Genentech Inc., called the "premier" biotechnology firm by Elise Wang, analyst with Salomon Smith Barney - and Wang is hardly alone in her opinion - stands as one of the more closely watched companies in the biotechnology sector (maybe even the most watched of all), and a spate of news early this month focused even more attention on the firm.

Last week's blowup of Isis Pharmaceuticals Inc.'s antisense drug, Affinitak, in a Phase III trial for non-small-cell lung cancer placed a question mark above that category of therapeutics, but nobody is flying the white flag of surrender yet. (BioWorld Financial Watch)