Orexigen Therapeutics Inc., of San Diego, is being investigated by law firm Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman LLC, of New York, on potential claims on behalf of purchasers of the company's securities. Read More
Hutchison MediPharma Ltd. (HMP), of Shanghai,, a unit of Hutchison China Meditech Ltd., said it completed enrollment in a phase II study of fruquintinib (HMPL-013) in non-small-cell lung cancer patients in China. Read More
Eli Lilly and Co., of Indianapolis, said the German Court of Appeal has ruled that the firm's vitamin regimen patent for Alimta (pemetrexed disodium) would not be infringed by a generic competitor that intends to market a dipotassium salt form of pemetrexed in Germany once the compound patent expires in December 2015. Read More
Scientists from Harvard Medical School have made progress in understanding the mechanisms by which the presenilin protein contributes to Alzheimer's disease. Read More
The era of patent reform is far from over as indicated by the emergence of yet another piece of legislation, this one titled the Strong Patents Act of 2015, a bill authored by three Senate Democrats. Read More
Curevac GmbH has landed a $52 million equity investment from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation plus an additional $24 million equity investment from longstanding investor Dievini Hopp Biotech to support continued development of its messenger RNA-based vaccines and the construction of a new manufacturing facility that will allow it to vastly scale up its capacity to produce commercial quantities of vaccines. Read More
Calithera Biosciences Inc. didn't have to dig deep to expand its pipeline of cancer drugs, taking an exclusive global license to a portfolio of hexokinase II inhibitors developed by Transtech Pharma LLC (TTP) and affiliate High Point Pharmaceuticals LLC for a mere $600,000 up front. Calithera, of South San Francisco, will owe development and regulatory milestone payments of up to $30.5 million for the first licensed product, and Transtech is eligible for up to $77 million in sales-based milestones, plus mid-single-digit royalty payments, on tiered sales of the first commercialized product. Read More
"There are people even today who still have trouble thinking about doing investigative studies in children with dread disease," Crystal Mackall told the audience at a recent talk at the NIH. "It's sometimes easier to say, 'Well, they're a vulnerable population, and maybe you'll be pushing an ethical boundary doing an investigational study.'" Read More
Amarin Corp. plc, of Dublin, said it entered a securities subscription agreement with a group of institutional investors, including both existing and new investors, for the private placement of up to a maximum of $52.8 million of restricted American depositary shares (ADSs). Read More
