Below is a look at some of the headlines for companies that made news in the healthcare sector on November 8, 2010.


After the bell Monday, shares of SciClone Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:SCLN) moved higher after the company reported financial results for the third quarter of 2010. As reported on October 12, 2010, product revenues from sales of ZADAXIN® were $22.8 million, an increase of 32.5% compared with revenues of $17.2 million for the same period last year. For the nine months ended September 30, 2010, product revenues were $61.5 million, compared with $54.3 million for the same period last year.

"We are pleased to announce further revenue growth this quarter driven by our China-based specialty pharmaceutical business' increased sales of ZADAXIN," commented Friedhelm Blobel, Ph.D., SciClone President and Chief Executive Officer. "We are also delighted that our development activities received support from four grants from the U.S. Department of Treasury's Therapeutic Discovery Project Program, which amount to close to $1 million. With these additional funds we continue to maintain an even stronger balance sheet that will support our strategic goals of growing the company through in-licensing and product acquisitions and advancing our biotechnology portfolio."

The company also raised its full year outlook, forecasting a profit of 41 cents to 46 cents a share, on revenue of $82-$85 million. The previous forecast was looking at a profit of 31 cents to 35 cents a share.

After jumping 27 cents or 8% during Monday trading, shares of Sciclone rose another 24 cents or 6.58% to $3.89 in the extended session.

Genzyme Corp. (NASDAQ:GENZ) announced after the market close Monday that it has responded to a letter sent earlier today by Sanofi-Aventis relating to its unsolicited tender offer. Genzyme’s response reiterates the unanimous view of its board of directors that the $69-per-share offer price is not an appropriate starting point for discussions because it dramatically undervalues the company.

Earlier Monday:

Shares of Biotel, Inc. (BTEL.OB) soared 148% today after CardioNet, Inc. (NASDAQ:BEAT), a leading wireless medical technology company with an initial focus on the diagnosis and monitoring of cardiac arrhythmias, announced today that the Company entered into a definitive merger agreement to acquire all of the outstanding shares of Biotel for $11 million, or $3.84 per share, before adjustments for working capital. In connection with the merger agreement, the parties entered into a settlement agreement to dismiss the outstanding litigation between them, which will be effective as of the close of the merger.

Biotel and CardioNet were close to a similar deal in April 2009. That deal, which was valued at $14 million, ultimately fell apart in July of that year, leading the two companies to litigation.

The acquisition of Biotel, and the addition of its Braemar subsidiary’s wireless event monitor to the Company’s product portfolio, enhances CardioNet’s position in the field of wireless medicine. The acquisition is also expected to provide entry into the clinical services market through Biotel’s subsidiary, Agility Centralized Research Services. Agility provides event, Holter and twelve-lead ECG monitoring services to the medical device and pharmaceutical industries as well as to contract research and academic research organizations worldwide.

Biotel closed the day at $3.72, up $2.22 on the day.

Shares of Aastrom Biosciences, Inc. (Nasdaq:ASTM), continued to rise after the leading developer of expanded autologous cellular therapies for the treatment of severe cardiovascular diseases, today reported operating results for the quarter ended September 30, 2010.

"This is an exciting time for Aastrom. We have made significant progress in our late-stage clinical development programs. We received Fast Track designation, and submitted documents in support of a special protocol assessment (SPA) for our Phase 3 CLI program. We also established a new partnership with ATEK Medical that will enable us to grow and further advance our cell cassette manufacturing capabilities. Finally, we strengthened our management team and Board with industry veterans who will provide important counsel as we move forward," said Tim Mayleben, president and CEO of Aastrom Biosciences.

Aastrom will present data from an interim analysis of its Phase 2b RESTORE-CLI clinical trial at a VEITHsymposium(TM) non-CME satellite session on November 18 at 1:00 p.m. (ET).

Shares of Aastrom surged 57 cents or 20% to $3.40.

Athersys, Inc. (Nasdaq:ATHX) announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has authorized commencement of a Phase II clinical trial evaluating the safety and efficacy of administration of MultiStem, Athersys' allogeneic investigational cell therapy product, for the potential treatment of ulcerative colitis. This Phase II clinical trial is expected to begin enrolling patients before the end of 2010 and is part of a collaboration between Athersys and Pfizer that the companies formed in December 2009 to develop MultiStem for the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

Biodel Inc. (Nasdaq:BIOD) announced today that the following abstracts describing recent findings from the company's product development programs have been accepted for poster presentation at the Tenth Annual Diabetes Technology Meeting in Bethesda, MD, November 11 and 12, 2010:

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) today announced that it has signed a definitive merger agreement to acquire Avid Radiopharmaceuticals, Inc., a privately held company developing novel molecular imaging compounds intended for the detection and monitoring of chronic human diseases. Avid's lead program in development is florbetapir F 18 (18F-AV-45), a molecular imaging agent under investigation for detecting the presence of amyloid plaque in the brain. Beta-amyloid plaque is a defining pathology of Alzheimer's disease. A marketing application for florbetapir has recently been submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The acquisition of Avid also provides Lilly with a diagnostics development platform covering several disease areas, including Parkinson's disease and diabetes.

Under the terms of the agreement, Lilly will acquire all outstanding shares of Avid for an upfront payment of $300 million, subject to adjustment based on existing cash on hand at closing. Avid stockholders will also be eligible for up to $500 million in additional payments contingent upon potential future regulatory and commercial milestones for florbetapir.

