XOMA LEADS SLIDEXoma Corp.'s news that it might be required to do more studiesof its sepsis drug triggered a decline in the AMEX BiotechnologyIndex on Thursday.

Centocor (NASDAQ:CNTO), which is developing a competing drugto Xoma's and has itself suffered recent disappointments at theFDA, closed at $13.75 a share, down 88 cents. Xoma(NASDAQ:XOMA) posted the sector's steepest decline, falling$4.75 to close at $15.25 a share, as it topped the tradingvolume chart for all NASDAQ issues. (See related story, Page 1.)

The AMEX Index fell 5.18 to 157.39.

Among the other issues in retreat were: Scios (NASDAQ:SCIO),which fell back $1 to close at $11.13 a share; Immune ResponseCorp. (NASDAQ:IMNR), down $1.50 a share to close at $24.25;and Gensia Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:GNSA), which closedoff $1.88 at $37.25 a share.

Bucking the downward trend were North American VaccineInc. (ASE:NVX), which rose $1.50 a share to close at $11.38; andDeKalb Genetics Corp.(NASDAQ:SEEDB), which gained $1.75 ashare to close at $32.

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