* American Biogenetic Sciences Inc., of Copiague, N.Y., signed an agreement with Shield Diagnostics Ltd., of Dundee, Scotland, to distribute its thrombus precursor protein (TpP) diagnostic kit in the U.K. TpP currently is marketed in Europe, the Middle East and Japan. TpP is a monoclonal antibody-based diagnostic test of blood clot formation that measures soluble fibrin polymers that have been shown to be elevated in patients at risk of thrombosis. Full global marketing of the TpP should begin by the end of the year.

* LeukoSite Inc., of Cambridge, Mass., and Kyowa Hakko Kogyo Co. Ltd., of Tokyo, extended their collaboration to discover small molecule drugs targeting two chemokine receptors known as CCR1 and CXCR3. The collaboration uses LeukoSite's chemokine and chemokine receptor technology to develop small molecule antagonists that selectively block chemokine receptors on white blood cells or leukocytes. Chemokines are chemical messengers that summon leukocytes to injured or inflamed tissue. Financial terms were not disclosed.