Shares of Neoprobe Corporation (OTCBB:NEOP.ob), fell 18% today after the company announced that it has entered into agreements with institutional investors for a registered direct offering of approximately 3.2 million shares of common stock at a price per share of $1.90 for gross proceeds of $6 million.

SpectraScience, Inc. (OTC.BB:SCIE) today announced that it has been awarded three different government grants, totaling $561,000, for the continued development of its cancer screening technologies. The grants are a result of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act which was signed into law by President Barack Obama on March 23, this year.

Also Monday:

Amicus Therapeutics (Nasdaq:FOLD) today announced financial results for the quarter ended September 30, 2010, provided an update on its product development pipeline, including its Phase 3 program with Amigal (migalastat HCl) for the treatment of Fabry disease and reaffirmed the financial strength of the Company.

Amgen (Nasdaq:AMGN) today announced the publication of results from a pivotal Phase 3 study of 2,046 patients which compared denosumab with Zometa® (zoledronic acid) in delaying or preventing skeletal-related events (SREs) in breast cancer patients with bone metastases.

Anadys Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq:ANDS), a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to improving patient care by developing novel medicines for the treatment of hepatitis C, today reported its financial results and program highlights for the third quarter ended September 30, 2010.

Arrhythmia Research Technology, Inc. (NYSE Amex: HRT) and its wholly owned subsidiary Micron Products, Inc. ("Micron") reported total revenue of $5,888,000 and net income of $120,000 for the quarter ended September 30, 2010 compared to total revenue of $5,457,000 and net income of $108,000 for the same quarter of 2009.

BioSpecifics Technologies Corp. (Nasdaq:BSTC) , a biopharmaceutical company developing first in class collagenase-based products, today announced its financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2010.

EnteroMedics Inc., (NASDAQ: ETRM), the developer of medical devices using neuroblocking technology to treat obesity and other gastrointestinal disorders, today announced clinical results from the Australian patient cohort of its EMPOWER™ study and from a caloric intake study of VBLOC® vagal blocking therapy delivered via the Maestro® System.

GeckoSystems Intl. Corp. (PINKSHEETS: GOSY) announced today that two different European organizations have expressed interest in conducting their own elder care robot trials using GeckoSystems' "life support" personal robot, the CareBot™.

GenVec, Inc. (Nasdaq:GNVC) today announced its financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2010.

Healthnostics, Inc. (PINKSHEETS:HNSS) announced the sale of its subsidiary, MedBioWeb Corp., to a consortium of investors for cash and publicly-traded securities valued at $2 million.

Imaging3™, Inc. (OTCBB: IMGG), developer of a breakthrough medical imaging device that produces 3D medical diagnostic images of virtually any part of the human body in real-time, today announced the hiring of the law firm McDermott Will & Emery as an FDA consultant.

MedLink (OTCBB: MLKNA), a leading provider of health information technology solutions, today announced that it has acquired the assets of MedAppz, LLC. of Wichita, Kansas, a leading Electronic Health Record (EHR) and practice management software provider.

Thought leaders from PAREXEL International Corporation (Nasdaq:PRXL), a leading global biopharmaceutical services provider, will address best practices in strategic partnering and requirements for successful global clinical development during the 9th Annual Partnerships in Clinical Trials Europe Conference.

OncoGenex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:OGXI) today announced the appointment of Michelle Burris to the position of executive vice president, operations and chief financial officer.

Oncothyreon Inc. (NASDAQ:ONTY) today reported a net loss for the quarter ended September 30, 2010 of $4.4 million or $0.17 per basic and diluted share, compared with a net loss of $6.0 million or $0.24 per basic and diluted share for the comparable period in 2009.

Ophthalmic Imaging Systems (OIS) (OTCBB: OISI), a leading digital imaging, image management, Electronic Medical Records (EMR) and Practice Management (PM) company, today reported financial results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2010, and provided an update on recent corporate developments.

Solutia Inc. (NYSE:SOA) announced today that it has sold its Perkalink® business and entered into a definitive agreement to sell select Primary Accelerators assets to LANXESS, a Germany-based specialty chemicals company.

TPC Group Inc. (Nasdaq:TPCG) today announced that it has commenced a modified "Dutch auction" tender offer to repurchase for cash shares of its common stock at a purchase price of not less than $24.50 nor greater than $27.50 per share.

UV Flu Technologies, Inc. (OTCBB: UVFT) is pleased to announce that shipments of its ViraTech UV-400 Air Purifier to its new European distributor Societe´ Nema Citizen of Paris, France have commenced.

VIVUS, Inc. (Nasdaq:VVUS) today announced that it has closed the sale of its MUSE business to Meda. Under the purchase agreement, Meda acquired the MUSE assets including the United States and foreign MUSE patents, existing inventory and the manufacturing facility located in Lakewood, New Jersey.

"Featured Content" profiles are meant to provide awareness of these companies to investors in the small-cap and growth equity community and should not in any way come across as a recommendation to buy, sell or hold these securities. BiomedReports is not paid or compensated by newswires to disseminate or report news and developments about publicly traded companies, but may from time to time receive compensation for advertising, data, analytics and investor relation services from various entities and firms. Full disclosures should be read in the 'About Us Section'.

---

Add this page to your favorite Social Bookmarking websites