> Neil Woodford's Patient Capital Trust (LSE:WPCT) pulled off its upscaled IPO. The fund had to turn away some offers to buy into the trust, despite raising its cap to £800 million ($1.2 billion). In the hours after it began trading, the stock settled at around 102.5 pence a share, a 2.5% premium over the net value of its assets. FierceBiotech | InteractiveInvestor
> Israel's cCAM Biotherapeutics started a Phase I trial of its immune checkpoint inhibitor. The immunomodulatory monoclonal antibody is being tested at four sites in the U.S. and Israel, including the Smilow Cancer Center that is part of Yale School of Medicine's primary teaching hospital. CCAM is aiming to assess the safety of the treatment in melanoma, plus non-small-cell lung, bladder, gastric, colorectal and ovarian cancer. Release
> Actelion (SIX:ATLN) CFO André Muller said the company is on the hunt for acquisitions but is refusing to get drawn into what he sees as the recent "M&A frenzy." Exactly where Actelion--a perennial takeover target itself--sees value remains to be seen. The company rarely goes in for buyouts--it lists three takeovers in 12 years on its website--but with CHF 913 million ($944 million) in its bank account, it has decided the time is right for checkbook pipeline building. FierceBiotech
> Acacia Pharma moved its postoperative nausea and vomiting treatment into Phase III. Cambridge, U.K.-based Acacia is trialling the drug in combination with standard antiemetics in high-risk patients. The primary endpoint is no vomiting or retching and no use of rescue medications within the first 24 hours after surgery. Release
> ReNeuron (AIM:RENE) traded up 30% over four days after posting long-term data from a Phase I trial of its stem cell therapy in disabled stroke patients. Improvements to the neurological status and limb function of patients that were seen in the three months after treatment were maintained over two years of follow-up tests. The treatment is now being put through the more rigorous test of a Phase II trial, initial data from which is due late this year. Release
> ThromboGenics (EBR:THR) snagged a €600,000 ($645,000) grant to assess Jetrea in patients with retinal vein occlusion (RVO). Having seen encouraging signs that Jetrea can treat peripheral arterial occlusions in an earlier Phase IIa trial, ThromboGenics is hoping to generate evidence it can break down the retinal-vein blood clots that cause loss of vision in RVO patients. Release