LONDON – Acacia Pharma Ltd. raised £15 million (US$23.5 million) in a Series B funding, providing the means to complete Phase III development of its lead product, APD421, for the prevention of postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV), and to file a new drug application around the middle of 2014.

MUNICH, Germany – Shares in Wilex AG gained as much as 12 percent Monday on news that its subsidiary, Heidelberg Pharma GmbH, entered a research collaboration and option agreement with Roche Holding AG, based on its preclinical antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) technology.

LONDON – Novabiotics Ltd. rejected a new round of private funding in favor of an exclusive licensing deal with Taro Pharmaceuticals North America Inc., for the co-development of its first-in-class antifungal peptide Novexatin, which is about to enter Phase IIb development in the treatment of nail infection onychomycosis.

Merck Serono SA spinout Obseva SA hit the ground running with a CHF32 million (US$34.7 million) Series A financing led by Sofinnova Partners and co-led by Sofinnova Ventures and Novo A/S.

Zealand Pharma A/S added Eli Lilly and Co. to its roster of big pharma diabetes partners, entering a research collaboration with the Indianapolis-based firm that could eventually lead to a novel, first-in-class therapy.

SHANGHAI – Four multinational pharmaceutical firms have been hit with allegations of bribery in China since the Glaxosmithkline plc scandal first broke almost two months ago. China’s State Administration for Industry & Commerce (SAIC) has announced a three-month probe that will target pharmaceutical and medical device sales.

• Lipidor AB, of Stockholm, a Karolinska Development portfolio firm, reported results from a Phase I/IIa study of AKVANO/calcipotriol spray formulation for the treatment of psoriasis vulgaris, which showed that the water-free spray had clear and significant antipsoriatic effects vs. placebo, comparable to a marketed formulation of calcipotriol, meeting the primary objective of the study.

LONDON – Evotec AG has received the significant endorsement – and huge financial boost – of an unsolicited €30 million (US$39.5 million) investment from Biotechnology Value Fund LP (BVF).

Astrazeneca plc’s buyout of Amplimmune Inc. for $225 million up front could put the pipeline-strapped pharma giant high on the short list of leaders in combination immunotherapy, if the latter’s early stage candidates pan out, and the deal carries another $275 million in potential milestone payments.

Nanotechnology is usually a great illustration of the old adage that as far as the media are concerned, there are two kinds of science stories: “Gee whiz” stories and “Oh crap” stories.