The American Society of Hematology previewed key presentations from its upcoming annual meeting Monday, including work that shows progress in making chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells accessible for use beyond the tertiary care academic medical centers that have been their provenance. Read More
Ingeneron Inc., of Houston, presented initial data from an investigator-initiated case series using its adipose-derived regenerative cell (ADRC) technology for the treatment of facet joint syndrome, one of the major causes of chronic back pain. Read More
Ruga Corp., of Houston, said the company's name has changed to Aravive Biologics Inc. and it moved its business operations to Houston following the award of a $20 million grant from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas, which is supporting the development of drug candidate Aravive-S6 as a potential treatment for acute myelogenous leukemia and solid tumors, including ovarian, pancreatic and breast cancers. Read More
Less than two weeks before the start of the American Society of Hematology (ASH) annual meeting in San Diego, Novartis AG nabbed under-the-radar biotech Selexys Pharmaceuticals Corp. for up to $665 million in up-front, acquisition and milestone payments. Read More
Acorda Therapeutics Inc.'s phase III fizzle in post-stroke walking difficulties (PSWD) of potassium channel blocker Ampyra (dalfampridine) didn't put much of a dent in the stock, but it made for the second development halt this year and put pressure on the rest of the pipeline, especially late-stage CVT-301, an inhaled levodopa for "off" episodes in Parkinson's disease. Read More
Spectrum Pharmaceuticals Inc. drew an FDA complete response letter (CRL) for its experimental bladder cancer treatment, Qapzola (apaziquone), Friday, three weeks ahead of a scheduled PDUFA date. Read More
LONDON – U.K. allergy specialist Atopix Therapeutics Ltd. is being acquired by the privately held Italian pharma company Chiesi Farmaceutica SpA, in a milestone-based deal that could exceed €75 million (US$80 million). Read More
Most of the attention lavished on CRISPR is about its capacity to edit mammalian genes, but a study by New Zealand researchers has given new insight into the functions of CRISPR in bacteria. Read More
Leaders of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) endorsed a set of eight best practices to protect trade secrets. The best practices include civil and criminal liability, along with remedies and penalties, for the theft of trade secrets. Read More
Atyr Pharma Inc., of San Diego, said it entered a $20 million credit facility with Silicon Valley Bank and Solar Capital Ltd. and intends to use the additional capital to pay off existing indebtedness and for general corporate purposes to develop therapies based on its understanding of physiocrine biology. Read More
