Industry News
Greenpeace accuses CSIRO of suppressing GE reports
Greenpeace Australia-Pacific has accused the CSIRO of suppressing several reports on environmental risks associated with genetically engineered crops, and alleged the Office of the Gene Technology Regulator was failing to acknowledge and assess “serious hazards” before granting GE crop licenses. [ + ]
US partnership to speed up corn genome sequencing
Biotechnology companies have agreed to make their data public in a bid to advance a project to decoding the genetic structure of corn several years ahead of schedule. [ + ]
Tissue Therapies closes IPO early, oversubscribed
Brisbane-based Tissue Therapies looks set to list on the ASX as early as this Friday, after closing its AUD$3.5 million initial public offering two weeks early, as the offer was oversubscribed. [ + ]
New research shows how rust robs plant cells
CSIRO Plant Industry researchers have identified the molecular skeleton key that allows rust fungi -- ubiquitous pathogens of cereal and horticultural crops around the world -- to burgle plant cells. [ + ]
Axon returns to profit, ships new products
Austerity measures have borne fruit at US-based Axon Instruments (ASX:AXN) -- the company's results, announced yesterday, trumpeted a profit after tax of US$1.1 million, compared to a US$9.5 million loss in 2002. [ + ]
Making noise about gene silencing
Advances in an area widely regarded in scientific circles as the 'next big thing' - RNA interference (RNAi) - will be the major focus of a CSIRO-hosted conference on the Gold Coast in September.
[ + ]Regulatory: AstraZeneca, Praecis
AstraZeneca has received final European marketing approval for its new breast cancer drug Faslodex, following a recommendation from a European Union expert committee in November. [ + ]
US State Department promotes biotech, garners critics
The US government has launched a new web site about biotech crops as part of a special taxpayer-funded project to promote such crops worldwide -- a move criticised by some consumer and farm groups. [ + ]
Investors wary as Ventracor trading recommences
Investors were spooked by uncertainty at Ventracor today, with shares dropping 6 per cent to AUD$1.50 by press time as the artificial heart maker (ASX:VCR) recommenced trading following Friday's trading halt. [ + ]
IPO watch: CoTherix, Momenta, Cytokinetics, Basilea
Biopharmaceutical company CoTherix has filed with US regulators for an initial public offering worth an estimated US$70 million. [ + ]
Avastin spurs Genentech to forecast profit growth
San Francisco-based Genentech says it expects annual earnings growth of 20 per cent for the next seven years on strong sales of cancer drugs, including the new medicine Avastin, and treatments for auto-immune disorders. [ + ]
Psivida earns new European patent
Perth-based biotech-nanotech company pSivida (ASX:PSD) announced today that its UK subsidiary PsiMedica has been granted the latest in a series of European patents on its proprietary biocompatible-biodegradable silicon technology, BioSilicon. [ + ]
Stem cell research offers hope for baldness cure
Hair follicles may carry a special type of cell that has the potential to grow into various types of tissue, a finding that could lead scientists closer to a cure for baldness, according to US dermatologists. [ + ]
Trial report sparks Ventracor trading halt
Ventracor (ASX:VCR) called a trading halt this morning in the wake of a newspaper report the company said "could be misinterpreted" to suggest a pilot trial of its VentrAssist heart device would be delayed. [ + ]
Prima could net $20m in deal with Canada's Biomira
Commercialisation proceeds apace at Prima Biomed, which today announced an agreement with Canadian cancer vaccine specialist Biomira. [ + ]
