(High Point, N.C.) Banner Pharmacaps Inc. (“Banner”) has confirmed that its Abbreviated New Drug Application (“ANDA”) for Bexarotene 75 mg soft gelatin capsules, a generic version of Targretin, has been accepted for review by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Based upon available information, Banner believes that it is the first applicant to file an ANDA for Targretin containing a Paragraph IV certification under the provisions of the Hatch-Waxman Act, and expects to qualify for 180 days of generic marketing exclusivity upon FDA approval. (more…)

(Research Triangle Park, N.C.) Mustard Tree Instruments®, the leader in analytical instrumentation for the pharmaceutical manufacturing industry, is announcing two promotions of technical staff to bolster the company’s development of new analytical tools to redefine product testing regimen and avoid costly recalls. Brian Garrett, who joined Mustard Tree Instruments® as its Director of Analytics two years ago, has been named Chief Technical Officer.  Jared Peterson has been promoted to Software Architect and Manager where he will lead the company’s software development team. (more…)

(Research Triangle Park, N.C.) New research shows that virtually all drug research companies are planning to maintain or increase spending for market access activities in 2012. Budgeting may be fine-tuned and reallocated, but companies are cutting very little, if any, resources for these activities, the benchmarking study by Cutting Edge Information shows. In fact, most market access categories will see increased funding at more than 50 percent of drug companies next year. (more…)

(Research Triangle Park, N.C.) Mustard Tree Instruments®, a leader in analytical instrumentation for the pharmaceutical manufacturing industry, has released an upgrade to the software platform for its unique multi-variant testing device, the VTT 1000. The release comes as the two-year-old company relocates into larger offices in the technology-rich Research Triangle Park region of North Carolina. Mustard Tree Instruments® increased its footprint from 5,400 to 14,000 square feet of offices and R&D space with the move to accommodate projected growth and future product needs. (more…)

(Research Triangle Park, N.C.) ClinPharm Consulting, a specialized consulting firm offering a unique paradigm for empowering drug development pipelines, announced two major staffing changes to further integrate its scientifically sound PK-PD services with new approaches to reduce risk to drug development programs and maximize return on R&D investment. Chief Scientific Officer M. Alexander Shaw, Ph.D., has been promoted to Chief Operating Officer, while Bill Wargin, Ph.D., has taken over as the firm’s new Chief Scientific Officer. (more…)

(Morrisville, N.C.) Furiex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: FURX), a drug development collaboration company, announced that June Almenoff, M.D., Ph.D., president and chief medical officer of Furiex, is scheduled to present at the Wedbush 2011 Life Sciences Management Access Conference on Wednesday, August 17, 2011, at 1:50 p.m. ET at the Le Parker Meridien Hotel in New York, N.Y. Dr. Almenoff will provide a corporate overview and discuss Furiex’s therapeutic pipeline. (more…)

(Chapel Hill, N.C.) PharPoint Research, Inc., a leading drug development service provider offering biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies expertise in project management, clinical monitoring, data management and biostatistics services, announces that it is expanding and has relocated their Chapel Hill, NC operations to new office space on Miami Boulevard in Durham, NC in the heart of the Research Triangle Park. (more…)

(Washington, D.C.) The Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi), Anacor Pharmaceuticals, and Research Triangle Park, N.C.-based SCYNEXIS Inc. announced the successful completion of pre-clinical studies for the first new oral drug candidate discovered specifically to combat human African trypanosomiasis (HAT), also known as sleeping sickness. An article released today in the open-access journal PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, reveals the initial successful results of pre-clinical studies of the new compound, which will soon advance to Phase I human clinical trials. (more…)

(Raleigh, N.C.) BioPontis Alliance, LLC announced today that it has entered into a Translational-Technology Development agreement with Pfizer, Inc. The agreement is an element of BioPontis’ unique business model, which combines translational drug research with its own asset-based investment fund. Pfizer is the second leading pharmaceutical company to join the alliance structure at BioPontis, which is a first-in-kind vehicle for capturing innovative science from academia and doing the necessary work to potentially translate discoveries into drug candidates for further development by pharmaceutical companies such as Pfizer. (more…)

(Cary, N.C.) Trana Discovery, Inc., a drug discovery technology company, today announced the availability of a new High-Throughput Screening (HTS) assay capable of selectively identifying compounds that inhibit the reproduction of Staphylococcus aureus bacteria through a unique mechanism of action: the inhibition of the bacteria’s ability to use a specific transfer RNA (tRNA) in protein synthesis. The assay opens the door for the discovery and development of critically-needed treatments of Staphylococcus aureus infections. (more…)

(Research Triangle Park, N.C.) NCTechNews, North Carolina’s technology news source, will be blogging live from the BIO International Convention in Washington, D.C. June 27-30 to cover major trends affecting the life sciences community. The BIO International Convention is the largest global event of its kind, attracting the biggest names in biotech and featuring keynotes and sessions from key policymakers, scientists, CEOs, and celebrities, and the world’s largest biotechnology exhibition - the BIO Exhibition. (more…)

(Morrisville, N.C.) Furiex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: FURX) announced today that it has acquired full exclusive license rights to develop and commercialize the compound JNJ-Q2 under its existing development and license agreement with Janssen Pharmaceutica N.V. (Janssen). Furiex acquired these rights as a result of Janssen’s decision not to exercise its option under the agreement that gave Janssen the opportunity to continue development of JNJ-Q2. JNJ-Q2 is a novel broad-spectrum fluoroquinolone antibiotic. Furiex has completed a successful Phase II study for the treatment of acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections (ABSSSI) and is currently conducting a Phase II study in patients with community acquired bacterial pneumonia (CABP). (more…)