> Genentech has a new vice president of discovery research. Jennifer Doudna, who had been a professor in the molecular and cell biology and chemistry departments at UC Berkeley, was named to the newly created position. Genentech release
> For the second time in a week Deerfield Management has sweetened its offer to buy NitroMed. The investment group is now bidding 80 cents a share, up from its 50 cent offering in early December. Story
> Antares Pharma pocketed a milestone payment from Teva Pharmaceutical Industries related to the filing of a Device Master File for a novel disposable pen injector. Antares release
> Japan's Howa has signed a 24,400 square-foot-lease at the Center for Life Sciences in Boston. Story
> The Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation has awarded a $200,000 grant to Cambridge Cognition. Release
> AVI BioPharma announced positive data for its Phase I trial of its drug candidate AVI-4658 for the treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy by exon skipping. AVI release
> REM Medical Corporation has acquired the Tucson, AZ site of PsyPharma Global, which does sleep-related clinical trials research. Release
> Acting FDA chief Frank Torti is promising science, not politics, will guide the agency's decisions. FDA report
> It's not a shocking, breathtaking conclusion, but it's certain to get pharma sales reps talking: Über-analyst Barbara Ryan of Deutsche Bank predicts that, in the wake of enormous layoffs in pharma sales, contract reps will become the order of the day. Report
> Pharma-watchers throw around the term "patent cliff," and folks start running for cover. But what, precisely, is the drug industry afraid of? Thanks to a new forecast from IHS Global Insight, we can all apply numbers to our fears--at least to the ones that apply to 2009. Report
And Finally... Seattle-based PATH has been working on ways to improve the world's "cold chain," a long and fragile supply line that runs from manufacturers to villages and towns all around the world. Report