Michael Cola, president of Shire Plc’s speciality pharmaceuticals business, is resigning from the company effective 2 April. The chief executive, Angus Russell, will take responsibility for the division until a replacement is appointed.
4SC AG is laying plans for a pivotal, pre-registration trial of its experimental drug for liver cancer, resminostat, following positive data at Phase 2. Provided partnering and regulatory discussions are successful, the trial could start in the first half of 2013.
ThromboGenics NV, a Belgian company developing ophthalmic medicines, has raised €77.8 million in a private placement of its shares arranged by KBC Securities NV, Merrill Lynch International and Petercam NV.
Eli Lilly and Company said new Phase 2 data for its antibody against psoriasis has been published in the New England Journal of Medicine. The antibody is currently in Phase 3 for psoriasis and under investigation for other indications, including RA.
A new financing initiative to support early-stage drug development is being launched in the UK – this time to support promising projects in the field of oncology.
Drug regulators in the European Union have reached an agreement on what kinds of data submitted to them from companies can be made public, effectively making the pharmaceutical sector more responsive to public demands for information.
Promethera Biosciences SA, which is developing a therapy for liver disease using allogeneic stem cells derived from healthy adult human livers, has raised €23.6 million in a series B financing round that included four corporate investors.
Celtic Therapeutics Management LLLP, the New York offshoot of Celtic Pharma, has launched a Swiss-based company to develop antibody drug conjugates (ADCs) in order to take advantage of the growing participation of major pharmaceutical companies in this sector.
Addex Pharmaceuticals Ltd has announced positive top-line data from a Phase 2a trial of an allosteric modulator for the treatment of levodopa-induced dyskinesia in patients with Parkinson’s disease. Full data will be disclosed at a meeting later in 2012.
Evotec AG illustrated in 2011 that it is possible to out-perform the biotech sector by pursuing a drug discovery model that exploits Big Pharma’s need to outsource R&D. Revenue at the German company increased by 45% and net profit more than doubled.