December 2008- Volume 4, Issue 12
In this Issue
Research & Development
Ovarian cancer gain
Ovarian cancer gain
M.D. Anderson researchers find PEA-15 prolongs ovarian cancer survival
Galapagos dumps San Diego facility
Galapagos dumps San Diego facility
Belgian biotech consolidates service ops, sells San Diego ops to ChemVentures
Neutralizing HIV
Neutralizing HIV
NCI researchers seek commercial partner after identifying first human domain antibody that potently inhibits HIV
Making the best of a bad situation
Making the best of a bad situation
GSK forgoes partnership, makes surprise acquisition offer for Genelabs Technologies
Pfizer goes regenerative
Pfizer goes regenerative
Company plans to pump as much as $100 million into new stem cell research unit
Genomics & Proteomics
Ensemble, Roche Dx work heads for clinical trial arena
Ensemble, Roche Dx work heads for clinical trial arena
Ensemble Discovery Corp. recently extended a collaboration with Roche that will deploy Ensemble’s diagnostic assays in human clinical studies to analyze combinations of epidermal growth factor receptors (EGFR) present in various cancer tissues.
Courting your genes
Courting your genes
Four in five Americans support the idea of a nationwide study to investigate the interactions of genes, environment and lifestyle, and three in five say they would be willing to take part in such a study, according to a survey released recently by the Genetics & Public Policy Center at Johns Hopkins University.
Clinical Data acquires Avalon
Clinical Data acquires Avalon
Clinical Data Inc. and Avalon Pharmaceuticals Inc. announced in late October that the companies entered into a definitive merger agreement for Clinical Data to acquire Avalon in a stock transaction valued at approximately $10 million.
Lending a helping hand
Lending a helping hand
Startup firm Cabernet offers pharmacogenetics consulting and nabs Lilly as first client
Thermo, Genentech in siRNA pact
Thermo, Genentech in siRNA pact
Companies to develop novel siRNA therapeutic technologies for indications of interest to Genentech
Special Reports
HTS becoming game of the fast and the curious
HTS becoming game of the fast and the curious
High-throughput screening may spawn a 3456-well era soon, and usher in cell-based assays at the 1536 level
Automation & Instrumentation
Q&A: Tim “TJ” Johnson, CEO, High Throughput Genomics
Q&A: Tim “TJ” Johnson, CEO, High Throughput Genomics
High Throughput Genomics is young company, but one that has made an impact in the area of customized, high-throughput gene expression analysis. Its key technology is qNPA which allows for expression analysis without the need for RNA extraction, cDNA synthesis or RNA labeling or amplification. Last January, Tim “TJ” Johnson—ex of Ventana Medical Systems—took the helm of the company as CEO. TJ recently took time out of his schedule to chat with DDN Chief Editor Chris Anderson.
Agilent, BioTrove forge VAR agreement
Agilent, BioTrove forge VAR agreement
Expanding on their 2007 co-marketing agreement on the service side, BioTrove and Agilent last month signed a non-exclusive value-added reseller agreement to enable BioTrove to provide enhanced options for users of its RapidFire mass spectrometry sample preparation system for mass spectrometry-based drug discovery.
A move to mid-plex
A move to mid-plex
Affymetrix seeks broader markets via $73 million acquisition of Panomics
Old mouse does new trick
Old mouse does new trick
Caliper becomes first commercial life sciences company to offer research services using DuPont’s OncoMouse
Informatics
GenoLogics to provide Pfizer with enterprise-wide informatics solutions
GenoLogics to provide Pfizer with enterprise-wide informatics solutions
Translational research software firm GenoLogics Life Sciences Software Inc. announced Nov. 10 it signed a three-year, global agreement with Pfizer to provide informatics solutions to its research labs.
BioFocus DPI selects IDBS BioBook for ADME data management needs
BioFocus DPI selects IDBS BioBook for ADME data management needs
Global informatics provider IDBS announced in early November that BioFocus DPI, the service division of Galapagos, will use IDBS BioBook to handle all of its ADME data management needs.
Unclogging informatics workflows
Unclogging informatics workflows
Mayo Clinic, U of Minn. to create shared data analysis solution
Cancer biomarker catalog
Cancer biomarker catalog
Sophic wins grant to develop cancer biomarker database
Long-term relationship
Long-term relationship
Genedata expands research informatics partnership with Bayer Schering Pharma
Tooting each other's horns
Tooting each other's horns
SAS, NCGR to integrate and co-market next-gen sequencing data analysis tools
Straight to the heart
Straight to the heart
Aureus to build database platform for European consortium on drug cardiotoxicity
Global News
Boosting the product line
Boosting the product line
Assay Designs enters strategic agreement with Abnova Corp.
United turns to Eli Lilly
United turns to Eli Lilly
United Therapeutics gets rights for tadalafil PAH indication, Lilly gets equity stake
Companies bonded by blood
Companies bonded by blood
Biogen Idec pays Genentech $31.5 million to join blood cancer drug development deal
Finding profits in adult stem cells
Finding profits in adult stem cells
Osiris inks adult stem cell therapeutic deal with Genzyme potentially worth $1.3 billion
No pain, no gain
No pain, no gain
King finally lands Alpharma for $1.6 billion in a deal to strengthen its pain therapeutic portfolio
Commentary
Biotech start-ups a bargain, or toast?
Biotech start-ups a bargain, or toast?
In a spate of recent articles, it would seem that the world has come to an end in terms of high-tech IPOs—not to mention venture backing of early-stage start-ups.
Patent News
Is seven years enough for biologic data exclusivity?
Is seven years enough for biologic data exclusivity?
As Congress is considering possible legislation to create an abbreviated pathway for the FDA to approve generic biologic therapies, differences in the R&D expense and product cost, and the potential for both new therapies post-approval and second-generation innovations, have raised questions about how to achieve the proper balance between innovation and competition.
Editor's Focus
Is pharma doing a good job of transforming?
Is pharma doing a good job of transforming?
So far, it seems the pressure to produce increased profits is winning in the battle to transform the industry. But I wonder if, with all the external pressures on large pharma, we might soon be reaching the breaking point.
