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NEWS: OCTOBER 2003 -10/31/2003- Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. to acquire Sicor Inc. for $3.25 billion in cash and stock. To read article click here. PreAnalytiX GmbH and Affymetrix Inc. form collaboration to improve gene expression profiling. To read article click here. Celgene Corporation moves its benzopyran candidate CC-8490 to clinical trials for brain cancer. To read article click here. Orchid BioSciences Inc. to sell its Diagnostics Unit to Tepnel Life Sciences PLC. To read article click here. Pfizer Inc. submits NDA to the FDA for Pregabalin for neuropathic pain, generalized anxiety disorder and partial seizures. To read article click here.
-10/30/2003- Pyrosequencing AB completes the acquisition of Biotage Inc. To read article click here. To find a review of Biotage's purification systems here at CombiChem Lab click here. Celgene
Corporation moves ACTIMID (CC-4047) to Phase II clinical trials
for prostate cancer. To
read article click
here. Exelixis Inc.'s President and CSO Dr. Geoffrey Duyk to leave the company at the end of 2003. To read article click here. Alnylam
Pharmaceuticals Inc. and the Mayo Clinic form research
collaboration to apply RNAi technology to develope drugs
for Parkinson's Disease. To
read article click
here. Biopure Corp. to cut 30% of its work force. To read article click here. Rib-X Pharmaceuticals Inc. receives U.S. patent 6,638,908 covering the high-resolution crystal structure of the 50S subunit of the ribosome to which many known antibiotics bind. To read article click here.
-10/29/2003- FDA approves Johnson & Johnson's drug Risperda for schizophrenia. To read article click here. Chiron Corporation to initiate Phase III clinical trials of Tifacogin for pneumonia. To read article click here. FDA grants fast- track status to Sonus Pharmaceuticals Inc.'s Tocosol paclitaxel. To read article click here. Abgenix Inc. and AstraZeneca complete oncology agreement. To read article click here. Bayer AG sells Millennium Pharmaceuticals stake for more than $300 million. To read article click here. Genzyme Corp. and MacroGenics Inc. form research collaboration for immune-mediated diseases. To read article click here. Guilford Pharmaceuticals Inc. acquires U.S rights to AGGRASTAT® Injection from Merck & Co for $84 million. To read article click here. Serologicals Corporation and Molecular Probes Inc. sign licensinc agreement on fluorophores for tagging biologically active molecules. To read article click here. Iconix Pharmaceuticals Inc. releases version 2.30 of its chemogenomics reference database and informatics system DrugMatrix™. To read article click here.
-10/28/2003- Press Release: Fluorous Technologies Receives 2003 Excellence in Combinatorial Chemistry Technologies Award from Frost & Sullivan. To read press release click here. Press Release: SciTegic and NovoDynamics Announce the Release of Decision Trees for Pipeline Pilot; New Co-Marketing Agreement. To read press release click here. FDA approves Raptiva™ for psoriasis treatment. To read article click here. Progen Industries Limited receives E.U. Patent 0669988 entitled "Angiogenesis Inhibitory Antibodies". To read article click here. Chiron Corp. grants non-exclusively rights to Pfizer Inc. for R&D candidates against hepatitis C virus. To read article click here. Nanogen Inc. licenses from the Institut Pasteur exclusive rights to GJB2 gene for hereditary deafness. To read article click here. CV Therapeutics Inc. initiates Phase III clinical trials of its selective A2A-adenosine receptor agonist CVT-3146. To read article click here. Good cholesterol (HDL) increased in patients using new protease inhibitor Lexiva™ (fosamprenavir calcium, formerly GW43908, or 908). To read article click here. Watson Pharmaceuticals Inc. acquires Amarin Development AB. To read article click here.
-10/27/2003- FDA approves King Pharmaceuticals Inc.'s IND application for T-62 for neuropathic pain treatment. To read article click here. CEM
Corporation and Synthematix Inc. sign software development agreement
for microwave-enhanced life science applications. To
read article click
here. Neose Technologies and Rentschler Biotechnologie GmbH & Co. KG. form research collaboration. To read article click here. IsoTis S.A. and GenSci OrthoBiologics Inc. merge. To read article click here. Millennium Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Bayer AG conclude five-year research collaboration. To read article click here. Bayer Pharmaceuticals Corporation and Onyx Pharmaceuticals Inc. initiate Phase III clinical trials of novel signal transduction inhibitor BAY 43-9006 for the treatment of advanced renal cell carcinoma (kidney cancer). To read article click here.
