Danish drugmaker H. Lundbeck A/S plans to buy U.S. biotech Ovation Pharmaceuticals in a proposed $900 million deal that would give the Copenhagen-based company access to the U.S. commercial market. (BioWorld Today)
Ten years ago, Genentech's Herceptin stood alone as the first drug required to be paired with a genetic test to determine which patients are likely respond to the cancer therapy. Now, a new crop of so-called companion diagnostics are emerging - including KRAS and EGF mutation tests, for example - that would serve a similar purpose to the HER2 test kits.
Idenix Pharmaceuticals Inc. has granted London-based GlaxoSmithKline plc worldwide rights to IDX899, a potential treatment for HIV/AIDS, in a deal that could bring in a potential $450 million for the U.S-based biotech. (BioWorld Today)