• GeoVax Labs Inc., of Atlanta, entered an agreement with institutional investors to sell shares of its Series A preferred stock, convertible into about 2.9 million shares of GeoVax common stock, at an aggregate price of approximately $2.2 million, and Series A warrants to purchase up to an aggregate of 2.9 million shares of GeoVax common stock with an exercise price of $1 per share and a term of five years. The transaction is expected to close on or about March 21. Read More
• Jennerex Inc., of San Francisco, said it treated the first patient in a Phase I/II trial of JX-594, an engineered oncolytic virus, in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer who have become refractory to chemotherapy and are either refractory to or ineligible for Erbitux (cetuximab, Eli Lilly and Co.) The two-arm, dose-escalation study, expected to enroll up to 42 patients, will test the drug as a monotherapy and in combination with irinotecan, and endpoints will include safety, dose optimization and tumor responses as measured by RECIST and Choi criteria. Read More
• Halo Therapeutics LLC, of Newton, Mass., said the independent TREAT-NMD Advisory Committee on Therapeutics offered a favorable review of HT-100, Halo's drug candidate for Duchenne's muscular dystrophy, endorsing the company's plan to move the drug candidate to a clinical trial. HT-100, a formulation of halofuginone, is an orally available small-molecule drug candidate designed to reduce fibrosis and promote healthy muscle fiber regeneration. Read More
Cardium Therapeutics Inc. initiated a Phase III registration study of lead product candidate Generx (alferminogene tadenovec, Ad5FGF-4) in myocardial ischemia. Read More
LONDON – Heptares Therapeutics Ltd. said the starting gun has been fired on a $190 million-plus-royalties deal, after Shire plc decided to take up its option on an A2A antagonist discovered by Heptares. Read More
The FDA's oncologic drugs advisory committee (ODAC) voted 13 to 1 against the approval of Taltorvic (ridaforolimus) by Ariad Pharmaceuticals Inc., partnered with Merck & Co. Inc., for soft-tissue and bone sarcoma. Read More
WASHINGTON – In a decision that will have biotechs reviewing their process patents, the Supreme Court Tuesday ruled that Prometheus Laboratories Inc.'s patents for calibrating the proper dosage of thiopurine drugs used to treat autoimmune diseases are not patentable because they involve laws of nature. Read More
The Supreme Court needed only a few months to determine Prometheus Laboratories Inc.'s process claims weren't patent eligible, but it could take the biopharma industry years to figure out how to live within the new line the court has drawn for process patents, especially those covering diagnostics that advance personalized medicine. Read More
