A new era in life sciences research in Norway is beginning this year. Two new programs, the Program on Human Biobanks and Health Data (BIOBANK) and a program called Biotechnology for Innovation (BIOTEK2021), are issuing their first call for proposals, with a total of NOK215 million (US$37.8 million) on offer initially.

LONDON – A type of drug that is already being evaluated as a treatment for Huntington's disease could have a valuable side effect that would also help reduce the progress of the condition, a new study suggested.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia – While all tumors have the same pathogenic root of one cell deciding to act differently and grow in an unregulated way, that's where their similarities end, as cancer genomics is now revealing.

Shares in Amsterdam Molecular Therapeutics Holding NV (AMT) fell by almost 19 percent Friday on news that venture capital investor Forbion Capital Partners had tabled an offer that would secure the company's immediate financial future, while taking it private in a manner that could ultimately result in small shareholders being squeezed out.

LONDON – Vernalis plc has taken the decisive step in casting off its biotech roots, announcing a £65.9 million (US$103.8 million) fundraising that will enable it to enter the U.S. prescription drug market and also catapults the company's market capitalization from £20 million to £100 million.

LONDON – A new understanding of interactions between bacterial proteins could lead to novel antibiotics that halt the discharge of toxins into host cells.

With regulatory filings for its prostate cancer therapy, Alpharadin (radium-223 chloride), expected in mid-2012, Algeta ASA is seeking up to NOK260 million (US$45.4 million) in a private placement to enable it to establish a commercial base in the U.S. in advance of a product launch and to continue research and development of its second line of alpha emitters, based on thorium-227.

Pharnext SAS has unveiled €8 million (US$10.5 million) in new funding, which will enable the network pharmacology company to take its second drug development program, in Alzheimer's disease, into the clinic this year.

LONDON – Pricing pressures, piled on top of R&D productivity problems, have cut the return on investment and left many asking if developing new drugs is worth the risk.

LONDON – The European Medicines Agency (EMA) has published guidelines describing how it wants to see the consequences of genetic variability between patients integrated into the investigation of pharmacokinetics of drugs in development.