-10/24/2003- Dynavax Technologies Corporation goes IPO. To read article click here. Schering-Plough Corporation's experimental protease inhibitor found to be a potent inhibitor of hepatitis C virus (HCV). To read article click here. Xenova Group plc initiates Phase IIb clinical trials of the TA-CD vaccine for cocaine addiction treatment. To read article click here. Gene Logic Inc. and Aventis Inc. sign multi-year business agreement. To read article click here.
-10/23/2003- Press Release: Visitors to International Biotech 2003 (stand B500) will have the chance to see, and hear an introductory talk, on INTEGRA Biosciences' new disposable flask-bioreactor for long-term, high level protein expression from adherent cells. To read press release click here. Teva Pharmaceuticals Inc. is considering the acquisition of Sicor Inc. To read article click here. Paradigm Genetics Inc. receives U.S. patent 6,632,631 entitled "Methods for the Identification of Inhibitors of Homocitrate Synthase as Antibiotics." To read article click here. IBC Pharmaceuticals and Schering AG form antibody research collaboration for cancer treatment. To read article click here. Shareholders of both Cell Therapeutics Inc. and Novuspharma S.p.A. approve merger. To read article click here. Dyax Corp. and URRMA Biopharma Inc. form research collaboration for fully human monoclonal antibodies for HIV treatment. To read article click here.
-10/22/2003- Press Release: Guava Technologies, Inc have released a technical paper detailing how their ViaCount Flex assay reagent enables quick and reproducible absolute cell count and viability assessments with insect and other non-mammalian cells. To read press release click here. IBC to host the "21 CFR Part 11: Ensuring Compliance to Prevent Citations and Manufacturing Interruptions" conference on Febryary 23-24, 2004, in San Diego, CA. For more information on this conference click here. IBC promotes and hosts a broad range of scientific oriented conferences. For more information on IBC here at CombiChem Lab click here. Merck & Co. Inc. to cut 4,400 jobs. To read article click here. FDA grants fast track status to Tularik Inc.'s T67 for liver cancer treatment. To read article click here. Forest Laboratories Inc. to resume clinical development of neuropathic pain Indication for Memantine. To read article click here. The European Medicines Evaluation Agency warns about drug cocktail Videx-Epivir-Viread for HIV treatment. To read article click here. Pfizer Inc. forms new organization: Pfizer Human Healthcare. To read article click here. Elan Corporation to sell Roxicodone™, Oramorph™ SR, Roxanol™ and Duraclon™ for $100 million. To read article click here. Researchers at Lorus Therapeutics Inc. publish in the International Journal of Oncology mechanism of action anti-cancer drug Virulizin®. To read article click here. Evotec OAI AG and F. Hoffmann-La Roche form medicinal chemistry collaboration for oncology research. To read article click here. SEQUENOM Inc. identifies novel genetic markers for breast cancer. To read article click here. Biocept Inc. launches 2 new high-throughput array systems: the 3D HydroArray Apoptosis System and the 3D HydroArray Signal Transduction System. To read article click here. Novuspharma to initiate Phase II clinical trials of Pixantrone for cancer treatment. To read article click here. TEAMM Pharmaceuticals Inc. acquires worldwide rights for drug delivery technology. To read article click here. Ribonomics Inc. receives U.S. patent 6,635,422 entitled "Methods for isolating and characterizing endogenous mRNA-Protein (mRNP) Complexes." To read article click here.
