* Avid Therapeutics Inc., of Philadelphia, secured rights to a novelclass of compounds, called polyoxometalates, to treat respiratorysynctial virus and influenza.

* DNA Plant Technology Corp., of Oakland, Calif., announced ajoint marketing agreement between its wholly owned producesubsidiary, FreshWorld, and Fresh Choice Produce Inc., a privatevegetable grower and shipper in Salinas, Calif.

* GeneMedicine Inc., of Houston, said Mark Germain resigned fromhis position as director and chairman of the company's board ofdirectors.

* ICN Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Costa Mesa, Calif., said it acquiredthe rights to develop and commercialize a group of compoundsrelated to and including human growth hormone releasing factor orthe U.S. and other markets from Fujisawa USA Inc., of Japan.

* IMRE Corp. and Virginia Mason Medical Center, both of Seattle,said that CELx Corp., IMRE's diagnostic subsidiary, obtained anexclusive worldwide license with the Virginia Mason ResearchCenter for its rheumatoid arthritis genetic test and associated U.S.patent.

* NeoRx Corp., of Seattle, announced an agreement with CordisCorp., of Miami, in which Cordis will supply its Micro-InfusionCatheter for use with NeoRx's Biostent anti-restenosis product,currently under development.

* North American Vaccine, of Beltsville, Md., said results of itsPhase III trial of its diphtheria-tetanus-acellular pertussis vaccine willbe unblinded this week and released later this month by the NationalInstitute of Child Health and Human Development of the NationalInstitutes of Health.

* T Cell Sciences Inc., of Needham, Mass., adopted a shareholderrights plan that it said is not in response to any specific takeoverthreat or proposal.

* Viagene Inc., of San Diego, said an interim evaluation of itsdirectly injected gene therapy product for HIV infection supported aproduct-related enhancement of HIV-specific cytotoxic Tlymphocyte activity in HIV-infected patients.

* Chemex Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Fort Lee, N.J., said its new drugapplication for Amlexanox has been put on hold until at least April 1by the FDA because the manufacturing facility is being renovated.

* Connective Therapeutics Inc., of Palo Alto, Calif., initiated Phase Itesting of relaxin, a natural protein, for the treatment of scleroderma,a disorder in which excessive collagen hardens the skin and internalorgans.

* Cytogen Corp. and CytoRad Inc., both of Princeton, N.J., said theyhave signed a definitive agreement for Cytogen's acquisition ofCytoRad, on terms previously announced. (See BioWorld Today,Aug. 1, 1994, p. 1.)

* Isis Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Carlsbad, Calif., signed an agreementwith Zeneca Ltd., of London, for the manufacture of Isis' anti-HIVcompound, ISIS 5320, a phosphorothioate oligonucleotide.

* Middlesex Sciences Inc., of Foxborough, Mass., raised $5.25million in venture financing, bringing the total financing since 1992to $10 million for the company that focuses on proprietary plasmafractionation.

* NeoRx Corp., of Seattle, and collaborating investigators presentedswine model data showing that the NeoRx drug Biosten inhibitedrestenosis.

* NeXagen Inc., of Boulder, Colo., and Colorado-based HauserChemical Research Inc. entered into an agreement for the contractmanufacture of NeXagen's oligonucleotide-based drug candidates.

* Ostex International Inc., of Seattle, signed an agreement withBoehringer Mannheim Diagnostics, of Gaithersburg, Md., tocollaborate to develop compatible applications of Ostex's bone-specific resorption assay and Boehringer Mannheim's diagnosticassay platforms.

* Sonus Pharmaceuticals, of Bothell, Wash., completed a Phase Itrial of its ultrasound contrast imaging agent, EchoGen Emulsion, in17 normal males.

* The Liposome Co. Inc., of Princeton, N.J., and investigatorsreported preclinical data showing a new drug, TLC C-53, mayimprove the treatment of heart attacks.

* Wellcome plc, of London, and Centocor Inc., of Malvern, Pa.,extended their alliance agreement entered into on Nov. 5, 1993, toextend Wellcome's rights to Centocor's monoclonal antibody-basedcancer product, Panorex, to include Japan, Taiwan, Korea and China.

(c) 1997 American Health Consultants. All rights reserved.