Yesterday, ZymoGenetics Inc (ZGEN) announced that its rheumatoid arthritis drug Atacicept, failed to reach its goal of controlling the disease in mid-stage studies. The data did not support a direct move to late-stage trials. However, the study confirmed the biological effect of Atacicept, and did not display any unexpected side effects. Atacicept is being developed in collaboration with Merck Serono S.A. (formerly Serono S.A.), an affiliate of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany.  Under this agreement, ZymoGenetics will co-promote Atacicept with Merck Serono in the US, while Merck Serono will promote Atacicept ex-US. In view of the disappointing results, Merck Serono has not decided whether the late-stage trials will be conducted. Atacicept is also being developed for other indications such as lupus and multiple sclerosis. As a reminder, Recombinant human thrombin (rhThrombin, Recothrom) was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on January 17, ...

Nutra Pharma Corp.

(Public, OTC:NPHC)

Step aside Morphine, the new king of chronic pain treatment has entered the building. With Nutra Pharma’s stock rising nearly 2300% year-to-date, its time we see what all the commotion is about. StocksHaven Investments takes a closer look at Nutra Pharma Corp., which believes will begin generating significant revenues within the next 12 months. The company has recently made waves throughout the biotech space with their recent “Best New Product” award winning drug, Cobroxin. The product is the first clinically proven treatment for stage 2 (moderate to severe) chronic pain, and was awarded the honour at the Efficient Collaborative Retail Marketing (ECRM) Conference in Miami, Florida. Winning this was no easy task, as a handful of well known companies attended the conference. The

...

Nutra Pharma Corp.

(Public, OTC:NPHC)

StocksHaven Investments has confirmed they are set to profile Nutra Pharma Corp. in the coming days, and states that they have also touched base with with Investor Relations in regards to scheduling a tentative conference call with the Chairman and CEO, Rik J Deitsch. Nutra Pharma has recently made waves within the biotech space with their recent “Best New Product” award winning drug, Cobroxin. The product is the first clinically proven treatment for stage 2 (moderate to severe) chronic pain, was awarded the honour at the Efficient Collaborative Retail Marketing (ECRM) Conference in Miami, Florida. The company is also developing treatments for Adrenomyeloneuropathy (AMN), HIV and Multiple Sclerosis (MS).

Over 50 million Americans suffer from ongoing chronic pain, but that’s all about to change. In August, a biotechnology company, Nutra Pharma, shook the pain world when

...

Nephros, Inc.

(OTC: NEPH)

A reader of StocksHaven Investments by the name of Michael Sklar has contributed the following article regarding Nephros, Inc. The article outlines one of the most undervalued BioPharma companies around, at only $1.08 PPS with three pending FDA decisions. If you are an avid investor of pre-PDUFA companies, StocksHaven Investments highly suggests you conduct some due diligence on this company, as its potential value greatly outweighs the risks involved. About: Nephros, Inc. (Nephros) is engaged primarily in the development of hemodiafiltration (HDF), products and technologies for treating patients with end stage renal disease (ESRD). The Company has three products in various stages of development in the HDF modality to deliver therapy to ESRD patients: OLpur MDHDF filter series (which it sells in various countries in Europe and consists of its MD190 and MD220 diafilters);

...

Obama's Healthcare Plan Is Big Bark, Small Bite by Jason Napodano, CFA

When President Obama's administration released the proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year, drug stocks quickly dropped. Fears of socialized medicine, or "Hillary-Care 2.0" turned investors away from the sector.

Was the drop warranted?

There are 6 key components to healthcare reform that could have a meaningful impact on pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies in the near future.Four of these are potentially negative, whereas the other 2 are potentially positive.

First Potential Negative: Increasing Pricing Rebates

The new proposal calls for an increase in Medicaid rebates from the current level of 15% to 21%. This equates to a 6% decrease in pricing power by all the companies in our universe into the Medicaid market. If we delve deeper into the ramification of this

...

