Syntaxin Ltd, which is a 2005 spin-out of the UK Health Protection Agency, has entered into an agreement with Ipsen SA of France to discover and develop therapies in the field of botulinum toxins in a deal potentially valued at more than $100 million.
EMD Serono Inc, an affiliate of Merck KGaA of Germany, and Fast Forward LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the US Multiple Sclerosis Society, are committing up to $3 million in 2012 to support early-stage projects in multiple sclerosis.
e-Therapeutics Plc expects to report clinical data by the end of 2013 on four drug candidates that have been identified using a ‘network pharmacology’ approach to drug discovery. The goal was outlined in the company’s interim results.
An experimental malaria vaccine developed by GlaxoSmithKline Plc has reduced the risk of malaria by half in African children between the ages of five and 17 months. The results have been published in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Oxford BioMedica Plc has received approval from the US Food and Drug Administration to start a first human study of its gene therapy for Usher syndrome, a genetic disorder that affects hearing and vision. The study will take place in Oregon.
The European regulatory review of SkyePharma Plc’s asthma treatment, Flutiform, will take longer than originally anticipated due to a lack of complete consensus among the member states about the product, SkyePharma announced on 18 October.
NeoStem Inc of New York, which has a business in adult stem cell collection and storage, has completed an all-share acquisition of Amorcyte Inc of New Jersey in a bid to develop a portfolio of therapies based on stem-cell technology.
The Roche group has reached an agreement to acquire Anadys Pharmaceuticals Inc for $230 million in order to expand its franchise in treatments for hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections. Anadys is located in San Diego, California.
Wilex AG was boosted in the first nine months of 2011 by income from a licensing agreement for its lead cancer antibody with Prometheus Laboratories Inc (Nestle SA). Nine-month income was €5.6 million compared with €1.2 million a year earlier.
The Roche group has confirmed its earnings forecast for 2011 of core earnings per share growth of about 10% at constant exchange rates. Sales for the first nine months declined in Swiss francs and were flat at constant exchange rates.