Venture-capital backed ArGEN-X BV of the Netherlands has entered into an antibody discovery and development agreement with Shire Plc that will use its technology to isolate and characterise antibodies against targets related to rare, genetic diseases.
Angiochem Inc of Canada has secured a new global collaboration with GlaxoSmithKline Plc to develop a new enzyme replacement therapy for a lysosomal storage disease. The deal features an upfront payment of up to $31.5 million.
Novartis has agreed to pay privately-owned Enanta Pharmaceuticals Inc $34 million upfront, plus potential milestones of $406 million, for exclusive rights to a compound to treat hepatitis C. The compound is poised to enter clinical development.
GlaxoSmithKline PLC has decided to exercise an option giving it the right to exclusively license from Galápagos NV two compounds against immuno-inflammatory diseases. The compounds are part of an alliance dating from 2006.
Algeta ASA of Norway has successfully raised more than $45 million in a private share placement which will support the registration and commercialisation of its lead product, Alpharadin, for the treatment of cancer patients with bone metastases.
EOS imaging SA, which has developed a three-dimensional imaging system for orthopaedic investigations, has raised €38 million in an initial public offering on the Paris NYSE Euronext Exchange. The French company said its offering was 3.8 times oversubscribed at €6.87 per share.
Biogen Idec Inc has announced plans to acquire privately-owned Stromedix Inc of Cambridge, Massachusetts for $75 million upfront, plus milestones, in order to gain access to an investigational antibody for fibrotic disease.
Venture-capital backed Oxitec Ltd of the UK has secured £8 million in new funding from a syndicate led by Oxford Capital Partners to finance further trials of a project designed to reduce populations of the mosquitoes that transmit dengue fever.
Zealand Pharma A/S said it is set to receive a $20 million milestone payment from its partner, Sanofi SA, following the successful completion of the global Phase 3 programme for its glucagon-like peptide-1 agonist, lixisenatide, for type 2 diabetes.
Venture-capital backed Pieris AG has received a €1 million German government grant to support the development of a cancer compound that targets the c-Met signalling pathway. The funds will be used for biomarker discovery.