ALSO NOTED: Apoptos gains $28M Series A; Commonwealth Biotechnologies venture to recruit 1,000 chemists in China;and much more.

Tue, 06 May 2008 06:59:50 -0400

> Apoptos will get a two-tranche Series A of $28 million from a group of investors that includes Venrock, ARCH Venture Partners, OrbiMed Advisors, and Advanced Technology Ventures. The developer is engaged in apoptosis research. Apoptos release

> Commonwealth Biotechnologies has formed a joint venture with Venturepharm Laboratories to build new research facilities in China that will appoint up to 1,000 chemists over the next three years. Release

> Auspex Pharmaceuticals announced a $13.875 million Series B financing led by Thomas, McNerney & Partners with participation from co-investors CMEA Ventures and Costa Verde Capital. Ausphex release

> REGiMMUNE has closed its Series B financing for a total of $8 million. The money is earmarked to advance the company's lead program, RGI-2001, to human clinical trials for graft versus host disease. REGiMMUNE release

> About 300 R&D workers at Roche Diagnostics' Indianapolis facility are being laid off as the company transfers operations to Germany. Some workers will be offered transfers, but not many. They identify reagents used in test kits for HIV and other diseases. Report

> Generics makers are up in arms over proposed patent rules in Canada. The drug copycats say the rules will delay generic Lipitor and several other blockbusters by as much as two years. Report

> The number of U.K. kids taking antipsychotics has doubled in recent years, expert say, as use of the meds has broadened to hyperactive and autistic children. Report

> UCB Pharma was delirious with glee when it managed to launch its new TNF inhibitor Cimzia for Crohn's disease just 48 hours after the FDA gave its blessing. Cimzia report

> UK cell biologist Robert Edwards says he can see a time in the not-too-distant future when humans will be able to grow new body parts through the use of stem cell technology. Report

And Finally… Two doctors engaged in RNA research--Dr. Joan Steitz, Ph.D., and Dr. Elizabeth Blackburn, Ph.D.--became the first women to win the prestigious Albany Medical Center Prize, one of the richest awards available for biomedical research. Report

Patent rules create new biotech hazards

Wed, 22 Aug 2007 06:59:56 -0400

The Scientist examines the impact of new patent rules that take effect on November 1, saying the shift streamlines the process but will make it more expensive for biotech companies and academic groups to protect their life sciences IP. These new rules limit the number of times applications can be reevaluated as well as the number of claims contained in one applications. That's a particular concern in the drug development field, when new applications reveal themselves over a period of time.

"It's going to have a big effect on biotechs, universities, and nonprofits because it limits their ability to fight with the PTO," Ronald Eisenstein, a partner at Nixon Peabody, tells The Scientist. "If all that the patent examiner has to say is no, it's going to get much harder to negotiate, and will lead to applicants having to file costly appeals."

- read the article from The Scientist

Related Articles:
Does the patent cliff drive innovation? Report
Patent 'cliff' looms for Big Pharma. Report
Universities, public institutes lead biotech revolution. Report