Antisense Therapeutics has initiated its first Phase I clinical trial for antisense inhibitor ATL1102, which is being trialled as a treatment for multiple sclerosis. [ + ]

Hundreds of Australians have endured misery and debilitating arthritic pain in the joints after being infected by mosquito-borne Ross River Virus. The symptoms can last for months, and recovered patients can relapse years later. [ + ]

Meditech Research (ASX:MRL) has announced its half-year results, reporting a decreased loss of AUD$1.06 million after tax compared to the same period last year. [ + ]

Investment bank Peregrine Corporate has upped its stake in Prima BioMed to around 14 per cent on the back of a AUD$7.2 million share placement of 11.62 million ordinary shares. [ + ]

Artificial heart company Ventracor (ASX:VCR) has taken advantage of its market popularity to raise AUD$33.75 million in an unexpected placement to institutional and sophisticated investors in Australia, Europe and Asia. [ + ]

Shares in AGT Biosciences (ASX:AGT) soared more than 72 per cent to close at AUD$0.62 on Monday after a new study showed one of its licensed target genes was strongly linked to the development of insulin resistance. [ + ]

Compumedics CEO David Burton has received an Entrepreneur of the Year award from global accounting firm Ernst and Young. [ + ]

Former Sirtex Medical CEO Dr Colin Sutton has joined the board of Gradipore as a non-executive director. [ + ]

Prof Jennifer Marshall Graves' long-awaited Kangaroo Genome Project is up and hopping after last week's federal government announcement of funding for six new Australian Research Council Centres. [ + ]

In a dramatic turnaround from last year's $14.4 million loss, Amrad (ASX:AML) has posted an inaugural after-tax profit of AUD$7.4 million for the 2002-2003 financial year, which includes $1.2 million operating profit in addition to the one-off profit realised from the sale of Amrad's Richmond property. [ + ]

Metabolic Pharmaceuticals (ASX:MBP) is today heralding a recently finalised exercise of listed options had brought the company AUD$12 million. [ + ]

EpiTan (ASX:EPT) has raised nearly AUD$7.4 million in a share placement of 14.5 million shares priced at $0.51, providing cash reserves to see the company through to the end of 2004. [ + ]

Melbourne-based drug development and manufacturing company Institute of Drug Technology Australia (ASX:IDT) has posted record revenues of AUD$25.8 million for the 2002-2003 financial year. [ + ]

Genetic Technologies (ASX:GTG) has raised AUD$10 million in a share placement to institutional and professional investors, managed by Sydney boutique investment bank EG Capital. [ + ]

Gene silencing specialist Benitec has denied rumours that it is to relocate from its IMB (Institute for Molecular Bioscience) base in Queensland to the US, claiming that North American media misreported the situation. [ + ]