Health & Science News Today
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Jul 11, 2007::July 11, 2007 - RNAi deals continue at torrid pace!
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| Lhe last significant player in RNA interference, Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc., is now off the partnering trail. Just inked a non-exclusive licensing deal that could earn as much as $1 billion from Roche Holding AG in upfront + stock purchase + milestone & royalties. |
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Jul 9, 2007::July 9, 2007 - Silence signs a $400M deal with Astrazeneca for RNAi tech for respiratory diseases.
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| RNAi firm Silence Therapeutics plc signed a deal with AstraZeneca for a potential £200 million (US$400 million) to develop drugs against respiratory disease targets. License terms: initial access fee of about $15 million, comprising $5 million in cash and a $10 million equity investment. Other big deals in the area: Sirna Therapeutics Inc.’s $1.1 billion acquisition by Merck & Co. Inc. last year and Alnylam Pharmaceutical Inc.’s potential $700 million collaboration with Novartis AG signed in 2005. |
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Jul 5, 2007::July 5, 2007 - Intercell Ag rise to a market cap of close to 1 US$ Billion on news of pact with Novartis.
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| Intercell gained 15%, bringing its market cap close to 1 US$ Billion, on news of broad alliance with Novartis AG.Intercell gets €270 million (US$366.7 million), comprising an up-front, option and license payment of €120 million and a stock purchase worth €150 million. Several hundreds million more to come from milestones from or profit shares in multiple development programs. The deal focuses on three aspects of Intercell’s pipeline. The first concerns its synthetic adjuvant IC31 to which Novartis has gained an exclusive license for influenza vaccines (hoping to obtain better efficacy and greater cross-protection against circulating strains not included in the annual seasonal vaccine);IC31 is in the clinic as part of a tuberculosis vaccine of Denmark-based Statens Serum Institut. The second is Intercell’s Antigen Identification Program (AIP), a systematic effort to produce new vaccines by screening antibodies isolated from individuals who have recovered from or who are resistant to a particular bacterial infection against peptide fragments derived from the genome of the associated pathogen;the first candidate is a Pseudomonas vaccine to enter a Phase II clinical trial early next year. Next will be a pneumococcal vaccine. Third part of the deal, the two companies will collaborate in the development of a therapeutic vaccine against hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. |
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Jul 4, 2007::July 4, 2007 – Genzyme offers $345M for clofarabine partner Bioenvision Inc. in a stock deal.
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| Bioenvision sells clofarabine (Evoltra) in Europe for pediatric relapsed or refractory pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Genzyme gained North American rights with a $1 billion buyout of ILEX Oncology Inc.,. After the acquisition Genzyme’s plan is to expand clofarabine for adult acute myeloid leukemia. |
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Jul 4, 2007::July 4, 2007 – Japanese & US scientists isolated cells with epigenetic features of embryonic stem cells from induced pluripotent cells ( iPC) drived from skin fibroblasts.
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| iPCs are obtained by Induction of expression of four genes. They are quasi-embryonic stem cells which however lack epigenetic DNA methylation patterns. In a landmark experiment Japanese and U.S. researchers isolated cells with epigenetic features of embryonic stem cells. The new cells showed epigenetic features of embryonic stem cells, and the researchers were able to create embryonic stem cell lines and cloned animals using them for somatic cell nuclear transfer. |
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Jul 4, 2007::July 4, 2007 - 2 Amgen buys in a week: Ilypsa for $420M and Alantos for $300M Cash
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| Ilypsa brings to Amgen a Phase II phosphate binder for chronic kidney disease. Will compete with Genzyme’s Renvela. Alantos brings to Amgen a DPP-IV inhibitor in Phase IIa for Type II diabetes, as well as its matrix metalloproteinase-13 (MMP-13) inhibitor program in osteoarthritis. Both deals are aimed at diversifying Amgen’s pipeline and expand the company’s limited foray into metabolic diseases. |
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Jul 4, 2007::July 4, 2007 – ZymoGenetics & Bayer in a $200M deal over hr Thrombin
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| Bayer acquired acquired rights outside the U.S. to hr Thrombin in exchange for $30 million up front and another $40 million upon FDA approval + 130 million in development and sales milestones. |
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Jul 4, 2007::July 4, 2007 - Renovo Group plc & Shire in $800M + deal for anti-scarring drug.
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| Juvista is an injection of hrTransforming Growth Factor beta3 (TGF-beta3), a protein present in high levels in developing embryonic skin and in embryonic wounds that heal with no scar, but found at lower levels in adult wounds that scar. Phase II trials have shown that a single injection at the time of surgery improves scarring, and demonstrated an “excellent safety profile” in the 1,500 patients who received it. The potential US anti-scarring market is estimated at anywhere up to 4 billion a year. |
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Jul 4, 2007::July 3, 2007 – Biogen & Cardiokine in $220Mio deal for vasopressin receptor antagonist lixivaptan.
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| Cardiokine Inc gets $50 million up front in a $220 million deal with Biogen Idec Inc. for vasopressin receptor antagonist lixivaptan. The oral agent is due for Phase III trials later this year for treating hyponatremia in patients with congestive heart failure, as well as in patients with cirrhosis and syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone. Hyponatremia is an electrolyte disorder characterized by an imbalance of sodium and water in the body. The condition affects 1 million+ hospitalized patients in the U.S. and about 1.5 million people diagnosed on an outpatient basis. |
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Jul 4, 2007::EU FP7: next call due on September 18
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| The next call deadline for Theme 1 (Health) is September 18. We are selecting projects to partner with. Inquiries: fp7@bioinnovit.com |
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Jun 30, 2007::May 31, 2007 – Novacea & ScheringPlough Corp. in a $380M licensing deal.
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| Novacea licensed late-stage prostate cancer drug, Asentar to ScheringPlough Corp. for $60 million up front and the potential for $380 million in milestones down the road. The up-front payment includes $35 million for Novacea’s past research and development expenses on Asentar in an ongoing 900 patient Phase III study, as well as $25 million in licensing fees and $12 million in stock to be purchased by ScheringPlough at $8.05 per share.
May 33, 2007 – Genzyme takes over Bioenvision Inc. for $350M
The take-over will allow Genzyme to expand clofarabine’s label from pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) to adult acute myeloid leukemia (AML). |
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Oct 5, 2006::EU FP7: next call due on September 18
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| The next call deadline for Theme 1 (Health) is September 18. We are selecting projects to partner with. Inquiries: fp7@bioinnovit.com |
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Sep 25, 2006::June 4, 2007 – Jazz Pharmaceuticals raises $108M in IPO
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| Jazz Pharmaceuticals raises $108M in IPO to launch Luvox, CR for psychiatric disorders and advance the pipeline. Luvox CR was deemed approvable in February for treating obsessive compulsive disorder and social anxiety disorder. |
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