Researchers made a big splash last year when they announced they had created synthetic life – a feat that made Science's year-end list of top 10 breakthroughs. (See BioWorld Today, Dec. 23, 2010, and May 21, 2010.) Read More
Fewer than five years after inking a partnership deal focused on treatments for inflammatory disorders, privately held ChemoCentryx Inc., of Mountain View, Calif., and GlaxoSmithKline plc, of London, started treating the first patient with Crohn's disease in their initial induction study comparing Traficet-EN (CCX282-B) – now designated GSK1605786 ('786) – to placebo. The Phase III program is being conducted through GSK's Center of Excellence for External Drug Discovery (CEEDD). Read More
CytRx Corp., of Los Angeles, sold its remaining equity interest in RXi Pharmaceuticals Corp., of Worcester, Mass., raising $7 million to support advancement of its oncology pipeline into the clinic. Read More
Inovio Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Blue Bell, Pa., published positive preclinical results for its Chikungunya virus vaccine in PloS Neglected Tropical Diseases. The vaccine protected mice against the virus and induced neutralizing antibodies in mice and nonhuman primates. Read More
MedImmune LLC, of Gaithersburg, Md., and Micromet Inc., of Bethesda, Md., began Phase I trials of MEDI-565 (MT111) in advanced gastrointestinal cancer. Read More
SAN FRANCISCO – Not long after George Scangos took over as Biogen Idec Inc. CEO last summer, he felt the need to clarify the company's culture. "We can be small pharma or a big biotech," he told attendees at the J. P. Morgan Healthcare conference during a late Tuesday presentation. Read More
SAN FRANCISCO – Though it's hard to believe, given the crowded hallways and standing-room-only presentations and breakout sessions, most of the action at J.P. Morgan actually happens away from the Westin St. Francis, with conference attendees taking over hotels and restaurants all around Union Square, looking for any cozy corner to conduct quick meetings with prospective investors and partners, or maybe just catching up with friends and former colleagues. Read More
