* Acute Therapeutics Inc., of New York, completed enrollment in a Phase Ib trial of a bronchoscopic lavage procedure incorporating Surfaxin, the company's KL4 peptide-containing lung surfactant. The 12 patients enrolled had acute respiratory distress syndrome. Acute Therapeutics is a majority-owned subsidiary of Discovery Laboratories Inc.

* Cell Therapeutics Inc., of Seattle, presented new research on protecting patients from life-threatening gastrointestinal infections caused by dose-intensive anticancer therapy. The company supported a symposium held at the annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology, in San Diego, where investigators described how cancer treatments cause a breakdown of the mucosal barrier in the gastrointestinal tract. The studies showed lysofylline, an agent under development by Cell Therapeutics, preserved mucosal barrier function.

* CEL-SCI Corp., of Alexandria, Va., presented two studies on its AIDS vaccine at the 10th International Conference on AIDS and Sexually Transmitted Diseases in Africa, held in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. The HGP-30 vaccine protected animals against HIV infection and caused humans to produce antibodies that recognize the most prevalent subtypes of the virus. HGP-30 is a synthetic copy of a conserved part of the p17 core protein of HIV.

* Coulter Pharmaceutical Inc., of Palo Alto, Calif., said its Phase II trial of Bexxar for lymphoma showed an overall response rate of 60 percent with a complete remission rate of 31 percent in a heavily pretreated population that had failed chemotherapy an average of four times. Bexxar is an antibody conjugated to radiolabeled iodine, and is used against relapsed and refractory, low-grade and transformed low-grade, non- Hodgkin's lymphoma. The study involved 45 evaluable patients, all of whom had advanced-stage disease and had relapsed within a year of their last chemotherapy regimen.

* DepoTech Corp., of San Diego, initiated Phase II clinical dose-escalation studies of DepoMorphine, under development for the treatment of acute post-surgical pain. Based on the company's DepoFoam technology, DepoMorphine is a sustained-release formulation of morphine sulfate.

* IDEC Pharmaceuticals Corp., of San Diego, received $6.3 million up front in a licensing deal with Kirin Brewery Co. Ltd., of Tokyo. Kirin will also pay royalties on sales of any products manufactured using IDEC's vector technology for high expression of recombinant proteins in mammalian cells. The agreement marks "the fourth and final platform license" for the technology, IDEC said.

* COR Therapeutics Inc., of South San Francisco, will present Integrilin (eptifibatide) for review by the FDA's Cardiovascular and Renal Drugs Advisory Committee Jan. 28. The company and Integrilin partner, Schering-Plough Corp., of Madison, N.J., are seeking marketing approval of Integrilin in the setting of percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty and acute coronary syndromes.

* Genzyme Transgenics Corp., of Framingham, Mass., and Genzyme Corp., of Cambridge, Mass., will launch a pivotal trial of transgenically produced recombinant human antithrombin III in the first quarter of 1998. In a just-completed Phase II trial, the companies confirmed the product's safety and found evidence of an improved response to heparin in patients undergoing cardiopulmonary bypass.

* Hybridon Inc., of Cambridge, Mass., has effected a one-for-five reverse stock split of the company's common shares, reducing the number of shares outstanding from 25.3 million to 5.06 million.

* ICN Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Costa Mesa, Calif., said Schering-Plough Corp., of Madison, N.J., has filed a new drug application with the FDA seeking clearance to market Rebetol (ribavirin, USP capsules) with Intron A (interferon alfa-2b, recombinant for injection) as a treatment of chronic hepatitis C for patients 18 and older. The drug would be used for those with compensated liver disease who have relapsed following alpha interferon therapy. Through an agreement with ICN, Schering-Plough has been granted exclusive rights to market oral ribavirin for hepatitis C in all major world markets.

* ImmunoGen Inc., of Norwood, Mass., received a $3 million investment from San Francisco-based Biotechnology Value Fund LP and affiliates. The placement consists of preferred stock and warrants, with the preferred shares convertible into common stock at the end of a two-year holding period at $1.063 per share.

* LifeCell Corp., of The Woodlands, Texas, filed suit in a Texas state court against Integra Life Sciences Corp., of Plainsboro, N.J., and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), of Cambridge. LifeCell alleged Integra and MIT "interfered with certain of LifeCell's business relationships with investors and potential investors in LifeCell's recent public offering."

* NPS Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Salt Lake City, received a $2 million milestone payment from Kirin Brewery Co. Ltd., of Tokyo. Kirin initiated a Phase II primary hyperparathyroidism trial of KRN-568, a calicimimetic compound licensed from NPS.