In the end, Amgen Inc. and Onyx Pharmaceuticals Inc. got the deal done. The companies disclosed Sunday evening that the boards of directors of both companies unanimously approved Amgen’s acquisition of South San Francisco-based Onyx for $125 per share in cash for a purchase price of $10.4 billion, or $9.7 billion net of Onyx’s estimated cash. Read More
Astrazeneca plc’s buyout of Amplimmune Inc. for $225 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. Read More
Malvern, Pa.-based Ceptaris Therapeutics Inc. received FDA marketing approval for its single asset, Valchlor (mechlorethamine) gel, for the topical treatment of stage IA and IB mycosis fungoides-type cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL), a rare form of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, in patients who have received prior skin-directed therapy. Read More
Shares of Rigel Pharmaceuticals Inc. were dinged Monday morning after the company said it would discontinue development of Syk inhibitor R343 in allergic asthma following a Phase II miss, another setback for the South San Francisco-based firm’s pipeline. Read More
SHANGHAI – Looking to lower costs and facilitate better health care outcomes, China is stepping up efforts to develop a regulatory framework and a market for biosimilars. Read More
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. Read More
• Oxygen Biotherapeutics Inc., of Morrisville, N.C., said it closed its private placement of unregistered convertible notes and unregistered warrants generating gross proceeds of $4.9 million. Read More
• Galderma Laboratories LP, of Fort Worth, Texas, said the FDA approved Mirvaso (brimonidine) topical gel, for the treatment of the facial erythema (redness) of rosacea in adults 18 years of age or older. Read More
• Kempharm Inc., of North Liberty, Iowa, disclosed positive results from one of several clinical and nonclinical studies that the company is performing in preparation for its new drug application for KP201 (benzhydrocodone and acetaminophen), which the company anticipates filing in the second quarter of 2014. Read More
• Sanofi Pasteur SA, of Lyon, France, disclosed top-line results of a large-scale, multicenter efficacy trial in people 65 years of age and older showing a superior clinical benefit of Fluzone high-dose flu vaccine relative to the standard dose of Fluzone vaccine in preventing influenza. Read More
