10/19/09

Verdezyne Gets $1.7M Grant

[Corrrected 10/22/09, 11:30 a.m. to show Coda Genomics instead of Coda Genetics] Carlsbad CA-based Verdezyne, a synthetic biology company previously known as CODA Genomics, says it has received a $1.7 million Small Business Technology Transfer grant to develop mutant gene libraries for its computational and bioinformatics programs. The venture-backed startup says identifying such genes will enhance the metabolic engineering tools needed in its biofuels and chemical production programs. The grant came through the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and Verdezyne says its libraries also will be useful to life sciences researchers.

10/15/09

La Jolla Pharmaceutical Sets Vote to Shut Down

La Jolla Pharmaceutical (NASDAQ: LJPC) has scheduled a special shareholder meeting for Oct. 30 to vote on a plan of liquidation and dissolution. If approved, the biotech expects to satisfy remaining debts and distribute remaining cash to shareholders. With estimated cash of $4.4 million at the end of August, the company estimates the distribution to the company’s 66 million shareholders would fall between 2.8 cents and 4.5 cents a share.

10/14/09

Illumina Countersues Life Technologies

San Diego-based Illumina (NASDAQ: ILMN) and its Solexa subsidiary are countersuing Carlbad, CA-based Life Technologies (NASDAQ: LIFE) and Applied Biosystems in a patent dispute over gene sequencing technologies. In a statement today, Illumina and Solexa denied allegations that Life and Applied Biosystems raise in their Sept. 21 lawsuit, assert that Applied Biosystems’ patents are invalid, and allege that Life is infringing on four Solexa patents. A Life spokesman says, “We believe these claims are without merit and we will vigorously defend our intellectual property.”

Semtek Raises $6.7M in Series B Round

San Diego’s Semtek Innovative Solutions has raised more than $6.7 million in a planned Series B round of $8 million, according to a recent regulatory filing. Semtek, which is commercializing technologies for preventing the theft of credit card data and identifying counterfeit credit cards, said earlier this month that VeriFone Holdings now owns a 19.9 percent stake in the company. Semtek’s founding investors and venture capital investors Venrock and RRE Ventures, which added to their investment in the round, will own the remaining 80.1 percent stake in Semtek.

10/13/09

Illumina licenses Orchid Cellmark DNA technology

San Diego’s Illumina (NASDAQ: [[ticker: ILMN]]) has licensed worldwide rights to commercially develop Orchid Cellmark’s proprietary single base nucleotide extension technology for forensics and diagnostics. Princeton, N.J.-based Orchid (NASDAQ: ORCH) is one of the largest providers of forensic DNA testing services used by the criminal justice system. Orchid says Illumina agreed to pay $850,000 upfront and up to $150,000 in milestone payments. Although Orchid retains the right to use its patents, Illumina received exclusive rights to sublicense the technology. Orchid will receive royalties on any such deals.

10/06/09

Gen-Probe Pays $60M for Prodesse

San Diego’s Gen-Probe (NASDAQ: GPRO), which uses nucleic acid testing of blood samples to diagnose human diseases, says it has agreed to pay $60 million in cash to acquire Prodesse, a privately held medical diagnostics company in Waukesha, WI. Gen-Probe says it could eventually pay as much as $85 million if Prodesse meets certain financial and regulatory milestones through 2011. Prodesse specializes in a type of molecular testing known as PCR (polymerase chain reaction) to develop reagents that rapidly identify certain types of respiratory viruses, intestinal bacteria, and other infectious microbes.

10/01/09

Neurocrine Cuts Office Costs

One-time biotech darling Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ: NBIX) says it is vacating one of two buildings at its headquarters campus to save $27 million a year. The company paid an immediate $4 million release fee to the landlord, and agreed to make certain rent payments and rent differential payments. Neurocrine has been struggling to regain its footing since 2006, when Pfizer pulled out a deal to develop a sleeping pill.

09/30/09

SD News Network Expanding to OC

Neil Senturia, the entrepreneur and investor who launched the San Diego News Network in March (and a Riverside news site in August), plans to debut a similar website in Orange County before the end of the year, according to a report on SDNN.  Senturia tells Forbes he also plans to raise $40 million over the next two years to create 40 news sites in cities throughout the United States and Canada. The San Diego News Network’s annual budget, which is less than $1 million, pays for 16 full-time employees, 23 freelancers, and 16 bloggers.

09/29/09

VMIX Raises $2M

San Diego-based VMIX, which specializes in video hosting technology and services, has raised $2 million in additional venture capital, according to a regulatory filing with the SEC today. When I checked in with VMIX about two months ago, CEO Mike Glickenhaus was in the second year of heading a new VMIX business strategy that’s focused on serving media companies. The company previously raised $21.5 million in venture funding from JK&B Capital, Mission Ventures, ATA Ventures, and Enterprise Partners. A spokesman says all four participated in the latest round as well.

09/21/09

Novatel to Tap $125M as Needed

San Diego’s Novatel Wireless (NASDAQ: NVTL), which provides 3G wireless PC cards and related broadband technologies, says it has filed a universal shelf registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission. When approved, Novatel will be able to offer and sell up to $125 million of equity, debt or other types of securities as needed. Novatel says terms of any future offering would be established at the time of the offering and would be subject to market conditions and approval by the company’s board of directors.

