Less than two weeks after disclosing an upbeat but not very specific press release about phase III bioequivalence results comparing its version of albumin-bound paclitaxel, Cynviloq, to Celgene Corp.'s marketed blockbuster Abraxane, Sorrento Therapeutics Inc.'s potential $1.3 billion-plus deal with Nantworks Inc. gained what one analyst called a "huge validation" of the candidate's potential. Read More
LONDON – Circassia Pharmaceuticals plc is raising £275 million (US$432 million) in a placing and open offer to fund the acquisition of two fellow respiratory specialists – Aerocrine AB, with a sales force and two commercial products, and Prosonix Ltd., which has an advanced portfolio of generic inhaled asthma drugs, the first of which is due to be approved imminently. Read More
Cortendo AB made clear that it's no longer a sleepy little Swedish biotech by acquiring two late-stage candidates targeting acromegaly and other endocrinology applications and tacking on another $33.2 million in a private placement. Read More
A genomics-based search for better drug targets for painkillers has turned up a candidate that is, in one sense, not new at all. That candidate is the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor, already the beneficiary of one failed round of drug development. Read More
LONDON – Astrazeneca plc is pushing personalized medicine and targeted therapies beyond the confines of cancer and into cardiovascular, metabolic and respiratory indications, with plans for a companion diagnostic for a phase III asthma product and a large-scale R&D tie-up with the Montreal Heart Institute to discover genetic markers with which to stratify heart disease and diabetes patients. Read More
LONDON – "Drugging the undruggable" is the bold claim newco Phoremost Ltd. is making for its technology. The Cambridge University spinout said it can systematically identify and access intracellular targets that are undruggable using classic approaches. Read More
Sernova Corp., of Vancouver, British Columbia, completed a nonbrokered, oversubscribed private placement of approximately 8.9 million units at 18 cents apiece for gross proceeds of C$1.6 million (US$1.3 million). Read More
Celsion Corp., of Lawrenceville, N.J., said findings from a preclinical study confirming effective delivery of RNA to lung cells was summarized in an abstract in the Journal of Controlled Release. Read More
The Janssen unit of Johnson & Johnson, of New Brunswick, N.J., said data from an ongoing postmarketing study of once-daily factor Xa inhibitor Xarelto (rivaroxaban) in patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation showed the rates of major bleeding and fatal outcomes in elderly patients treated in routine clinical practice generally are consistent with those reported in phase III trials, which show a correlation between increased age and bleeding. Read More
Researchers from the British Cambridge University have shown that nearly a quarter of all genes show seasonal variations in expression levels, suggesting that the generally better health that individuals show in the summer might be due to seasonal variations in immune system function. Read More
