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Other News To Note
(BioWorld Today Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) , of Watertown, Mass., completed the renegotiation of payment terms under certain intellectual property agreements. Payments due in the 12 months ending March 31, 2009, have been reduced by $3.5 million and shifted out by the same amount to later in 2009. Under the revised payment terms, the company will make the following IP payments this year: $1.1 million in the second quarter and $800,000 in the third quarter. All other IP payments, including accrued interest, are due on or after May 2009. The company expects a full response letter from the FDA on its recently filed new drug application for Imagify (perflubutane polymer microspheres) for injectable suspension in the first quarter of 2009.
? Archimedes Development Ltd., of Nottingham, UK, and Ploughshare Innovations, of Porton Down, UK, announced the licensing by Archimedes of a portfolio of patents relating to the use of chitosan for drug delivery. Commercial terms were not disclosed. The technology licensed from Ploughshare centers on the use of a more water-soluble form of chitosan, a bioadhesive polysaccharide excipient derived from natural sources. Studies with ChiSys have demonstrated that Archimedes' technology can enhance the immune response generated by nasally administered vaccines to a range of viral diseases.
? BioSeek Inc., of Burlingame, Calif., entered into a collaboration agreement with Merck KGaA, of Darmstadt, Germany, acting for its division Merck Serono. Under the collaboration, BioSeek will apply its BioMAP Systems to evaluate Merck Serono's small-molecule compounds and proteins across multiple therapeutic areas. Financial details were not disclosed. BioMAP Systems are primary cell-based models of human disease biology, designed to replicate the intricate cell and pathway interactions as they are observed in vascular inflammation, cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, fibrosis and related clinical indications.
? California Stem Cell Inc., of Irvine, Calif., signed a contract to supply BioFocus DPI, of Schlieren, Switzerland, with its Motorplate 96 assay-ready well plates containing motor neuron progenitors derived from human embryonic stem cells. BioFocus DPI will use the human motor neurons to perform assay development and screening for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis drug discovery on behalf of the ALS Association.
? Canopy Ventures, of Lindon, Utah, has formed Canopy Ventures II, an early stage venture capital fund totaling $100 million. The fund will target high-growth information technology companies and emerging life sciences technologies.
? Compugen Ltd., of Tel Aviv, Israel, presented experimental results for three Compugen-discovered Relaxin-related molecules that could have therapeutic activity in various indications, including labor complications, infertility, inflammation, congestive heart failure and fibrotic diseases. The three novel peptides, CGEN-25009, 25010 and 25011, were shown to activate the GPCRs LGR7 (RXFP1) and LGR8 (RXFP2) receptors.
? Crucell NV, of Leiden, the Netherlands, has entered into a nonexclusive STAR research license agreement with Bioceros BV, of Utrecht, the Netherlands. The agreement covers the production of monoclonal antibodies. Financial details of the agreement were not disclosed. STAR technology is a production technology that is particularly useful for the production of recombinant human antibodies and proteins.
? Enzon Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Bridgewater, N.J., was asked by one of its shareholders to explore all strategic alternatives for the company's remaining commercial operations, including the sale of the commercial operations as a whole. In a letter sent after the company's decision to spin out its biotechnology business, DellaCamera Capital Management LLC, of New York, a beneficial holder of 5.9 percent of Enzon shares, said it was encouraged by the spinout strategy but asked for "more concrete and immediate action" to increase value. DellaCamera said Enzon's cost structure is "inordinately high," stating that at least $25 million of excess SG&A expenses could be eliminated and adding that compensation figures for the five highest-compensated company executives is "excessive" for a small-cap firm.
? Five Prime Therapeutics Inc., of San Francisco, and Pfizer Inc., of New York, initiated a worldwide collaborative research and license agreement to discover antibody targets and therapeutic protein products in the areas of cancer and diabetes. Under the terms, Five Prime will screen its protein library in both cell-based assays and primary in vivo screens directed toward finding potential candidates. In exchange, Pfizer will pay Five Prime an up-front fee and an equity investment, plus three years of committed research funding. Pfizer will have the right to any product stemming from the collaboration, and Five Prime will be eligible for milestone and royalty payments. Specific financial terms were not disclosed.
? GlycoVaxyn AG, of Z?rich-Schlieren, Switzerland, named Philippe Dro as CEO and a member of the supervisory board. Dro previously was with several biotech and medtech companies.
? Halozyme Therapeutics Inc., of San Diego, presented new preclinical findings on the controlled modification of the Matrix with HTI-501 at the European Society for Dermatological Research and Japanese Society for Investigative Dermatology. HTI-501 is a new recombinant human lysosomal proteinase that could provide a dermatologic treatment by targeting and degrading the fibrous components of the Matrix in a highly controlled fashion.
? Holmes Biopharma Inc., of Scottsdale, Ariz., said its clinic in Omaha, Neb., has resumed operations. The interruption did not affect the ability of the Omaha clinic to carry out services to clients and study participants.
? ImmuneRegen BioSciences Inc., of Scottsdale, Ariz., said that preliminary results from ongoing studies in dermatological applications supported pursuing licensure agreements for accelerated wound healing, as well as subcutaneous immunomodulation and vaccine adjuvant activity. Intralesional administration of Homspera was seen to accelerate the rate of wound closure in porcine full-thickness surgical wound studies. The adjuvant findings were part of additional, ongoing studies designed to further explore the vaccine adjuvant effects of Homspera.
? Jivan Biologics Inc., of Larkspur, Calif., said the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office ordered the re-examination of U.S. Patent No. 6,881,571. The patent is the sole subject of the suit that ExonHit Therapeutics SA, of Paris, and ExonHit Therapeutics Inc., of Gaithersburg, Md., filed against Jivan on March 12, 2007.
? Penwest Pharmaceuticals Co., of Danbury, Conn., said it has signed a development and licensing agreement with Cobalt Laboratories Inc., of Mississauga, Ontario, to develop a formulation of an undisclosed compound using Penwest's TIMERx drug-delivery technology. Under the terms of the agreement, Penwest will receive undisclosed fees and payments.
? Pro-Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Newton, Mass., filed the drug master file for Davanat with the FDA, a precursor to a new drug application. The file provides confidential detailed information about facilities, processes and validated analytical methods used in the manufacturing, processing, packaging and stability of Davanat.
? Replikun Biotech, of Brisbane, Australia, completed an exclusive license agreement with UniQuest Pty. Ltd., of Queensland, Australia, to commercialize a new West Nile virus vaccine technology. The licensed technology comprises a developmental vaccine based on a modified form of the Kunjin virus, which has potential application as a preventative vaccine against West Nile virus. Replikun becomes responsible for all further development and commercialization of the technology and has agreed to provide UniQuest with royalties on the sales of licensed products and a percentage of income from sublicensees.
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