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A*STAR announces fifth major collaboration with Italian research centres and universities

Two research units under Singapore's Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), the Experimental Therapeutics Centre (ETC) and Singapore Immunology Network (SIgN), are collaborating with Italy's Siena Biotech S.p.A. to develop new drugs and targeted antibodies respectively, which will potentially help millions of cancer and bone loss patients across the world. This is the fifth major collaboration A*STAR has with research centres and universities in Italy .

9 Apr 2010

Fate Therapeutics to acquire Ottawa biotechnology company Verio Therapeutics

Fate Therapeutics, Inc. announced today a definitive agreement to acquire Verio Therapeutics Inc., a privately held biotechnology company based in Ottawa, Ontario, which is developing drug candidates targeting the activation of endogenous stem cells. Verio Therapeutics is advancing the work of several of Canada's leading stem cell scientists, including Michael Rudnicki, Ph.D., FRSC, and Lynn Arthur Megeney, Ph.D., who have made breakthrough discoveries relating to muscle and pancreatic regeneration.

9 Apr 2010

Phase 1 SAD study of PSI-938 for HCV initiated

Pharmasset, Inc. announced today that dosing has initiated in a phase 1, single ascending dose study in healthy volunteers with PSI-938, a third generation purine nucleotide analog polymerase inhibitor of hepatitis C virus. Pharmasset recently filed an Investigational New Drug Application with the Food and Drug Administration.

8 Apr 2010

Biocartis closes Series 'B' equity financing round

Biocartis SA, a biotech company active in the field of personalized medicine and focused on fast, multiplexed and fully integrated molecular diagnostics based on its proprietary micro-technology and sample preparation platforms, today announced the successful closing of a Series B equity financing round. The Company raised EUR 30 million (~ USD 41.3 million) from its current shareholder base of leading life science investors and two new strategic investors from the pharmaceutical/diagnostic industry.

8 Apr 2010

Metabolon awarded U.S. patents for metabolomics methods

Metabolon, Inc., the leader in global metabolism through biomarker discovery and analysis, announced today the grant of US Patent 7,682,783 and US Patent 7,682,784 entitled "Methods for Drug Discovery, Disease Treatment and Diagnosis Using Metabolomics". The USPTO awarded the patents to Metabolon on March 23, 2010. The issued claims in the new patents are for uses of metabolomics to identify diagnostic biomarkers for depression and schizophrenia by profiling classes of metabolites in a sample.

1 Apr 2010

NeurOp and Bristol-Myers Squibb announce drug discovery collaboration

NeurOp Corporation today announced a collaboration with Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE: BMY) focused upon the development of NeurOp's proprietary small molecules for use in the treatment of major depression and other central nervous system disorders.

31 Mar 2010

Potential new target for treating HCV infection

A team of scientists including University of Utah researchers has discovered that binding of a potent inhibitor of the hepatitis C virus to the genetic material of the virus causes a major conformational change that may adversely affect the ability of the virus to replicate.

30 Mar 2010

PPD introduces comprehensive laboratory services for vaccine and biologic drug development

PPD, Inc. (Nasdaq: PPDI) today announced it is launching the PPD Vaccines & Biologics Center of Excellence, a first-in-kind comprehensive network of integrated, world-class laboratory services focused specifically on vaccine and biologic drug development.

24 Mar 2010

Blocking Bak inhibitors can be promising strategy in limiting resistance of cancer to TRAIL

The TRAIL ligand is a promising anticancer agent that preferentially kills tumor cells without apparent damage to healthy cells. Many cancers exhibit resistance to TRAIL, however, thus limiting its therapeutic potential.

23 Mar 2010

ETP releases presentation highlights of 2010 Epilepsy Pipeline Update Conference

The Epilepsy Therapy Project, a non-profit organization dedicated to accelerating new therapies for people living with epilepsy, today released presentation highlights following its successful 2010 Epilepsy Pipeline Update Conference held in San Francisco. Sponsored by ETP, this conference brings together leading clinical investigators, emerging CNS companies and academic innovators with investors and business development partners to facilitate professional collaboration, funding and partnerships that will accelerate patient access to new treatments.

18 Mar 2010

Sigma-Aldrich and Pfizer sign new agreement

Sigma-Aldrich® today announced that it has entered into an agreement with Pfizer under which Sigma-Aldrich will sell approximately 100 Pfizer-developed small molecule compounds to life science researchers for target characterization, assay development, screening and in vivo animal model applications.

15 Mar 2010

Three researchers to be honored with SBS Award for achievement in biomolecular sciences and lead discovery

The Society for Biomolecular Sciences will honor three researchers for their substantial contributions to the field of drug discovery. Each recipient will accept their award and speak at the SBS 16th Annual Conference & Exhibition in Phoenix, Arizona, April 11-15, 2010.

9 Mar 2010

Merck announces updated late-stage pipeline following its recent merger with Schering-Plough

Merck & Co., Inc. today announced its updated, newly integrated, late-stage pipeline following its recent merger with Schering-Plough. The new pipeline features a broad and diversified portfolio of investigational medicines and vaccines, including more than 20 candidates in Phase III or under regulatory review, and more than 20 candidates in Phase II of development.

3 Mar 2010

Sigma-Aldrich unveils new Sigma Life Science brand and website platform

Sigma-Aldrich® today unveiled its new Sigma® Life Science brand and website platform, designed to elevate the Company's current focus on biology and provide a single destination where researchers can access deep biological knowledge and market-leading products and technologies.

2 Mar 2010

ADMET tester Absorption Systems joins Society of Toxicology as Affiliate

Absorption Systems, a leader in testing drugs for ADMET (Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism, Excretion and Toxicity), has joined the Society of Toxicology, the premier global professional association of toxicologists, as an SOT Affiliate. The firm, a contract research organization, has more than a decade of experience assisting pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies in determining which compounds in development should be advanced into clinical testing.

27 Feb 2010

Fate Therapeutics named to Technology Review's 2010 TR50 most innovative companies in the world list

Fate Therapeutics, Inc. announced today that the Company was named as one of Technology Review's 2010 TR50, the publication's first annual list of the 50 most innovative companies in the world. The 2010 TR50 companies span the fields of energy, computing, the Web, biomedicine, and materials and have been evaluated based on business model, strategies for deploying and scaling up its technologies and the likelihood of success. Each company in the 2010 TR50 has excelled not only at inventing technology but also at using it to transform how we live and work.

26 Feb 2010

Comprehensive development strategy yields two potential drugs that block cancer-promoting pathways

A comprehensive drug development strategy that starts with extensive screening of potential targeting agents and then narrows down to a small-molecule prototype has yielded two potential drugs that block cancer-promoting pathways in novel ways, a team led by scientists at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center reports in two papers published back-to-back online at the Proceedings of the National Academies of Science.

26 Feb 2010

Polyphor discovers new class of antibiotics effective against multi-drug resistant Gram-negative bacteria

Today, Polyphor Ltd published the discovery of a new class of antibiotics with a novel mode of action (Science, VOL 327, ISSUE 5968). This proprietary new class of antibiotics is effective against multi-drug resistant Gram-negative bacteria, opening up new treatment options for serious and often life-threatening infections. The most advanced drug candidate in this new class, POL7080, selectively kills the dangerous bacteria Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

19 Feb 2010

UCSF, Genentech partner to discover and develop drug candidates for neurodegenerative diseases

The University of California, San Francisco has signed a partnership agreement with Genentech, Inc., a wholly owned member of the Roche Group, to discover and develop drug candidates for neurodegenerative diseases.