North Bay Business Journal

BioMarin acquires LEAD Therapeutics

NOVATO — BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (Nasdaq: BMRN) said it plans to acquire LEAD Therapeutics Inc. of San Bruno in a stock deal worth $18 million up front and up to $97 million as the drug is submitted for government review and later released.

TriVascular gets $30 million Series B

SANTA ROSA –TriVascular Inc. announced today it has raised $30 million in a Series B offering. The funds will take the maker of abdominal and thoracic stent graft systems into clinical testing.

The Series B financing is a continuation of Series A funding of $65 million in 2008 from investors New Enterprise Associates, Delphi Ventures, MPM Capital and Kearny Venture Partners.

BioMarin acquires Huxley Pharmaceuticals

NOVATO — BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (NASDAQ: BMRN) announced today that it has acquired Huxley Pharmaceuticals inc. for $15 million, with further payments to Huxley shareholders of up to $50 million if certain milestones are reached.

BioMarin, doubling manufacturing capacity, sees quarterly earnings decline

NOVATO — BioMarin Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: BMRN) said today investments made to double manufacturing capacity caused it to post lower second-quarter profit as operating expenses jumped 32 percent during the quarter.

Raptor Pharmaceuticals to merge with TorreyPines Therapeutics

NOVATO – Raptor Pharmaceuticals Corp. has agreed to merge with TorreyPines Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq: TPTX), giving the Novato developer of drug-targeting platforms and mid- to late-stage clinical development candidates a listing on Nasdaq. The merged company will most likely retain the Raptor name, executive team and Novato location.

Medtronic CardioVascular receives FDA’s ‘humanitarian’ approval for heart valve

SANTA ROSA – Santa Rosa-based Medtronic CardioVascular received unanimous approval today from an FDA panel to grant “Humanitarian Use Device” status to its Melody Transcatheter Pulmonary Valve, a decision that will expedite FDA approval of the device.

Novato’s Buck Institute gets $970,000 in stimulus

NOVATO, July 16, 2009 — The Buck Institute for Age Research has been awarded $970,000 from the National Institutes of Health as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act stimulus funding, the first installment, it hopes, of more awards.
The two-year grant will fund research on the function of newborn neurons in aged brains following [...]

Device maker TriVascular2 re-emerges with staff of 150

SANTA ROSA – TriVascular2’s steady growth – the medical device maker has 150 employees now and will add another 20 before this year is out – is not just an anomaly in the down economy. It’s a tribute to the belief its founders, workers and investors have in the products under development there.

Medical supply giant leases ex-telecom space

PETALUMA – Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE: TMO), the Massachusetts-based medical supply giant, is consolidating its operations in Petaluma into a former telecom manufacturing space.

Solano economic group to explore future of life sciences Feb. 26

FAIRFIELD – The life sciences industry in Solano County and how to expand it will be the topic at the Feb. 26 Solano Economic Development Corp. meeting.