its pivotal trial of iduronate-2-sulfatase (I2S), its investigational enzyme replacement therapy for Hunter syndrome. The 12-month trial, referred to as the AIM study (Assessment of Iduronate-2-sulfatase in MPS-II), enrolled 96 patients in six months. The company said it expects top-line results in the second quarter of next year and, if positive, plans to submit applications for marketing approval in both the U.S. and Europe in the second half of next year.

• TransnetYX Inc., of Memphis, Tenn., launched its rapid-turnaround mouse genotyping service, an automated system that provides online reporting of genotyping results in as few as 24 hours. The company said its genotyping services simplify the processes of extracting and testing DNA, while culling inventories of unneeded mice and testing supplies.

• Vion Pharmaceuticals Inc., of New Haven, Conn., said it would focus its efforts on one of two second-generation TAPET (Tumor Amplified Protein Expression Therapy) vectors, which are modified Salmonella bacteria used to deliver cancer agents directly to tumors, after analyzing results from veterinary trials of dogs with spontaneous tumors. The company said it would continue to treat up to 15 additional dogs with the vector, with complete data expected to be available by the end of this year.