-10/21/2003- Press Release: ComGenex makes available its new panel of targeted compound libraries: Activerse-2. To read press release (pdf format) click here (Note: The file size is 1.4 Mb). Comgenex Inc. provides services for the synthesis of drug-like compounds for high-throughput screening (HTS) and drug discovery. For a review of Comgenex Inc's services here at CombiChem Lab click here. Press Release: ESA has announced a new applications note that describes and illustrates how coulometric array detection can provide valuable additional complimentary capabilities to researchers using MS or LC/MS systems. To read press release click here. To read additional information (pdf format) click here. Press Release: Porvair Sciences have launched MaxiLute™ an innovative new 48-well Solid Phase Extraction (SPE) sample preparation microplate system. To read press release click here. FDA approves Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc.'s protease inhibitor Lexiva™ (fosamprenavir calcium) ( formerly GW433908 or 908) for HIV combination therapy. To read article click here. Takeda Chemical Industries Ltd files lawsuits against three generic makers for allegedly violating patents on the diabetes drug Actos. To read article click here. Keryx Biopharmaceuticals Inc. initiates Phase II/III clinical trials of KRX- 101 for the treatment of diabetic nephropathy. To read article click here. Iconix Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Millennium Pharmaceuticals Inc. form chemogenomics research collaboration. To read article click here. AtheroGenics Inc. initiates Phase II clinical trials of AGIX-4207 for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. To read article click here. Renaissance Labs LLC initiates operations. To read article click here. Researchers at Panacos Pharmaceuticals publish mechanism of action of drug candidate PA-457 for HIV treatment. To read article click here. Applied Molecular Evolution Inc. reaches milestone in antibody collaboration with Centocor Inc. To read article click here. CompuMed Inc. and MEDSTRAT Inc. sign licensing and product development agreement. To read article click here.
-10/21/2003- Discovery Partners International Inc. (DPII) and Inspire Pharmaceuticals Inc. extend optimization research collaboration of lead candidates for the P2 receptor family. To read article click here. DPII has 2 subsidiaries, ChemRx and IRORI, to provide support to drug discovery. ChemRx offers a diverse set of services for combinatorial chemistry and drug discovery. For a review of ChemRx's services here at CombiChem Lab click here. IRORI offers its radio-frequency tagged product line for combinatorial chemistry. For a review on IRORI's Accutag system here at CombiChem Lab click here. Pharmacopeia Inc. and Neurocrine Biosciences form drug discovery research collaboration. To read article click here. Pharmacopeia Inc. provides services for drug discovery R&D. For a review of Pharmacopeia's services here at CombiChem Lab click here. Tercica Inc. to go IPO. To read article click here. GlaxoSmithKline terminates license agreement with Flamel Technologies SA. To read article click here. Researchers at Lexicon Genetics Incorporated publish in the October 2003 issue of Current Opinion in Pharmacology a review of gene knockouts for novel therapetutic targets. To read article click here. FDA approves 1-week dosage Enbrel® (etanercept) for rheumatoid arthritis. To read article click here. Rigel Pharmaceuticals Inc. discovers peptides with anti-proliferative activity. To read article click here. FDA rejects Pozen Inc.'s drug candidate MT 300 for migraines. To read article click here. Celera Diagnostics and Merck & Co. Inc. form research collaboration. To read article click here. Researches at Xenova, Celltech and Genentech develop new strategy for flu treatment. To read article click here. Paradigm Genetics Inc. and Affymetrix sign services agreement. To read article click here. TaiGen Biotechnology Co. Ltd. and TTY Biopharm Co. Ltd. form alliance to develop novel topoisomerase I inhibitor candidate DB67 for cancer treatment. To read article click here. Pfizer Inc. and Organon from development alliance for Organon's asenapine for the treatment of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. To read article click here. Debiopharm S.A. inititates phase II trials for novel cholinesterase inhibitor ZT-1 for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. To read article click here.
-10/17/2003- Press Release: Personal Chemistry receives 2 independent orders worth over SEK 5,000,000 for the prep-scale microwave synthesizer Emrys™ Advancer. To read press release click here. Personal Chemistry offers its microwave-assisted Coherent Synthesis™ system technology to expedite combinatorial chemistry synthesis and drug discovery. For a review of Personal Chemistry's systems here at CombiChem Lab click here. FDA approves Neurobiological Technologies Inc./Forest Laboratories Inc.'s drug Namenda™ (memantine hydrochloride) for the treatment of moderate to severe Alzheimer's disease. To read article click here and here. Discovery Laboratories Inc. receives U.S. patent 6,613,734 entitled "Peptide-Containing Liposomal Surfactants.'' To read article click here. FDA approves Paxil™ CR (paroxetine HCl) Controlled-Release Tablets for the treatment of social anxiety disorder. To read article click here. deCODE genetics and Roche Diagnostics form collaboration to develop a DNA-based test to identify genes associated with heart attacks. To read article click here. Renovis Inc. goes IPO. To read article click here. Advancis Pharmaceutical Corporation goes IPO. To read article click here.
