(Raleigh, N.C.) Salix Pharmaceuticals, Ltd. (NASDAQ:SLXP) today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Priority Review designation for the Company’s New Drug Application (NDA) for crofelemer 125 mg tablets for the proposed indication for the control and symptomatic relief of diarrhea in patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) on anti-retroviral therapy (ART). (more…)

(Research Triangle Park, N.C.) Tranzyme Pharma (Nasdaq:TZYM), has announced that Vipin K. Garg, Ph.D., President and CEO, will present at the BIO CEO & Investor Conference taking place at the Waldorf Astoria in New York, NY February 13-14, 2012. Tranzyme’s presentation is scheduled for Monday, February 13th at 4:00 pm ET in the Conrad Room. (more…)

(Chapel Hill, N.C.) Cempra (CEMP), a Chapel Hill pharmaceutical firm launched in 2006, went public on the Nasdaq late last week raising $50.4 million in an 8.4 million share offering at $6 per share, well below its target range of $11 to $13. The company, with two oral antibiotics that have completed mid-stage clinical trials, had originally hoped to raise about $72 million by selling 6 million shares. (more…)

(Research Triangle Park, N.C.) Mustard Tree Instruments®, continuing to lead the way in developing innovative solutions to evolving pharmaceutical and chemical manufacturing challenges, announced today that CEO Todd Blonshine will be presenting on quality control issues at Pittcon 2012 in Orlando, Fla. on Sunday, March 11. Blonshine will be the first speaker participating in the High-Throughput Chemical Analysis session track beginning at 1:00 p.m., discussing an emerging multi-variant approach to obtaining immediate, unambiguous results from drug product samples using a combination of machine vision and Raman spectroscopy. (more…)

(Research Triangle Park, N.C.) Tranzyme Pharma (Nasdaq:TZYM) today announced that it received an additional net $9.3 million in term loan proceeds through an amendment and restatement of its existing debt financing facility with Oxford Finance LLC and Horizon Technology Finance Corporation (Nasdaq:HRZN). (more…)

(Cary, N.C.) Cornerstone Therapeutics (NASDAQ: CRTX), a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on acquiring, developing and commercializing proprietary products for the hospital and respiratory markets, announced a new analysis published in the eFirst Pages section of the Pediatrics website reporting significant benefits in mortality rate and the need for redosing when treating neonatal respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) with Cornerstone’s CUROSURF® (poractant alfa) Intratracheal Suspension1. The objective of the independently performed meta-analysis was to compare the efficacy of CUROSURF versus Survanta® (beractant) and Infasurf® (calfactant) with respect to clinical outcomes among preterm infants with RDS. The analysis was led by Neetu Singh, M.D., at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center. (more…)

(Research Triangle Park, N.C.) Mustard Tree Instruments®, continuing to lead the way in developing innovative solutions to evolving manufacturing challenges, has added to its game-changing toolset for pharmaceutical and chemical applications.  Agile, sensitive chemical identification and composition testing of raw and blended materials can now be done online with the brand-new Verifier Process System 1000 (VPS-1000). (more…)

(Morrisville, N.C.) Furiex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: FURX) will release its fourth quarter and full year 2011 financial results on Tuesday, February 21, 2012, after the market closes. The earnings news release will be available on the Furiex website at www.furiex.com. (more…)

(Morrisville, N.C.) Full-service advertising and branding firm The Marketing Machine recently finished an ambitious, innovative rebranding project for Danadams Pharmaceuticals Industry Limited to help overcome literacy and distribution challenges with patients in Ghana, South Africa. The firm utilized its award-winning design services team to redesign all of Danadams branding and packaging using intuitive visual icons and color elements to indicate the type of drugs and dosages and better display information more clearly and legibly. Danadams Pharmaceuticals is currently the only manufacturer of anti-retroviral drugs in West Africa. It also manufactures and sells anti-malarials, antibiotics, analgesics and other opportunistic infection drugs for the West African market. (more…)

(Research Triangle Park, N.C.) Mustard Tree Instruments®, a leader in analytical instrumentation for the pharmaceutical manufacturing industry, has launched a YouTube channel, YouTube.com/MustardTreeTV, to shine the spotlight on quality control issues leading to drug recalls and shortages in the United States and new applications of existing technology which can help solve this devastating problem. Additionally, the company has updated its seminal website, www.mustardtree.com, with new interactive features and information about its industry-renowned leadership team; at-line instrumentation products; and an overview of Raman spectroscopy. (more…)

(Raleigh, N.C.) BioDelivery Sciences International, Inc. (Nasdaq: BDSI) today announced the signing of a worldwide license and development agreement with Endo Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: ENDP) for the exclusive rights to develop and commercialize BEMA Buprenorphine for the treatment of chronic pain.  BEMA Buprenorphine utilizes BDSI’s patented and proven BioErodible MucoAdhesive (BEMA) technology to deliver the opioid analgesic buprenorphine. (more…)

(Research Triangle Park, N.C.) Viamet Pharmaceuticals, Inc., announced today that dosing has begun in a Phase 1/2 clinical trial of VT-464, an oral, potent and lyase-selective CYP17 inhibitor for the treatment of castration-refractory prostate cancer (CRPC). VT-464 is a novel, non-steroidal, small molecule discovered by Viamet Pharmaceuticals using its proprietary Metallophile® Technology. In preclinical models VT-464 preferentially inhibits the lyase reaction of the CYP17 enzyme over the hydroxylase reaction, which differentiates it from approved agents such as abiraterone acetate. (more…)