* ArQule Inc., of Medford, Mass., reported that Hambrecht & Quist,Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. and Vector Securities International Inc., theunderwriters of the company's recent public offering, have exercisedin full their over-allotment option, purchasing an additional 375,000shares of the company's common stock, priced at $12 a share.

* Discovery Therapeutics Inc., of Richmond, Va., has started a PhaseII study of its transdermally delivered dopamine D2 receptor agonist,N-0923, to be administered as a skin patch in patients withParkinson's disease. The double-blind, placebo-controlled study willenroll up to 75 patients with moderate to severe Parkinson's at six toeight centers in the U.S. and Canada.

* Ergo Science Corp., of Boston, has reported that new non-peptide,small molecule treatment in genetically obese (ob/ob) mice decreasesbody weight without inducing insulin resistance. A mixture of D1/D2agonists reduces blood glucose levels, food intake and body fatstores, the company said.

* Guilford Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Baltimore, has presented data ona class of orally active small molecule compounds the company hasdiscovered, the neuroimmunophilins, which, the company said, forthe first time, demonstrate a potent regenerative effect on rodentmodels of Parkinson's Disease. The animal models of Parkinson'sdisease studied by Guilford involve administration of one of twoneurotoxins, either MPTP or 6-hydroxydopamine, to rats or mice.These neurotoxins selectively destroy the parts of the brain whichdeteriorate in Parkinson's disease.

* NeoTherapeutics Inc., of Newport Beach, Calif., reports a pre-clinical study has demonstrated that the oral administration of thecompany's lead compound, AIT-082, increases levels of neurotrophicfactors and enhances memory in animals with neurological deficits orbrain lesions. The company will soon commence Phase I clinicaltrials of AIT-082 for Alzheimer's disease.

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