• Actinium Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Alexandria, Va., said its subsidiary, MedActinium Inc., is collaborating with Battelle, which operates the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, Wash. MedActinium and Battelle signed a license agreement and an agreement in the alpha particle immunotherapy field. Financial details were not disclosed.

• Active Biotech AB, of Lund, Sweden, reported positive Phase I results of its TASQ (tumor angiogenesis suppression by quinolines) drug candidate. Data showed that TASQ's pharmacokinetic properties make it suitable for oral administration, a goal of the program to create a substance to treat prostate cancer. Prior studies have shown that its mechanism of action does not suppress kinases.

• Alfacell Corp., of Bloomfield, N.J., reported publication in the January/February 2003 issue of Cell Cycle postulating that alternative mechanism(s) for Onconase involve the mediation of miRNAs and/or RNAis. These small RNAs, similar to tRNAs, are not protected by proteins and may also be degraded by Onconase, altering gene expression. Similarly, precursors of small RNAs may be degraded by Onconase, generating small RNAs with interfering properties. The mechanism may account for the inhibition of cancer cell proliferation and for cell death and may also operate during embryo development, when cells undergo perpetual differentiation as well as apoptosis.

• Axonyx Inc., of New York, said it anticipates starting two trials this year of Phenserine, its lead candidate for mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease. The first would be a Phase II trial to evaluate different doses of Phenserine over six months in 75 patients. The second trial potentially would be one of the pivotal trials the company would need for a regulatory filings in the U.S. and Europe, it said, and measure the ability of the drug to improve memory and cognition. It would recruit 375 patients, including the 75 in the Phase II study. Given sufficient financial resources, it anticipates beginning that study in the second quarter.

• Bionomics Ltd., of Adelaide, Australia, said it created a model called NeoVascMouse, an extension to its Angene drug discovery platform for angiogenesis research. NeoVascMouse will be used to validate drug targets and screen for new drugs that affect blood vessel growth. The model is covered by Bionomics' recent patent filings.

• Cell Pathways Inc., of Horsham, Pa., said the Cancer and Leukemia Group B, a national clinical research group sponsored by the National Cancer Institute, a unit of the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Md., is sponsoring a Phase II combination study of Cell Pathways' investigational drug Aptosyn (exisulind) in patients with hormone-refractory prostate cancer. The study is investigating the combination of Aptosyn, estramustine and Taxotere (docetaxel) in about 72 patients with evidence of progressive disease following their last change in therapy.

• Celltech Group plc, of Slough, UK, said a Phase IV open-label clinical-experience study of previously treated and untreated ADHD patients published in the December 2002 issue of Current Medical Research and Opinion showed that 71 percent of previously treated ADHD patients rated their treatment with Metadate CD (methylphenidate) extended-release capsules dosed at 20 mg as better or much better than their previous ADHD treatment. Among patients who were previously treated with Concerta or immediate-release methylphenidate, 86 percent and 92 percent, respectively, were very satisfied or moderately satisfied with Metadate CD, the company said.

• ChemCodes Inc., of Research Triangle Park, N.C., entered an agreement with Wyeth, of Madison, N.J., to apply the ChemCodes chemistry platform to synthesize compounds for Wyeth. ChemCodes will use its medicinal chemistry platform that includes high-throughput chemical reactivity mapping and experimental design, among other things. Financial terms were not disclosed.

• Combinix Inc., of San Mateo, Calif., was awarded two Small Business Innovation Research grants from the National Cancer Institute and the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, both in Bethesda, Md. The grants are for the company to explore the discovery of red-shifted, long-wavelength fluorescent dyes for use as reporter molecules in high-throughput screening, fluorescent microscopy and optical imaging.

• ComGenex Inc., of Budapest, Hungary, said its subsidiary, Thales Nanotechnology, was awarded a Small Business Incentive grant from a Hungarian government agency. The grant is meant to finance the development of a tool that integrates continuous flow production with microfluidic processes in a single chip, the company said. The amount of the grant was not disclosed.

• Dyax Corp., of Cambridge, Mass., began a Phase II trial of its investigational compound DX-88. In the 48-patient, U.S.-based EDEMA1 (Evaluation of DX-88's Effect on Mitigating Angioedema) trial, DX-88 is being studied for the treatment of hereditary angioedema, a rare disorder that leads to acute attacks of localized swelling and inflammation. Primary endpoints include efficacy and safety in the study, which is being conducted by Dyax under its collaboration with Genzyme Corp., also of Cambridge. Dyax has an ongoing, European, open-label Phase II study of DX-88 in angioedema.

• GeneLink Inc., of Margate, N.J., signed a distribution agreement with FoodScience Corp., of Essex Junction, Vt., to develop and market personalized nutritional products linked to GeneLink's genetic assessment technology. The agreement authorizes FoodScience to distribute GeneLink's DNA Collection Kit and Nutragenetic Profile Assessments and related products.

• Genmab A/S, of Copenhagen, Denmark, received FDA approval for its investigational new drug application to use U.S. sites in an ongoing Phase II study of HuMax-IL15 in rheumatoid arthritis. The study, which began in Europe at the end of last year, will be a multiple-dose, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in patients with active RA who have previously failed one or more disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs. Patients will receive doses of 40 mg, 80 mg, 160 mg or 280 mg of HuMax-IL15 or placebo once every two weeks for 12 weeks and will be followed for 12 weeks after the final dose. The objective of the trial is to demonstrate efficacy as measured by ACR (American College of Rheumatology) score as well as safety.

