IDUN Pharmaceuticals Inc. has licensed the rights to the humanprogrammed cell death (apoptosis) gene, bcl-x, from the University ofMichigan and ARCH Development Corp., the licensing affiliate of theUniversity of Chicago.Terms of the agreement were not revelaed other than that they involvean up-front payment and royalties, said Joel Martin, vice president offinance and business development for IDUN, of La Jolla, Calif.In addition, ACRH Venture Fund II L.P, the venture capital affiliate ofthe University of Chicago, made an undisclosed equity investment inIDUN and will make additional contributions in first-round financing,Martin told BioWorld.IDUN said the proteins expressed by the bcl-x gene function within thecells as master switches in controlling whether a cell lives or dies.Given that, the company said the gene is a promising target fordeveloping anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory drugs. _ Jim Shrine

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