.gen Technologies Inc.

A spectacular result for local biotech Isis Pharmaceuticals with their cholesterol candidate mipomercen. This trial saw an average 25% reduction in LDL for genetically suseptible patients, with some seeing reductions of 70 – 80%. That’s great news for Isis and marketing partner Genzyme.

http://www.fiercebiotech.com/story/isis-cholesterol-drug-hits-bulls-eye-pivotal-trial/2009-11-17?utm_medium=nl&utm_source=internal

A brilliant move from local biotech Orexigen – combine an existing obesity drug candidate with an antidepressant for a potential blockbuster coctail. Patients in this IIb (mid-late) stage trial lost a whopping 9.9% of body weight during the 24 week period, averaging 22 pounds. And I’ll bet they had fun doing it too!

http://www.fiercebiotech.com/story/orexigen-wows-analysts-iib-obesity-data/2009-09-30?utm_medium=nl&utm_source=internal

…or how to turn $32M into $170M in two years of the worst economic downturn since the depression. Seriously, it’s great to see a venture capital success story from the stodgy old world of software.

 http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/09/13/intuit-to-acquire-former-techcrunch50-winner-mint-for-170-million/

14 down, 86 to go – this week Bay Area gene sequencing provider Complete Genomics completed 14 of the 100 human genomes they committed to finish in the second half of this year. If they succeed, both the $5000 price point and the service provider business model could prove disruptive to sequencing tools businesses at San Diego firms Illumina and Life Technologies.

 http://www.xconomy.com/seattle/2009/09/09/ovp-company-does-14-genomes/

A good introduction to biologics vs small molecules, generics and biosimilars, and other pricing forces shaping the pharma/biotech marketplace.

 http://www.xconomy.com/national/2009/08/19/why-big-pharma-wants-to-re-invent-itself-to-be-like-big-biotech/

An update from Complete Gemonics on their commitment to bring a $5000 genome product to market this year; they’ve had delays, but now they have $45M in cash to build their production process. Expect sequencing tool manufacturers like San Diego area Life Technologies and Illumina to be watching this carefully.

 http://www.xconomy.com/national/2009/08/24/ovp-enterprise-partners-join-45m-round-for-complete-genomics-and-the-5000-genome/

Cash continues to flow to good biotech firms, three listed here. Of these, Auspex’s deuterium modification project – replacing strategic hydrogen molecules in a drug with deuterium to slow liver metabolism and excretion – looks particularly interesting, with the potential for far-reaching changes to the way small molecules are used and marketed as pharmaceuticals.

 http://www.xconomy.com/san-diego/2009/08/19/san-diego-biotech-startups-raise-new-cash-to-treat-anemia-heart-disease-and-more/

Another sign of recovery – local biotech Althea raises venture capital to keep investing in biomarkers and other diagnostics. Althea looks particularly interesting for their work on KRAS oncogenes.

 http://www.xconomy.com/san-diego/2009/08/21/altheadx-raising-6m/

Disappointing results for Amgen’s Vectibix, which succeeded at reducing tumors for colon cancer patients with normal KRAS genes but failed to help them live longer. This trial was a landmark for the “personalized medicine” approach of using genetic biomarkers to identify which patients can effectively use a drug, and the trial’s failure may cast the whole approach into question.

 http://www.xconomy.com/seattle/2009/08/17/amgen-personalized-trial-shows-mixed-result/