-10/16/2003- Press Release: Porvair Sciences, a leading supplier of applications focused microplate technology, chose the recent 9th Society for Biomolecular Screening (SBS) meeting in Portland, Oregan (USA) to present its latest products for high throughput screening. To read press release click here. Press Release: New appointments prepare Morphochem for cancer product development. To read press release click here. Press Release: Available from Viscotek, the leader in multiple detection characterisation of synthetic and natural polymers, the Model 302 Triple Detector Array (TDA) represents the cutting edge in detector technology for pharmaceutical analysis. To read press release click here. Varian Inc.'s new Cold Probe (-250 degrees C) for 600 MHz NMR (nuclear magnetic resonance) systems used for proteomics and pharmaceutical research. To read article click here. Varian Inc. provides NMR instrumentation for a broad range of analytical applications in drug discovery, including its VAST system for combinatorial chemistry and high-throughput NMR analysis. For a review of Varian Inc.'s VAST system here at CombiChem Lab click here. Diversa Corporation and Medarex Inc. form antibody engineering collaboration. To read article click here. AstraZeneca forms research alliance with Abgenix investing $100 million. To read article click here. Titan Pharmaceuticals Inc. acquires 3,5-diiodothyropropionic acid (DITPA) for congestive heart failure treatment. To read article click here. Metabasis Therapeutics Inc. receives a 2-year Phase II SBIR grant of up to $2.4 million by NIAID entitled "Liver-Targeted Prodrugs for the Treatment of Hepatitis C." To read article click here. Idec Pharmaceuticals Corp. wins battle dispute against Corixa Corp. and a U.S. district court invalids 4 Corixa's patents for cancer drug Bexxar. Corixa inteds to appeal the ruling. To read article click here.
-10/15/2003- Accelrys Inc. releases CombiMat 2.0 for data management of high throughput experimentation (HTE) in materials science. To read article click here. Accelrys Inc. provides software packages for molecular modeling, drug discovery, life science, material science, combinatorial chemistry and high-throughput screening. For a review of Accelrys Inc.'s software here at CombiChem Lab click here. Cerus Corp. to cut 25 percent of its work force. To read article click here. ICN Pharmaceuticals Inc. to cut up to 1,400 jobs and sale eight manufacturing plants within the next five years. To read article click here. Generex Biotechnology Corporation and Transgene S.A. form cancer research collaboration. To read article click here. Sunesis Pharmaceuticals Inc. signs agreement with Dainippon Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. to acquire exclusive worldwide development and marketing rights for Dainippon's anti-cancer compound SPC-595 (formerly called AG-7352). To read article click here. Archemix Corp. selects its first drug development candidate: ARC183 for coronary artery bypass graft surgery. To read article click here. ACLARA BioSciences expands eTag™ gene expression ADME/Toxicity assays. To read article click here. SciTegic® and NovoDynamics® release the Decision Trees Collection for SciTegic's data pipelining software Pipeline Pilot™. To read article click here.
-10/14/2003- Press Release: INTEGRA Biosciences has announced a special promotion, running until the end of February 2004, whereby all laboratories purchasing a new VACUSAFE comfort liquid aspiration system will receive a free VACUBOY hand operator set. To read press release click here. Press Release: The Mat Capper from Porvair Sciences is a compact and portable instrument for capping of microplates with sealing mats. To read press release click here. Pyrosequencing AB acquires Biotage LLC for about $35 million in cash. To read article click here. Biotage Inc. has a broad variety of high-throughput purification systems for drug discovery and combinatorial chemistry. To find a review of Biotage's purification systems here at CombiChem Lab click here. IBC to host the "AntibodyTherapeutics" conference on December 1-2, 2003, in San Diego, CA. For more information on this conference click here. IBC promotes and hosts a broad range of scientific oriented conferences. For more information on IBC here at CombiChem Lab click here. Chemical
Diversity Labs (ChemDiv) forms virtual screening collaboration with
Biogen Inc.
