Deals and Data 10/6/08
Despite all of the madness on Wall Street, it's been a busy month in biotech real estate in Southern California with three major operations announcing big plans to bulk up in our region.
Starting off, Eli Lilly and Co. announced plans for one of its first major R and D facilities outside of Indianapolis (PDF) that a press release called its 'West Coast biotechnology center of excellence.' Combining its 2004 acquisition of Applied Molecular Evolution unit with its recent acquisition of SGX Pharmaceuticals, Lilly signed a 10-year lease with Veralliance Properties for 125,000 square feet at the Campus Point facility. There's something to be said here about cell phones changing to cell lines; this facility was originally Qualcomm's cell phone manufacturing facility before being sold to Kyocera Wireless in late 1999. Kyocera will still lease 43 percent of the massive 450,000 square foot site, which Lilly is expected to open in March of 2009.
Also returning to roost, Cardinal Health, which through the years bought both Pyxis and Alaris Medical Systems, is planning on spinning these two units back out as a public company that will be based here in San Diego. The spin out is expected to eventually have 2,000 jobs locally, 1,000 more than Cardinal currently employs here in San Diego, and will be lead by current vice chairman and med-tech industry veteran David L. Schlotterbeck, who was Alaris' CEO. Pyxis makes drug-dispensing machines for hospitals while Alaris makes bedside infusion systems.
And finally, Volcano Corp., the subject of a big Business profile in Sunday's Union-Tribune, said it will be moving its corporate headquarters to San Diego, maintaining its manufacturing facilities in Sacramento. Volcano makes systems for seeing blood blockage in heart patients.
Sapphire Energy is still attracting a raft of attention in publications like the Wall Street Journal, Scientific American, the Seattle Post Intelligencer and Xconomy.com, especially after closing a $100 million B round of funding. Sapphire’s investors include ARCH Venture Partners, Wellcome Trust, Venrock and Cascade Investment, LLC, an investment holding company owned by Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates. Why all the fuss? Sapphire says it has a way to use sunlight, CO2, non-arable land and non-potable water to make 91 octane gasoline.
While you are at it, the cover story in Sunday's New York Times magazine was about Kleiner Perkin's efforts to fund green technologies too.
AviaraDX has been acquired by bioMerieux for $60 million, giving the French firm AviaraDx's diagnostic test to classify cancer and help oncologists chose the best drugs for their patients. Aviara will be an independent entity called bioTheranostics, still in San Diego, under Richard Ding as CEO.
Ligand has bought publicly-traded New Jersey-based Pharmacopia in a deal worth potentially up to $70 million. The combined company will have nine pharmaceutical partnerships, 15 programs in various stages of research, more than 20 different therapeutic indications being pursued and more than $400 million in potential R&D and milestone payments from existing deals.
In spite of all the tough times on the market, Boston-based Vertex Pharmaceuticals, which has a major office in Torrey Pines, raised $220 million in one of the year's only follow-on offerings of stock, with Goldman Sachs handing book running on the deal.
Amylin has had a rough road recently after the FDA announced that several patients on its flagship Byetta treatment had died of pancreatitis. The company says diabetics on drug and off the drug have had both had pancreatitis, with speculation that the FDA was playing it extra cautious. In other Amylin news, the company showed new data on Byetta having better weight loss properties than some competing drugs (PDF).
MediciNova released data in clinical trials of two drugs, with a Phase II trial of its MN-221 effective against Asthma while its MN-166 was able to slow disability progression in a Phase II trial with Multiple Sclerosis patients.
Invitrogen and Applied Biosystems have announced the structure of their new combined company. Click here for more info on that. Invitrogen also launched a new stem cell culture service line.
Artes Medical raised $2.4 million in a private placement … Althea Technologies has secured a $12 million line of credit through City National Bank for additional capital investment in its newly constructed 30,000 square foot cGMP manufacturing plant, which will be able to make 100,000 unit drug batches … NovaRx was written about in the current issue of Forbes; you can read that article here.
