By using computational methods to design proteins that can attach to carbon nanotubes, researchers have been able to encase nanotubes in proteins which were capable of binding gold nanoparticles at regular intervals, creating a nanostructure with multiple layers and what they termed "a richly textured molecular surface." Read More
AltheRx is not like "all of the other Rx's," CEO Shawn Patrick O'Brien told BioWorld Today. The Chadds Ford, Pa.-based company derives its name from Althea, a Greek mythological figure associated with healing. AltheRx's mission is to develop therapies for genitourinary diseases by means of acquiring products that have been discontinued by major pharmaceutical companies. Read More
Aegera Therapeutics Inc. and its clinical-stage oncology programs were acquired by generic pharmaceutical company Pharmascience Inc., both based in Montreal. Read More
• Archer Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Sarasota, Fla., said an international research consortium led by researchers at Trinity College Dublin said they were recommended for funding for a large-scale European Phase III trial of Nilvadipine in Alzheimer's disease. The grant is awarded by the European Commission Seventh Framework Programme. Read More
• UCB SA, of Brussels, Belgium, reported data showing that the addition of Cimzia (certolizumab pegol) to current therapy was associated with a rapid and consistent clinical response in a diverse group of rheumatoid arthritis patients. Consistent efficacy was observed across patients taking the drug, whether they had previously received TNF inhibitors or not and whether they received Cimzia monotherapy or with concomitant disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs. Those results were presented at the European League Against Rheumatism meeting in London. Read More
• Bavarian Nordic A/S, of Kvistgard, Denmark, reported that it completed an offering of about 12.9 million shares and netted about $124.9 million to support development of its prostate cancer vaccine candidate Prostvac, particularly its pivotal Phase III trial. (See BioWorld Today, April 5, 2011.) Read More
Researchers from Baylor College of Medicine have come to a surprising conclusion: more than half of the genome is dedicated to determining how the other half lives. Read More
Executives of Optimer Pharmaceuticals Inc. didn't have to wait until after the long weekend for an FDA decision on the company's macrolide antibiotic Dificid (fidaxomicin). Though the PDUFA date was set for May 30, the agency approved the drug Friday afternoon for treating Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea (CDAD), a common hospital-acquired infection. Read More
WASHINGTON – Small biotechs waiting for Congress to breathe new life into the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program will have to wait a little longer. Read More
