Privately-owned Symphogen A/S of Denmark is set to receive €20 million upfront from Merck Serono in exchange for rights to the Symphogen monoclonal antibody, Sym004, which is being developed for metastatic colorectal cancer.
Theravectys SAS of France, which is developing vaccines based on lentiviral vector technology, has secured €7.48 million from a group of private French investors. The new funds will help the company develop a candidate therapeutic vaccine for HIV.
Genmab A/S has entered into a licensing deal and equity investment with Johnson & Johnson Inc potentially valued at $1.1 billion for an early-stage antibody that targets CD38, a molecule that is highly expressed on multiple myeloma cells. The deal is the largest partnership in the Danish company’s history.
SkyePharma Plc, which specialises in measured delivery of inhaled and oral drugs, announced a major debt refinancing on 23 August 2012 along with its half-year results.
Newron Pharmaceuticals SpA of Italy has raised CHF4.7 million (€3.91 million) in a private placement of its shares ahead of the planned registration in 2013 of its lead compound for Parkinson’s disease, safinamide.
UK stem-cell research has received a boost following a decision by the Wellcome Trust and the Medical Research Council to invest £8 million in a new institute for stem-cell biology and medicine. The institute will be located at the University of Cambridge.
Paion AG has given further details of its new strategy for growth which will focus on developing and distributing specialised products in anaesthesia. This follows the sale of all remaining rights to desmoteplase, the candidate stroke product that was its lead asset.
Nanobiotix SA of France has secured a development partnership for its lead product, a nanoparticle device that is intended to enhance the efficacy of radiotherapy, with PharmaEngine Inc of Taiwan. The upfront payment is $1 million.
Wilex AG has announced plans to raise approximately €17.3 million in cash, and to convert an existing loan into equity, ahead of a meeting with the FDA to discuss a further development strategy for its cancer diagnostic Redectane.
GlaxoSmithKline Plc has announced the completion of its acquisition of Human Genome Sciences Inc (HGS) for $3.6 billion, or approximately $3 billion net of cash and debt. All of the outstanding shares of HGS were bought for $14.25 per share in cash.