March 30, 2007 Notes: Pharmatek to Manufacture Oral HIV Medication for Aventrx, Eden to Provide Development and Manufacturing Services for ImmBio's Flu Vaccine Program, More

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ePT--the Electronic Newsletter of Pharmaceutical Technology

Aventrx, ImmBio, Eli Lilly, more

 

Company Notes

San Diego, CA (Mar. 20)-Adventrx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (www.adventrx.com) selected Pharmatek Laboratories (www.pharmatek.com) to manufacture its ANX-201 capsules for clinical studies. ANX-201 is Adventrx's new oral HIV medication. Pharmatek will provide Adventrx with sufficient amounts of the drug for Adventrx to carry out Phase I and II studies.

Liverpool, UK (Mar. 19)-Contract manufacturer Eden Biodesign Ltd. (www.edenbiodesign.com) will provide a range of development and manufacturing services for ImmBio's (Cambridge, UK, www.immbio.com) seasonal and pandemic influenza vaccine program. The vaccines will be produced at Eden's manufacturing facility in Liverpool.

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Indianapolis, IN (Mar. 26)-Eli Lilly and Company (www.lilly.com) will spend $150 million over the next five years to expand its drug discovery research activities at the Lilly Centre for Systems Biology in Singapore. The project will be undertaken in partnership with the Singapore Economic Development Board, and the expanded facility will be renamed the Lilly-Singapore Centre for Drug Discovery.

Carlsbad, CA (Jan. 16)-Invitrogen Corporation (www.invitrogen.com) formed a partnership with Wave Biotech, LLC (Somerset, NJ, www.wavebiotech.com) to supply media-filled disposable bioreactors. Invitrogen will provide Wave users with its "GIBCO" cell-culture media products in filled "Cellbag" disposable bioreactor bags. Both standard and custom media products will be made available.

Pitman, NJ (Mar. 27)-K-Tron International, Inc. (www.ktron.com) completed its acquisition of certain assets of Wuxi Chenghao Machinery Co., Ltd. The assets were transferred to a newly created business, Wuxi K-Tron Colormax Machinery Co., Ltd., which will be located in Luoshe Key Open Industrial Park, Wuxi City and will design, manufacture, market, and service volumetric and gravimetric single- and twin-screw feeders and controls, vibratory trays, pelletizers, and pneumatic screen changers for use in plastics compounding and injection-molding processes. The total cost of the transaction over a five-year period could be as much as $3.5 million.

Oxford, UK (Mar. 28)-Oxford BioMedica (www.oxfordbiomedica.co.uk) entered into an exclusive global licensing agreement with Sanofi-Aventis (Paris, en.sanofi-aventis.com) to develop and commercialize "TroVax" for the prevention and treatment of cancers. Under the terms of the agreement, Sanofi will pay Oxford up to EUR 518 million (approximately $690 million) if development and registration targets are met for certain indications. Oxford will receive an initial payment of EUR 29 million (approximately $39 million) and additional near-term payments of EUR 19 million (approximately $25 million) as milestones linked to the Phase III TRIST study in renal cancer. Oxford is also entitled to escalating royalties on sales of TroVax and has the option to develop TroVax for other cancer types. Oxford will supply TroVax to Sanofi on commercial terms, and Sanofi will fund future research, development, regualtory, and commercialization activities. The companies will cofund the Phase III TRIST study of Trovax.

Montreal, QC (Mar. 22)-ProMetic Life Sciences Inc. (www.prometic.com) signed a technology transfer and licensing agreement with Instituto de Tecnologia Do Parana (Tecpar, Curitiba, Brazil, www.tecpar.br). Tecpar will be allowed to locally manufacture a complex biopharmaceutical product for all South American countries, using a proprietary manufacturing process that will be developed by ProMetic. The process is based on technology licensed from the Biotechnology Research Institute and ProMetic's bioseparation process. The total transaction is valued at $19 million, $10 million of which will be used to modify Tecpar's current facility and acquire dedicated equipment.

Paris (Mar. 23)-Rhodia (www.rhodia.com) plans to close its Mulhouse Dornach manufacturing facility in France, citing increasing market competition as the reason for the closure. Rhodia is currently working to find alternative employment for the site's 135 workers. The plant is expected to close December 31, 2007.

 

People Notes

Portland, OR (Mar. 28)-Debus R. Burger, PhD, resigned as chairman, chief executive officer, and board member of AVI BioPharma, Inc. (www.avibio.com). K. Michael Forrest was named interim chief executive officer while the company searches for a permanent replacement.

Toronto, ON, Canada (Mar. 28)-Patheon (www.patheon.com) confirmed the appointment of Riccardo Trecroce as chief executive officer for an indefinite period. Trecroce initially was appointed chief executive officer for an interim period in September 2006.