BioPharm Business News and Perspectives

Monday, April 11, 2005 FDA Approves Alendronate Sodium/Cholecalciferol (Fosamax Plus DR) for Osteoporosis; the Only Bisphosphonate With a Weekly Dose of Vitamin D
Merck & Co, Inc, received marketing approval from the US Food and Drug Administration for its once-weekly tablet containing alendronate sodium (FosamaxR) and vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) for postmenopausal women with osteoporosis.

Monday, April 11, 2005 2-Methoxyestradiol Inhibits Inflammatory Cell Migration, Tissue, and Joint Damage in Animal Model of RA
The antiarthritic activity of 2-methoxyestradiol (2ME2) in preclinical studies was the focus of two separate presentations at the XXXV International Congress of Physiological Sciences held during the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists in San Diego, California.

Tuesday, March 29, 2005 STAT6(B) Regulates Production of TNF-α and Other Inflammatory Cytokines
In a paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences,1 researchers from the Boston University School of Dental Medicine report the discovery and characterization of signal transducer and activator of transcription 6(B) [STAT6(B)] a novel transcription factor that may play a role in the management of cytokine-mediated diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis.

Monday, March 28, 2005 Case Study Suggests Humanized Anti-CD20 Monoclonal Antibody Effective in Rituximab-Resistant Lupus
Researchers at the Centre for Rheumatology at University College, in London, England, report in the April 2005 issue of Rheumatology the first case of a patient with severe systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), who, having become unresponsive to the chimeric anti-CD20 antibody rituximab, exhibited a good response to a fully-human anti-CD20 antibody (hCD20) provided on a compassionate use basis by Immunomedics, Inc.¹

Monday, March 21, 2005 KaloBios Raises $20 million to Advance Treatment for Rheumatoid Arthritis
KaloBios Pharmaceuticals Inc, of Palo Alto, California, a privately held company devoted to the discovery and development of therapeutic antibodies and proteins, announced that it has raised $20 million in its Series B round of financing.

Sunday, March 20, 2005 Canada's NRC Funds ChondroGene to Support Development of OA Test
ChondroGene Limited of Toronto, Canada, has received financial support from the Canadian National Research Council's Industrial Research Assistance Program to further develop a blood-based test to stage osteoarthritis (OA) and to detect early, asymptomatic disease.

Friday, March 18, 2005 Servier Receives Award for Osteoporosis Drug Strontium Ranelate (ProtelosR)
Servier, the French pharmaceutical company, has received Frost & Sullivan's 2004 Osteoporosis Therapeutics Industry Innovation & Advancement of the Year Award for the development of Protelos (strontium ranelate), a dual-action osteoporosis drug that promotes bone formation by stimulating osteoblasts, and reduces bone resorption by decreasing the osteoclast population.

Monday, March 14, 2005 Alantos Pharmaceuticals Acquires Funding to Develop MMP-13 Inhibitors
Preclinical studies of novel matrix metalloproteinase-13 (MMP-13) inhibitors, which target the predominant collagenase involved in degradation of articular cartilage, demonstrate their promise as therapeutic agents for patients with osteoarthritis (OA), according to researchers at Alantos Pharmaceuticals, of Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Monday, March 14, 2005 Accelerated FDA Approval Unlikely for La Jolla Pharmaceutical's Riquent.
La Jolla Pharmaceutical Company (LJPC) of San Diego, California, announced earlier this month that RiquentR (abetimus sodium), the company's treatment for lupus renal disease, is unlikely to receive an accelerated approval.

Saturday, March 12, 2005 Genzyme Acquires a Second-Generation Cartilage Repair Product; Buys Back Rights to SynviscR
Genzyme Corp has acquired Verigen AG, a private German company that has developed a proprietary cell-therapy product for cartilage repair.