Micromet Inc. entered a definitive agreement with institutional investors to raise $25 million in a private placement of stock and warrants. Micromet, of Bethesda, Md., intends to sell about 9.2 million common shares and warrants to purchase about 4.6 million shares, at a price of $2.7525 per unit. The five-year warrants will be exercisable at $3.09 per share, starting 180 days after issuance. Micromet's stock (NASDAQ:MITI) fell 12 cents Wednesday to close at $2.57.

RBC Capital Markets is lead placement agent and C.E. Unterberg, Towbin co-agent for the financing. Funds will used for continued research and development of antibody-based product candidates for cancer, inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, and for other operational expenses.

Micromet has two products in clinical trials. MT103/MEDI-538, the lead program from its BiTE development platform, is being evaluated in a Phase I clinical trial for the treatment of patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. The BiTE technology is based on an antibody-based format that leverages the cytotoxic potential of T cells. That product is being developed in collaboration with MedImmune Inc., now part of London-based AstraZeneca plc. The second clinical-stage product, adecatumumab (MT201), is a recombinant human monoclonal antibody that targets EpCAM-expressing tumors. It has completed Phase IIa trials in patients with breast and prostate cancers, while a Phase IIb trial combination with docetaxel is ongoing in patients with metastatic breast cancer. That product is partnered with Merck Serono SA, of Geneva.

Micromet last month entered a potential €120 million (US$161 million) development deal with Roskilde, Denmark-based Nycomed A/S covering the preclinical product MT203, an antibody targeting granulocyte macrophage-colony stimulating factor for autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis, and other indications. It is expected to enter clinic trials next year. (See BioWorld Today, May 25, 2007.)

Micromet was formed through a merger last year of CancerVax Corp., of Carlsbad, Calif., and Micromet AG, of Munich, Germany, in a deal giving Micromet 67 percent of the combined company. (See BioWorld Today, Jan. 10, 2006.)

In other financing news:

• AlgoNomics NV, of Ghent, Belgium, raised €1.5 million (US$2 million) to further accelerate the development of its in vitro screening platform. The company provides structural bioinformatics services. The Epibase screening tool already is being applied for immunogenicity screening and optimization of biotherapeutics. The financing round was led by new investor Baekeland Fund II, and subscribed to by the Gemma Frisius Fund and TrustCapital. VIB, the Flanders Institute for Biotechnology, also participated.

• Pro-Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Newton, Mass., entered definitive agreements with institutional investors on a $2.7 million private placement. The deal calls for the company to sell about 4.17 million shares at $0.65 per share. Investors also would get seven-year warrants to purchase another 4.17 million shares at an exercise price of $0.80 per share. They would not be exercisable for six months following issuance. The company is developing drugs to treat cancer and liver, microbial, cardiovascular and inflammatory diseases. The initial focus is anticancer treatments that use polymers designed to enhance the safety and efficacy of chemotherapy agents, with Davanat its lead product candidate. The company also is focuses on repositioning drugs whose development previously was discontinued for toxicity, half-life or other issues.

• Clinical Data Inc., of Newton, Mass., filed a universal shelf registration statement covering the sale of up to $150 million of various equity and debt securities. The company's PGxHealth division focuses on genetic test and biomarker development to help predict drug safety and efficacy. Its Cogenics division provides molecular and pharmacogenomics services to research and regulated environments. Its Vital Diagnostics division offers in vitro diagnostics solutions for clinical laboratories.