For the first time since 2011, the biopharma industry failed to complete a single initial public offering in the month of January, signifying a slowdown that began in the fourth quarter of 2015. Even the dismal year of 2012 had at least one IPO in January, compared with two in 2013, six in 2014 and five last year.

As mental illness continues to grow at alarming rates, causing severe economic and social burdens on society, Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH (BI) validated Arena Pharmaceuticals Inc.'s G protein-coupled receptors (GPCR) technology with an exclusive drug research collaboration focused initially on schizophrenia and worth a potential $262 million.

PHILADELPHIA – Tucked away in private partnering rooms, far from the hustle and bustle of exhibitors, panel discussions and keynote luncheons, executives conducted 29,279 meetings during the 2015 BIO International Convention. For Roche AG, "there are three general areas that we're looking at," said Jason Coloma, global head of venture and innovation, and soon-to-be head of oncology.

Predicting human response to therapeutics long before mounting costs inhibit the science is a menacing challenge faced by researchers historically dependent on cell cultures and animal models to generate often unreliable data.

PHILADELPHIA – Kicking off the last panel of this year's BIO International Convention, radio and television host David Brancaccio referenced the scene from The Graduate, when a family friend tells Dustin Hoffman's character, "There's a great future in plastics." Brancaccio asked a group of panelists during the Scientific American Worldview session what word or phrase signifies to each of them a great future in today's world.

PHILADELPHIA – The Biotechnology Industry Organization will become known as the Biotechnology Innovation Organization by the beginning of 2016, incoming chairman Ron Cohen said during the keynote luncheon at the convention on Wednesday.

PHILADELPHIA – Capturing the attention of potential investors in 30 seconds or less poses a challenge for even the most sophisticated wordsmiths when attempting to describe complicated technologies and commercial potential.

BOSTON – Shorter timelines to market and larger patient pools serve as major incentives for companies to bring clinical development work to China and India, although regulatory and cultural differences remain a hurdle. In its 24th year, the Partnerships in Clinical Trials conference started Wednesday.