Figuring the Age of Your Arteries
Researchers are seeking better ways to communicate risk of cardiovascular disease and to motivate patients to help prevent heart attacks and strokes. online.wsj.com |
Illumina, Inc. Q2 2010 Earnings Call Transcript
Illumina, Inc. (ILMN)Q2 2010 Earnings Call TranscriptComplete Story » seekingalpha.com |
ViroPharma: A Tale of Two Drugs
Steve Alexander submits:ViroPharma (VPHM) is a relatively small biotech with two drugs on the market. Its legacy drug is Vancocin (vancomycin), which was acquired in 2004 and is used for the treatment of Clostridium difficile [CDI] infections, a digestive tract problem. Vancocin accounts for about 63% of revenues and yields 90% gross margins. ViroPharma's second drug, acquired in 2008 with the buyout of Lev Pharmaceuticals, is Cinryze. Cinryze is the first and, so far, only treatment approved for the prevention of hereditary angioedema [HAE], a rare genetic disorder that causes potentially dangerous swelling. Cinryze produced the remaining 47% of sales in the most recent quarter.Complete Story » seekingalpha.com |
Immunogen, Exelixis: Right Deals at the Right Time
Ohad Hammer submits:Yesterday, both Immunogen (IMGN) and Exelixis (EXEL) announced two important partnership deals. As with any deal, both companies enjoy an injection of non-dilutive funds as well as a vote of confidence for the companies’ technologies. This time, however, it seems the deals, which could not have come in a better time, represent much more than that. Immunogen announced a broad licensing deal with Novartis (NVS) which provides the pharma giant with rights to use Immunogen’s antibody drug conjugate (ADC) technology for an undisclosed number of targets. The numbers demonstrate the huge appreciation in the value of Immunogen’s technology compared to several years ago. The deal includes an upfront payment of $45M as well as $200M in milestone payments for every program Novartis chooses to develop. For the sake of comparison, current agreements with Genentech and Sanofi Aventis (SNY) entail milestone payments of in the $20-40 million range.Complete Story » seekingalpha.com |
Heart Health Starts at Early Age
Two new studies add to a burgeoning body of evidence that developing heart-healthy habits as a child may have lasting benefits in adulthood. online.wsj.com |