V-Vehicle Begins Work on Plant

San Diego-based V-Vehicle has begun work intended to double the size of a former GM parts plant in Monroe, LA, according to The News Star newspaper. David Hitchcock, V-Vehicle’s director of assembly operations, told the newspaper that construction of the 400,000-square-foot plant is expected to be completed in less than a year, which would be mid-2010. The startup carmaker, which has venture funding from Google and Kleiner Perkins, has announced plans to manufacture a greener and more fuel-efficient automobile.

09/18/09

SAIC Gets Robot Sub Contract

The Naval Undersea Warfare Center in Newport, RI, has awarded a contract worth up to $19 million to San Diego-based Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) (NYSE: SAIC). Under the contract, which SAIC announced today, the company will perform training, modeling, simulation, and other support services for robot submarine research programs at the Navy’s Autonomous Undersea Vehicle Engineering Facility.

09/16/09

$75M Financing for Neurocrine

San Diego’s Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ: NBIX says it has arranged $75 million in available financing under a three-year agreement with Kingsbridge Capital, a private investment group. Neurocrine, which is developing drugs for treating endometriosis, anxiety, diabetes, and other diseases, says it is not obligated to draw on any of the available financing. The agreement enables Neurocrine to sell shares of newly issued stock to Kingsbridge, which will pay a discount of 5 to 10 percent from the stock’s market price.

09/14/09

AirHop Raises $1M, Adds Execs

AirHop Communications, a San Diego startup that develops systems software for high-performance 4G wireless networks, says it has raised $1 million in funding from wireless industry veterans. AirHop, which was founded in 2007 by Yan Hui, also named Garrett Choi as chief operating officer, Jerry Hall as vice president of marketing and Anand Parikh as vice president of business development. AirHop’s software is intended to facilitate the efficient delivery of wireless services in next-generation LTE networks with self-organized networking, inter-cell coordination, real-time provisioning, and efficient frequency reuse.

09/10/09

MaxLinear Advances Chips for TV

MaxLinear, a Carlsbad, CA, fabless semiconductor company developing broadband radio-frequency designs that enable TV on any device, is introducing two tuner-and-demodulator designs that provide a single-chip solution for all terrestrial TV applications. In a related announcement, MaxLinear says its MxL101SF design was selected by Sigma Designs for its latest hybrid set top box, which combines digital TV and Internet television capabilities.

09/09/09

Anadys Starts Hep C Trial

San Diego-based Anadys Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: ANDS) said today it has started a mid-stage clinical trial of its lead drug candidate, ANA598, for patients with hepatitis C. The study will enroll 90 patients on the drug or a placebo, in combination with the standard treatments—pegylated interferon alpha and ribavirin. Initial results on the anti-viral activity of the Anadys drug should be available by year-end, with more follow-up data to come in 2010, the company said. This ambitious trial design is part of what has brought Anadys back from some dark days earlier this year.

09/08/09

Facet Rejects Biogen Takeover Bid

Facet Biotech (NASDAQ: FACT), the Redwood City, CA-based biotech company, said today that its board has rejected Biogen Idec’s hostile takeover offer of $14.50 a share, or about $355 million. The two companies are partners in developing daclizumab, an antibody for multiple sclerosis. Facet says Biogen is seeking to buy full rights to the drug after it passed a key hurdle in development which increased its value. Investors are wagering that Cambridge, MA-based Biogen Idec (NASDAQ: BIIB) will have to raise its bid to buy Facet, as they drove shares up to more than $16 today.

09/03/09

Ailing Metabasis Hires Advisory Firm

San Diego’s Metabasis Therapeutics (NASDAQ: MBRX), which warned in May that it might have to cease operations, says it has hired a financial advisory firm to help the company evaluate its strategic options. Metabasis said earlier this week that Mark Erion, the company’s CEO, chief scientific officer, and director, has resigned to join Merck & Co. as a vice president overseeing work on diabetes and obesity. Erion was among a handful of executives remaining at Metabasis, which named chairman David Hale as executive chairman.

09/02/09

BrightScope Raises $2M

San Diego-based BrightScope, a startup that analyzes and rates the performance of 401k plans, says it has raised $2 million in a Series B funding round led by an angel investment from Jim Caccavo of Steelpoint Capital Partners. BrightScope was founded two years ago as an independent data analytics firm that reviews and rates 401k plans, which have become a crucial method of personal saving for retirement. BrightScope says its rating engine reviews more than 200 criteria for each plan to calculate a numerical score. Caccavo, a former CEO of Tickets.com, will join BrightScope’s board.

MabVax Raising $4 Million

MabVax Therapeutics, a San Diego biotech developing novel vaccines and human antibodies for the treatment of cancer, plans to raise $4 million from investors, according to a recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company, which has raised about $500,000 so far, was founded in 2006 to develop polyvalent versions of existing monovalent vaccines against small cell lung cancer, sarcoma, melanoma, and other cancers. MabVax says it plans to develop fully human monoclonal antibody products at the same time.