For all the hoopla about genetics, the most common cause of congenital mental retardation has a firmly environmental cause: maternal drinking. Read More
Since it was founded in 2008, CureFAKtor Pharmaceuticals LLC remained under the radar until recent orphan designation for lead product CFAK-C4 in pancreatic cancer – not to mention some impressive preclinical data at the ASCO Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium last month – put the firm on the map. Read More
LONDON – The board of Actelion was forced to defend CEO Jean-Paul Clozel and deny it has received any offer to buy the company, following a demand from the U.S. hedge fund investor Elliott Advisors that it look for potential acquirers. Read More
Medicago Inc., of Quebec City, said the FDA cleared the firm to start a Phase I trial of its H1N1 virus-like particle vaccine candidate. The study is expected to test single, nonadjuvanted doses of the vaccine in 100 healthy adults, ages 18 to 49. Primary safety and immunogenicity data are expected within three months of the start of the study and are expected to support the company's development of a seasonal influenza VLP vaccine in the U.S. Read More
EpiCept Corp., of Tarrytown, N.Y., said it expects to receive about $6.6 million in net proceeds from an offering of about 8.9 million shares of common stock at 80 cents per share and five-year warrants for as many as 3.6 million shares of common stock at 75 cents per share. Rodman & Renshaw LLC acted as exclusive placement agent. Net proceeds from the offering will be used for working capital and general corporate purposes. The offering is expected to close by Feb. 10. Read More
PharmAthene Inc., of Annapolis, Md., presented pharmacokinetic data from its Valortim anthrax anti-toxin program at the 9th Annual ASM Biodefense and Emerging Diseases Research Meeting in Washington. The study was designed to compare the pharmacokinetics of Valortim following a single intravenous injection in nonchallenged cynomolgus macaques (cynos) to that in cynos infected with Bacillus anthracis. Results indicated that healthy animals had approximately a 45-fold increase in Cmax for a 40-fold increase in dose between 1 and 40 mg/kg and an approximately 34-fold increase in area under the curve. Infected animals had approximately a tenfold increase in Cmax for an eightfold increase in dose. Read More
LONDON – Galapagos NV is getting back rights to targets and assays from two collaborations with Merck and Co. Inc. after the big pharma decided it is no longer interested in working with novel targets. (BioWorld Today) Read More
LONDON – Zealand Pharma A/S advanced its hopes of delivering the second once-daily glucagon-like peptide-1 agonist (GLP-1) to the market, announcing the results from a Phase III trial comparing its product lixisenatide to exenatide (Byetta), which is administered twice daily. Read More