To read article click
here. Chemical
Diversity Labs Inc. (ChemDiv) offers diverse compound libraries
and services for drug discovery research. For a review of
ChemDiv's compound libraries and services here at CombiChem
Lab click
here and here,
respectively. Amgen Inc. and Abgenix Inc. amend collaboration giving Amgen primary option over the development and commercialization of experimental cancer drug ABX-EGF. To read article click here. Cambridge Antibody Technology receives payment of HUMIRA® royalties from Abbott Laboratories. To read article click here. Evotec OAI AG and Biofrontera Pharmaceuticals Holding AG sign co-marketing and distribution agreement to offer natural compounds for drug discovery services. To read article click here. Novasite Pharmaceuticals Inc. receives two Phase I SBIR grants from NIH for drug lead discovery of Serotonin type-2 receptors. To read article click here. Allergan Inc. to acquire Oculex Pharmaceuticals Inc. for $230 million. To read article click here. Targeted Genetics Corporation and GenVec Inc. expand manufacturing agreement. To read article click here. Dr.
Joan Fallon receives U.S. patent 6,632,429 entitled "Methods
for Treating Pervasive Developmental Disorders" covering the
use of digestive and pancreatic enzymes as a treatment for children
with ADD, ADHD and Autism. To
read article click
here. Tularik Inc. reaches milestones in Amgen Inc.'s oncology collaboration. To read article click here. Millennium Pharmaceuticals Inc. initiates phase II clinical trials of MLN1202 for rheumatoid arthritis. To read article click here.
-10/13/2003- Press Release: Genevac, a leading supplier of centrifugal evaporator technology, chose the Biotechnica 2003 exhibition in Hannover, Germany (7-9th October 2003) to introduce new functionality to its market-leading EZ-2 solvent removal system range. To read press release click here. Genevac Ltd. provides high-throughput centrifugal evaporation systems for combinatorial chemistry, high-throughput screening (HTS) and drug discovery. To read a review of Genevac's systems here at CombiChem Lab click here. Press Release: A new study by operations management consulting firm Tefen, USA, has concluded that laboratories that routinely use the Guava PCA system with the Guava ViaCount assay for cell counting and viability assessment enjoy both a return on investment (ROI) and increased productivity for their research operation. To read press release click here. Accelrys Inc. to release Insight II® and Catalyst® for the Linux operating system. To read article click here. Accelrys Inc. provides software packages for molecular modeling, drug discovery, life science, material science, combinatorial chemistry and high-throughput screening. For a review of Accelrys' software packages here at CombiChem Lab click here. Cambrex Corp. and Ligand Pharmaceuticals Inc. sign 5-year drug development agreement for the anti-cancer drug Ontak®. To read article click here. AVANIR Pharmaceuticals receives $100,000 SBIR grant from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) to further develop fully human monoclonal antibodies to anthrax toxins. To read article click here. Wyeth to move NSP-989 into Phase II clinical studies for contraception. Ligand Pharmaceuticals receives milestone payment for NSP-989. To read article click here. Myogen Inc. and the Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research Inc. form drug discovery research collaboration for the treatment of cardiovascular disease. To read article click here. Schering-Plough Corp. receives FDA approval to market PEG-Intron Redipen™ for chronic hepatitis C. To read article click here. Researchers find that alterations in serotonin signaling in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract are present in patients with Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS). To read article click here.
-10/10/2003- General Electric Company to acquire Amersham plc for $9.5 billion. To read article click here. FDA approves Estrasorb™ for treatment of menopausal hot flashes. To read article click here. The Securities and Exchange Commission sues ImClone Systems Inc.'s ex-CEO Sam Waksal's father for insider trading. To read article click here. European Patent Office invalids Applied Research Systems' patent 0 505 500. To read article click here. ChemCodes Inc. changes its name to Nuada Pharmaceuticals. To read article click here.
