Pharmaceuticals News

Friday, February 10, 2012

Synageva advances rare disease treatment
Synageva BioPharma Corp. has returned encouraging results of a Phase 1/2 clinical trial of its lead program, SBC-102, in treating late onset Lysosomal Acid Lipase Deficiency, also known as Cholesteryl Ester Storage Disease, affecting both children and adults.
Zalicus, Hydra team up on pain treatment
Zalicus Inc., the biopharmaceutical company formerly known as CombinatoRx, has teamed up with Cambridge neighbor Hydra Biosciences Inc. to move forward Zalicus’ pain treatment candidates.
Alnylam to speed lead drug candidates' development
Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc. of Cambridge said it will accelerate develop of two lead drug candidates that offer the greatest commercial opportunity, and that it has discovered a novel method to monitor the activity of RNAi in blood samples and granted the first license to Isis Pharmaceuticals.

Thursday, February 9, 2012

Acetylon wins $15M strategic investment from Celgene
Acetylon Pharmaceuticals Inc. has taken in $15 million in a strategic investment from Celgene Corp., a potential partner or competitor in the treatment of blood cancers.

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Navidea expands from Ohio into Andover office
Ohio life sciences company Navidea Biopharmaceuticals Inc. is opening a business office in Andover to help it commercialize an imaging agent to detect lymph-node cancer it plans to launch later this year.

Monday, February 6, 2012

Stealthy Synchroneuron snaps up $6M in Series A round
Waltham biopharmaceutical Synchroneuron Inc. has raised $6 million in its Series A round of funding, the company said in a release.

Friday, February 3, 2012

FDA removes hold on Idenix hep C drug target
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has lifted a partial hold on a drug candidate developed by Cambridge-based Idenix Pharmaceuticals Inc. The hold related to a drug study of the company’s IDX184 and IDX320 programs to treat hepatitis C virus.

Thursday, February 2, 2012

AstraZeneca layoffs may hit Mass. R&D operation
Drug maker AstraZeneca plc has announced it would reduce its head count of 61,000 by 7,300 over the next three years, including research and development cuts that may hit the company's facility in Waltham.
Merrimack Pharma reported to delay IPO
Merrimack Pharmaceuticals Inc. has postponed its $166 million IPO, originally scheduled for this week, according to IPO tracker Renaissance Capital, due to poor market conditions.

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

FDA approves Vertex cystic fibrosis drug
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. has won U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval for Kaledyco, a breakthrough drug to treat the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis for the 4 percent of patients who have the most common form of the disease.

Monday, January 30, 2012

Curis gets $10M payment as FDA approves cancer drug
Yet another milestone payment has come in for partnering powerhouse Curis Inc., as Genentech gives it $10 million upon FDA approval of Erivedge (vismodegib) for the treatment of adult with the skin cancer known as basal cell carcinoma.
Molecular Insight moves pre-trial compound to manufacturing
Molecular Insight Pharmaceuticals Inc. is bringing its small-molecule-based radiopharmaceutical to clinical trials as a potential treatment for metastatic prostate cancer. Plans for the clinical trial follow the Cambridge biotech's emergence last May from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection to become a restructured company.

Friday, January 27, 2012

Alkermes finally wins OK of diabetes drug
Alkermes Inc. and its California partner Amylin Pharmaceuticals Inc. have finally won approval from the FDA for the diabetes drug Bydureon after years of attempts.
Judge grants stay of preliminary injunction in Momenta Pharma case
Momenta Pharmaceuticals Inc. was dealt a blow Thursday when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit granted a motion for a stay of the preliminary injunction, pending appeal, from Amphastar Pharmaceuticals Inc., Watson Pharmaceuticals Inc. and International Medical Systems Ltd.
Infinity Pharma halts pancreatic cancer trial
Infinity Pharmaceuticals Inc. has voluntarily halted a Phase 2 study of its drug target to treat metastatic pancreatic cancer, after early results indicated the goal endpoint of overall survival would not be met.

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Millennium gets FDA nod on subcutaneous Velcade
Cambridge cancer pharmaceutical firm Millennium: The Takeda Oncology Company said Monday that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved a supplemental new drug application for its Velcade drug to include subcutaneous administration.
FDA OKs Genzyme’s Framingham plant
Less than a week after Genzyme's Framingham plant landed approval from the European Medicines Agency to manufacture Fabrazyme, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has also given the OK to produce the treatment for Fabry disease.

Monday, January 23, 2012

Cerulean taps Chris Guiffre as new chief business officer
Cambridge nanopharmaceutical company Cerulean Pharma Inc. has named Chris Guiffre to the newly created position of chief business officer.

Friday, January 20, 2012

Avila spears $4M in milestone payment from Clovis
Avila Therapeutics Inc. has triggered a $4 million milestone payment from partner Clovis Oncology Inc. now that a potential therapy for non-small cell lung cancer has reached a milestone stage with the FDA.
Alnylam to cut workforce by a third
Two days after filing a patent infringement suit against a California company, Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc. said that it will cut its work force by 33 percent in a corporate restructuring move.