Company News

Wilex acquires diagnostics company

Country
Germany

Wilex AG has announced the acquisition of certain diagnostics assets from Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics which trade under the name, Oncogene Science. The assets include marketable diagnostic kits and laboratories in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

4SC gives clinical update

Country
Germany

4SC AG expects to take its lead oncology product, a pan histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor, into the clinic in colorectal cancer before the end of this year. This follows encouraging Phase 2 data in liver cancer, the product’s lead indication.

Ablynx to receive €3 million payment from BI

Country
Belgium

Ablynx NV of Belgium is set to receive €3 million in milestone payments from Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH - its fifth such payment under a three-year old antibody research alliance with the German company. Payments now amount to €15 million.

Novartis discontinues lung cancer drug

Country
Switzerland

Novartis International AG said that it is discontinuing clinical development of a drug for non-small cell lung cancer, ASA404, following analysis of interim results from a Phase 3 trial that showed the drug was unlikely to extend the overall survival of patients.

Clovis Oncology expands partnership with Clavis

Country
Norway

Clovis Oncology Inc of Boulder, Colorado has signalled its confidence in an experimental drug for pancreatic cancer with the signing of a new development and commercialisation deal with the drug’s owner, Clavis Pharma ASA of Norway.

Intercell raises R&D spending leading to a wider Q3 loss

Country
Austria

The Austrian vaccine producer, Intercell AG, nearly doubled its loss for the 2010 third quarter, a result that reflected adverse exchange rate movements, a decline in revenue and an increase in spending on late-stage clinical research.

Crucell takes provision for factory closure

Country
Netherlands

Crucell NV has taken a provision of €22.8 million against its 2010 third-quarter results following the temporary suspension of shipments of two vaccines from a manufacturing facility in Korea that was found to be contaminated.

Schering-Plough withdraws EMA asthma application

Country
United Kingdom

Schering-Plough Europe has withdrawn its European marketing authorisation application for the proposed asthma treatment, Zenhale (mometasone furoate/formoterol fumarate), the European Medicines Agency announced.

FDA approves Kombiglyze for Type 2 diabetes

Country
United States

The US Food and Drug Administration has approved Kombiglyze, a new Type 2 diabetes drug that combines saxagliptin and metformin XR in a single tablet, according to the drug’s sponsors, AstraZeneca Plc and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.

New partnership in molecular diagnostics

Country
France

Privately-owned Biocartis SA of Switzerland and bioMerieux of France have entered into a strategic collaboration to co-develop assays for use in a number of healthcare-associated infections, sepsis and oncology.