Researchers from France and Spain have reported being able to produce human skin tissue in mice from human embryonic stem cells, a finding that could have application for patients with burn injuries. The preclinical study was reported in The Lancet.
Scientists in Cambridge, UK have reported that children who are severely obese have a common genetic mutation that appears to predispose them to the disease from an early age. The findings were published on 6 December 2009 in the journal, Nature.
AstraZeneca Plc is to pay $200 million upfront for rights to a candidate product for depression that works by modulating the activity of various neuronal nicotinic receptor subtypes. The agreement is with Targacept Inc of the US.
Argen-x BV, a Dutch biopharmaceutical company that is discovering and developing a new type of antibody, has raised an additional €3 million in a Series A equity financing round, bringing the total raised for the round to €12.5 million.
Agennix AG said its Phase 2 trial of talactoferrin for treating severe sepsis achieved its primary endpoint and was also well tolerated with no adverse effects. Among other things, the trial results showed a 45% overall reduction in 28-day all cause mortality compared with a placebo.
Addex Pharmaceuticals and a subsidiary of Merck & Co have agreed to extend for a third year their collaboration on developing positive allosteric modulators (PAMs) for a receptor linked with Parkinson’s disease.
Bavarian Nordic A/S has announced plans to raise DKK 250 to 300 million (€34 to 40 million) in a rights issue in order to support its biodefence and cancer programmes. The issue is expected to be completed at the beginning of 2010.
Biomedical Diagnostics, a French in vitro diagnostics company that produces products to detect auto-immune diseases, has raised €3 million in a private share placement led by Truffle Capital and AGF Private Equity.
The Michael J. Fox Foundation has awarded $1.5 million to six international research teams which are working on potentially disease-modifying therapies for Parkinson’s disease. The programme is financially supported by Elan Corporation Plc.
The ReNeuron Group Plc expects to start its long-awaited human trial of a stem cell therapy for stroke in the first quarter of 2010, provided it obtains formal ethics committee approval.