-10/09/2003- Press Release: DRI (DNA Research Innovations) and Tecan UK today announced an agreement to form a partnership to provide fully automated nucleic acid purification solutions for the clinical & research markets. To read press release click here. Tecan provides the ChemSystem workstation and the TECAN MiniPrep systems for combinatorial chemistry and drug discovery. To read a review of TECAN's systems here at CombiChem Lab click here. General Electric Co. expected to propose acquisition offer to Amersham PLC. To read article click here. Affymetrix Inc. releases120,000 validated SNPs data to the public domain. To read article click here. FDA grants fast-track status to Tanox Inc.'s experimental HIV drug TNX-355. To read article click here. Revotar Biopharmaceuticals AG initiates Phase II clinical trials of Bimosiamose for psoriasis and atopic dermatitis treatment. To read article click here. Researchers neutralize SARS virus in lab tests. To read article click here. ICOS Corp. to manufacture Protein Design Labs Inc.'s M200 antibody for the treatment of advanced solid tumors. To read article click here. Cellular Genomics Inc. and Affymetrix Inc. form research collaboration to develop novel high-content drug screens. To read article click here. Axcan Pharma Inc. acquires the rights to three Aventis S.A.'s gastrointestinal products for $145 million in cash. To read article click here. The Immune Response Corporation licenses Hybridon's AMPLIVAX™ for HIV prevention and treatment. To read article click here. Millennium Pharmaceuticals Inc. initiates Phase I/II clinical trials of MLN2704 for prostate cancer. To read article click here. NovaCardia Inc. licenses adenosine A1 receptor antagonist KW-3902 from Kyowa Hakko Kogyo Co. To read article click here.
-10/08/2003- Curis Inc. receives U.S. patent 6,630,148 entitled "Compositions Comprising Hedgehog Proteins." To read article click here. Genzyme Corp. and Transkaryotic Therapies Inc. form development collaboration on Transkaryotic's iduronate-2 sulfatase (I2S) enzyme for the Hunter syndrome treatment. To read article click here. FDA approves Serono's pre-filled syringe Ovidrel® for infertility treatment. To read article click here. OriGene Technologies Inc. and Tanox Inc. form research collaboration. To read article click here. ILEX™ Oncology Inc. initiates Phase II clinical studies of anticancer compound ILX-651. To read article click here. DuPont acquires Antec International. To read article click here. MacroChem Corp. and Novartis AG form research collaboration on Novartis undisclosed compound. To read article click here. Novo Nordisk A/S receives approvable letter from the FDA for insulin detemir. To read article click here. Cellectricon AB and Axon Instruments form transfection technology collaboration. To read article click here. Dharmacon Inc. and Rosetta Inpharmatics LLC form antisense research collaboration. To read article click here.
-10/07/2003- Press Release: Specifically developed to meet the ultra high throughput needs of production scale array manufacture and core microarray facilities the QArraymax is the latest addition to the Genetix Ltd. microarrayer product range. To read press release click here. Press Release: European Drugs of Abuse Testing - Non-Healthcare Market. To read press release click here. Ilex Oncology Inc. initiates Phase II clinical trials of its anticancer tubulin-targeting candidate ILX-651. To read article click here. NPS Pharmaceuticals Inc. intiates studies to evaluate the use of teduglutide for Crohn's disease. To read article click here. Exelixis Inc.'s Plant Sciences unit identifies molecular target for Dow Chemical Co.'s AgroSciences unit. To read article click here. Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc.'s experimental rheumatoid arthritis IL-1 targeting drug IL-1 Trap fails Phase II clinical trials. To read article click here. Nymox Pharmaceutical Corp. announces new CNS drug candidate NXD-5150. To read article click here. Immtech International Inc. receives patents covering amidine-containing compounds as inhibitors of Imidazoline receptors. To read article click here. Berlex Pharmaceuticals discoveres chemokine receptor protein molecule CCR1 is present in the brains of patients with Alzheimer's Disease. To read article click here. Isis Pharmaceuticals Inc. receives a 3-year 6-million grant to develop sensors for biological agents. To read article click here. NuGEN Technologies Inc. receives SBIR grant to develop SPIA™ and Ribo-SPIA™ technologies for high sensitivity gene expression applications. To read article click here. SciClone Pharmaceuticals receives grant to develop an oral formulation for immune-system enhancer SCV-07. To read article click here.
-10/06/2003- FDA rejects Axcan Inc.'s drug application for Helicide for the eradication of Helicobacter pylori, bacteria involved in the development of ulcers. To read article click here. Epoch Biosciences Inc. terminates partnership with Amersham Biosciences |