MultiCell Technologies, Inc., an integrated biopharmaceutical company based in Rhode Island, announced today that it has entered into a cooperative research and development agreement with Maxim Biotech, Inc., a non-public Maryland-based medical research products company. The focus of the research will be the development of products for working with liver stem cells in the detection and treatment of liver cancer.

Although not one of the most common types of cancer in the U.S., liver cancer is still deadly. Nationwide there were over 21,000 new cases of primary liver cancer and intrahepatic bile duct cancer in 2008 according to the National Cancer Institute. Approximately 85% of those cases were fatal. Worldwide, liver cancer is more common due to the prevalence of hepatitis infection. Hepatocellular carcinoma, resulting from Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C, is the most common cancer in some parts of the world.

One of the problems in dealing with the disease

...

Sometime during the middle of the year, Genentech (DNA) shareholders are going to get $95 in cash for each share of Genentech stock they own. In total, nearly $47 billion in funds are expected to be returned to biotechnology investors.We've come up with an effective "basket approach" to re-deploy those funds back into the biotech sector -- in search of the next Genentech.Antisense Makes a Lot of SenseFor a little over $13, investors can pick up one share of Isis Pharmaceuticals (ISIS). Isis is the market leader in antisense technology.We've made it no secret in the past -- we are big fans of antisense. We view the drug discovery engine fueled by Isis' antisense technology very similar to the power of Genentech's recombinant DNA and monoclonal antibody technology breakthroughs of the 1980's. Antisense drugs are still in their infancy, ...

Highlights include Gilead Sciences (GILD), AstraZeneca (AZN), Sanofi-Aventis (SNY) and Genzyme (GENZ).Last week, President Obama nominated Margaret "Peggy" Hamburg, a former New York City Health Commissioner, to lead the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Hamburg's appointment must be confirmed by Congress. The president also named Baltimore Health Commissioner Joshua Sharfstein as FDA deputy commissioner.Hamburg earned her M.D. from Harvard Medical School and completed her training at the New York Hospital/Cornell University Medical Center. She did research in neuroscience at Rockefeller University in New York from 1985 to 1986, and in neuropharmacology at the National Institute of Mental Health in Bethesda, Maryland.From 1986 to 1988, she served in the U.S. Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, and from 1989 to 1990 she was assistant director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at NIH, where her ...

Merck and Shering-Plough Announce Merger AgreementThis morning Merck & Co. (MRK) announced plans to purchase Schering-Plough Corp. (SGP) for about $41.1 billion. The proposed purchase price equates to about $23.61 per Schering-Plough share, a 34% premium over Friday's closing price.The deal, which is being called a reverse-merger (as Schering-Plough will be the surviving entity), will be paid for with a combination of cash and stock. Schering-Plough shareholders will receive 0.5767 Merck shares and $10.50 for each Schering-Plough common share. Merck expects to fund the cash portion with $9.8 billion cash-on-hand and $8.5 billion in short-term financing ($3 billion 364-day bridge loan and $5.5 billion in revolving debt). The deal is expected to close in the 4th quarter of this year.The companies expect the deal to produce $3.5 billion in annual cost savings and to be slightly accretive to non-GAAP EPS in ...

Sinobiomed (SOBM) is a Chinese developer of genetically engineered recombinant protein drugs and vaccines. The company’s drugs treat diseases and ailments such as malaria, hepatitis, surgical bleeding, cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, diabetic ulcers and burns, and blood cell regeneration. Sinobiomed currently has 10 products: three on the market, four in clinical trials and three in research and development.

Sinobiomed, based in the bustling metropolis of Shanghai, could be on the forefront of the burgeoning Chinese biotechnology industry. China’s biotech industry is expected to continue its rapid expansion of 20 percent to 30 percent annually to $8.5 billion by 2010 helped by government contributions of $600 million annually. The Chinese pharmaceutical industry is expected to be the world’s 5th largest market by 2010.

Sinobiomed is considered a market leader in the area of recombinant protein drugs and recently acquired a distributor to facilitate a more expeditious sale of some its drugs. The

...