¿ AltaRex Corp., of Waltham, Mass., closed on an offering of 28.5 million shares for gross proceeds of C$14.4 million (US$9.9 million). The money will be used primarily to fund costs associated with trials of its lead products, OvaRex MAb and BrevaRex MAb. (See BioWorld Today, April 28, 1999, p. 1.)

¿ Ambryx Inc., of San Diego, completed its seed financing. The company did not disclose the amount but said it was expected to last nine to 14 months at its current burn rate. Investors included Domain Associates, of Princeton, N.J.; Kingsbury Associates, of La Jolla, Calif.; and Kevin Kinsella, president and CEO of Ancile Pharmaceuticals. (See BioWorld Today, May 4, 1999, p. 1.)

¿ Endorex Corp., of Chicago, said patient enrollment has begun in two new Phase II trials of its cancer drug, Perillyl alcohol. The trials in advanced colorectal cancer and pancreatic cancer are being sponsored by the National Cancer Institute. Three other NCI-sponsored Phase II trials, in other cancer types, are ongoing.

¿ Gilead Sciences Inc., of Foster City, Calif., extended its U.S. expanded access program for the HIV drug Preveon to Europe, Canada and Australia. The program, funded by the various governments, makes the drug available for free to HIV-positive patients who have failed treatment with at least two nucleoside analogue reverse transcriptase inhibitors and one protease inhibitor. More than 7,800 patients are enrolled in the U.S. program.

¿ Glaxo Wellcome Inc., of Research Triangle Park, N.C., granted a worldwide exclusive license to Triangle Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Durham, N.C., and Emory University, of Atlanta, that gives them rights to Coviracil (formerly called FTC), an antiviral nucleotide analogue. Glaxo was working with Emory on the drug until 1995. Emory then licensed rights to Triangle. The new action resolves all disputes related to the drug¿s development.

¿ ICN Pharmaceuticals Inc., of New York, said its licensing partner, Schering-Plough Corp., of Madison, N.J., received approval from the Therapeutics Products Programme of Health Canada for Rebetron (combination of ribavirin and interferon alfa-2b).

¿ Incyte Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Palo Alto, Calif., said a U.S. District Court judge in Northern California ruled in its favor by denying a preliminary injunction request filed by Affymetrix Inc., of Santa Clara, Calif. Affymetrix¿s request involved its U.S. patent No. 5,800,992. The Patent and Trademark Office is expected to decide by late summer on the validity and ownership of the patent claims.