Chembridge, a chemistry CRO based in San Diego, with lab facilities in Russia, says it signed a new research collaboration with AstraZeneca …
Sequenom has continued to garner attention for the high-reliability of data using the company's non-invasive test for Down syndrome which has shown to be better than the current gold standard. Sequenom spent $4 million to buy the Center for Molecular Medicine lab in Grand Rapids, Michigan, which could result in several hundred jobs there over the next few years. The company also announced an IP partnership on prenatal diagnostic technology with the Chinese University of Hong Kong as well as with the Genomic Nanosystems subsidiary of Cytonix.
Hollis Eden released new trial data on several products, including phase I/II data on its Triolex treatment for autoimmune and inflammatory disorders and in diabetes, and its Apoptone in preclinical trials for prostate cancer … Cadence Pharmaceuticals updated its timeline on its Omnigard treatment for catheter-based infections … Zogenix has closed an $18 million secured loan facility with Oxford Finance Corp. and CIT Healthcare …
Carlsbad-based Isis Pharmaceuticals said its Ibis Biosciences subsidiary have secured grants and contracts from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), National Institute of Justice (NIJ) and other government agencies totaling up to $8.4 million. The grants will look at development of assays to support government-sponsored projects like human forensics, to detection and identification of influenza viruses and other pathogens that could have a profound effect on animal and human health.
Torrey Pines Therapeutics says it will focus on three drug compounds and has met with the FDA on its Tezampanel treatment for a Phase III clinical trial for acute migraine … not far away, Anadys says patients in its Phase I trial of its ANA598 said the drug was well tolerated at all doses.
Quidel, which sells the leading flu test in the U.S. point-of-care physician market, says Roche has agreed to use the test for its extensive FluSTAR surveillance program for the up-coming season. This program tracks the spread of flu across the country, enabling healthcare providers as well as consumers to prepare and respond. The QuickVue test uses a nasal swab to diagnose in 10 minutes infection of the flu virus, opening the door for anti-viral drugs such as Roche’s Tamiflu to reduce symptoms and duration of the flu, and limit their exposure to other people.
Trius Pharmaceuticals says it has started a Phase II trial of its antibacterial agent for drug-resistant skin infections. The company says the drug, called TR-701, has benefits over other marketed drugs, including linezolid. Who are we to argue?
Isis and Regulus Therapeutics also said their patent real estate in RNA interference had expanded, while a partner advanced a multiple sclerosis trial using the company's core technology … Orexigen released information on several trials of its weight loss product candidates. You can see the details here.
Metabasis Therapeutics says it started a Phase 2a trial of its MB07803 to treat type 2 diabetes … and if anyone missed the Hybritech 30th anniversary party, Brad Fike's biotech blog has some good video interviews with some of the company's key players.
From our neighbors to the north, Calando Pharmaceuticals of Los Angeles, a subsidiary of Arrowhead Research (NASDAQ:ARWR), said it has started pre-clinical development of a second siRNA oncology therapeutic, CALAA-02.
Irvine-based Ista Pharmaceuticals says it has entered into an agreement for up to $65 million of financing through a credit facility with Deerfield Management, Sprout and Sanderling Ventures, which the company will use for general corporate purposes and to progress its products through clinical trials … not far away, IDM Pharma says it is meeting with European regulators and will be presenting its oncology drug to a advisory group …
Valeant Pharmaceuticals said it would pay $95 million to acquire the dermatology division of Coria Laboratories, which included several marketed dermatology products including the CeraVe Skin Care Line, Cloderm Cream for the treatment of dermatoses, Akne-Mycin and Atralin for acne, and Salex for the treatment of hyperkeratotic skin disorders, as well as Tetrix Cream for the treatment of hand dermatitis.
CytRx said it has purchased Innovive Pharmaceuticals for up to $18.3 million in milestones 2.6 million shares of Los Angeles-based CytRx's stock for ownership of the cancer drug tamibarotene, which is approved in Japan, and three other drug candidates.
And finally, to add to your local biotech links, check out Xconomy.com, the new tech news Web site that launched its San Diego site this week (http://www.xconomy.com/san-diego/), staring veteran Union-Tribune business reporter Bruce V. Bigelow, who opened up his biotech coverage with an overview of the Torrey Pines Mesa called San Diego 92037, noting that some might even find it more glamorous than Beverly Hills, 90210. We couldn't have said it better ourselves.