• Inflazyme Pharmaceuticals Ltd., of Vancouver, British Columbia, received FDA approval of its investigational new drug application for IPL512,602. Inflazyme said it began its first study of the compound, described as a short study to assist in confirming the dosage regimen for upcoming Phase II programs. Subject to protocol approval by the FDA, Phase II programs in both asthma and allergic rhinitis are scheduled to begin in the first half of this year.

• Insmed Inc., of Richmond, Va., reported positive results from a dose-ranging trial of SomatoKine (rhIGF-I/IGFBP-3) in adolescent patients with Type I diabetes. The double-blind, placebo-controlled, dose range-finding study revealed that following the administration of SomatoKine, IGF-I blood levels were restored and increases in insulin sensitivity occurred in a dose-dependent manner. The data also showed a significant suppression of overnight growth hormone release.

• Medarex Inc., of Princeton, N.J., and DiaDexus Inc., of South San Francisco, entered a collaboration for the research and development of fully human antibody therapeutics. Medarex plans to use its UltiMAb Human Antibody Development System to generate antibodies to disease targets identified by DiaDexus. They expect to develop antibodies against novel lung cancer targets, for which they intend to share the cost of research, development and commercialization as well as potential profits resulting from any products. DiaDexus also plans to use UltiMAb technology to generate antibodies to other therapeutic targets outside the collaboration, for which Medarex could receive license fees and milestone payments as well as royalties on commercial sales of any resultant products.

• Micrologix Biotech Inc., of Vancouver, British Columbia, began enrolling patients in its Phase IIb trial of MBI 594AN, an antimicrobial peptide under development to treat acne. The randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, dose-ranging efficacy trial is studying 240 acne patients treated twice daily for 12 weeks with either the placebo or MBI 594AN at 2.5 percent or 1.25 percent. Its activity will be assessed based on reduction of acne lesion counts and physician assessment of each patient during the study. The study also is evaluating the drug's safety and local tolerability.

• NicOx SA, of Sophia Antipolis, France, reported the expansion of its research and co-development agreement with Biolipox AB, of Stockholm, Sweden, on a class of nitric oxide-donating therapeutics in the respiratory field. The collaboration combines NicOx's intellectual property and expertise in the nitric oxide field with Biolipox's expertise in the characterization of mechanisms and screening of compounds for the treatment of airway diseases in order to identify drug candidates. NicOx will synthesize a series of compounds for preclinical evaluation by Biolipox.

• Paradigm Genetics Inc., of Research Triangle Park, N.C., said it received an anticipated notice from Nasdaq on Jan. 24 saying that the company's common stock is subject to delisting from the Nasdaq National Stock Market due to failure to comply with the $1 minimum bid requirement for continued listing. The company's stock will continue to be traded on the Nasdaq National Market pending the final decision by Nasdaq.

• Pharmexa A/S, of Hoersholm, Denmark, said it is laying off 31 employees, or 30 percent of its work force. Also, Pharmexa said it is increasingly focusing its resources on its most advanced products, the HER-2 DNA AutoVac, HER-2 Protein AutoVac and TNF-alpha AutoVac products. Those three development projects continue to demand more resources, the company said. A Phase II trial of HER-2 DNA AutoVac against breast cancer is being prepared, while HER-2 Protein AutoVac, also against breast cancer, will soon be in a Phase I trial. At the same time, the TNF-alpha AutoVac against rheumatoid arthritis is moving toward clinical trials. As a result of that focus and the poor capital markets, Pharmexa said it decided to downgrade a number of research programs in cancer and allergy. It is also continuing its RANKL AutoVac program in bone degeneration at a lower resource level.

• Sophion Bioscience A/S, of Copenhagen, Denmark, closed its second round of financing, providing adequate funding for bringing the first screening system product, QPatch 16, to market. Patch clamping is a method for characterization of ion channel behavior in living cells, the company said. The company has completed the first prototype version of QPatch 16, it said.

• Symyx Technologies Inc., of Santa Clara, Calif., reported the fourth extension of its research and development collaboration with Celanese Chemicals, part of Celanese AG, of Frankfurt, Germany. The collaboration, which began in 1997, will continue to focus on the discovery of breakthrough catalysts for the production of commodity chemicals. Celanese will continue to fund Symx's discovery efforts, and will have exclusive rights to commercialize materials discovered within the field of the collaboration. Symyx would receive royalties on resulting products.

• The Institute for the Study of Aging in New York reported its investment in Allon Therapeutics Inc., of Tel Aviv, Israel, a start-up biotechnology company dedicated to developing neuroprotective therapeutics. Allon has a portfolio of drug candidates in the area of neuroprotection, the institute said. Its core intellectual property rights encompass a large portfolio of patents and patent applications developed at Tel Aviv University and the National Institutes of Health.

• Theratechnologies Inc., of Montreal, said Phase II data from patients with Type II diabetes treated with ThGRF show that the growth hormone-releasing factor analogue is safe, well tolerated and does not interfere with glycemic control. Theratechnologies said such results support development of ThGRF in a broader clinical population, having demonstrated that in contrast to other products in the field, its compound can be safely administered in aged, glucose-intolerant and diabetic patients. Theratechnologies will present more detailed results later this year at an unspecified conference.

• Viragen Inc., of Plantation, Fla., and its majorityowned subsidiary, Viragen International Inc., said an initial shipment of its natural human alpha interferon, Multiferon, was delivered to Harvester Trading Co. Ltd., its distribution partner in Taiwan. The antiviral drug has been delivered to begin a limited pre-licensed sales program until Multiferon is approved for sale in Taiwan.