> With its clients cutting back on contract research work, Charles River Laboratories says it has been forced to lay off 115 people from its facility in Montreal. Report
> Denmark's NeuroSearch has set out to raise $89 million to help fund its leap from an R&D company into a fully integrated pharmaceutical company. The developer is readying a new therapy for Huntington's disease for market registration next year. And its stock dropped 14.5 percent on the move. Report
> The FDA on Friday approved Sanofi Aventis' new cancer therapy Elitek. The drug was approved to manage the plasma uric acid that can build up as a side effect of cancer treatment. Elitek release
> Belgium's Movetis, a 2006 spinoff from Janssen Pharmaceutica, is planning an IPO, according to a Belgian newspaper. Story
> Calistoga Pharmaceuticals is touting promising signs of efficacy in a small trial of a new cancer therapy. Calistoga release
> OriGene Technologies has snapped up Marligen Biosciences for an undisclosed amount of money. Marligen sells tools to researchers investigating genes and proteins. Story
> Angiochem says its lead drug candidate, ANG1005, has demonstrated a favorable safety and efficacy profile in more than 100 patients with brain cancer from two separate Phase 1/2 clinical studies in patients with progressive gliomas. Release
> Rexahn Pharmaceuticals announced positive top-line results from a Phase IIa clinical study of Serdaxin. Rexahn release
> Canada's QLT has restructured its deal with Novartis to sell Visudyne in the U.S. It has gained exclusive rights to the drug in the U.S. Story
> The FDA has approved a new version of Talecris' Prolastin, which prevents emphysema in patients with alpha 1-antitrypsin deficiency. Story
Pharma News
> AstraZeneca is offering buyouts to its entire sales force. Yep, you read that right. Report
> The Genentech brand will replace Roche in U.S. Article
> In a turnabout victory for drugmakers, the Alabama Supreme Court has overturned $274 million in jury verdicts. Report
> Eli Lilly is catching heat for paying CVS Caremark to promote its Cymbalta drug to doctors. Report
Biotech IT
> Phase Forward's work to develop a faster and more accurate data loader for Merck has garnered recognition form the Society for Clinical Data Management. The effort yielded a data loading increase to 100,000 records per hour, up from 1,000, and an 80% drop in errors. Report
> With a paucity of participants in clinical trials among the factors in lengthening the development timeline for new drugs, contract research giant Quintiles has opened ClinicalResearch.com, an Internet site that simplifies the process of finding a trial. Article
> Symyx has unveiled a hosted informatics service that combines the company's software with data archiving capabilities in a secure data hosting and communications facility. Report
> Drug absorption and pharmacokinetics simulation company Simulations Plus has released version 4.7 of its ClassPharmer software for the analysis of chemical libraries and design of molecular structures. Article
> Fall must be the season of clinical trial software--Akaza Research has unveiled version 3.0 of OpenClinica, its open-source electronic data capture (EDC) software. Report
And Finally... Migraine sufferers appear to be more prone to an alcohol-induced headache after a night of drinking, according to researchers from the Jefferson Headache Center. Report