Category: Boston

MicroRNA Leaps Ahead: Alnylam-Isis Venture, Regulus, Shows Its Drug Works in Animals With Heart Failure

The scientific community, and Wall Street, will be buzzing this week about microRNA. That’s because a Carlsbad, CA-based company called Regulus Therapeutics and its collaborators have suggested for the first time that a drug that blocks microRNA can prevent and treat heart failure in animals. Regulus, a joint venture of Cambridge, MA-based Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: … Continue reading “MicroRNA Leaps Ahead: Alnylam-Isis Venture, Regulus, Shows Its Drug Works in Animals With Heart Failure”

LocaModa Links Facebook to Times Square Jumbotron

Cambridge, MA-based LocaModa, whose software lets people using cell phones and computers connect with public displays in indoor and outdoor locations, said today that it has launched a multiplayer, cross-platform word game called Jumbli. The Web- and text-messaging based game allows players on social networking sites such as Facebook to compete with audiences interacting with … Continue reading “LocaModa Links Facebook to Times Square Jumbotron”

Nuance Makes New Bid for Zi

Nuance Communications (NASDAQ:[[ticker:NUAN]]), the Burlington, MA-based speech recognition powerhouse, today announced an offer to buy Zi Corporation (NASDAQ:[[ticker:ZICA]]), a Calgary, Canada-based provider of software to speed text entry on mobile devices, for 40 cents per share or $20 million in cash, which is a 38 percent premium on the closing price of Zi common stock … Continue reading “Nuance Makes New Bid for Zi”

The Roots of Power: How Voltree is Tapping Tree Energy to Save Forests

Stella Karavas, CEO of Voltree Power, sounded a little tired of talking about trees when I reached her last week. Seems the Canton, MA, company has been inundated by press inquiries since CNN ran a spot on its tree-powered forest fire monitors last year—a flood that started all over again after MIT’s official news site … Continue reading “The Roots of Power: How Voltree is Tapping Tree Energy to Save Forests”

Plunging Oil Prices Require Alternative Fuel Startups to Take a Long View

Historic high prices for petroleum over the past decade have stoked a surge of interest in alternative fuels and renewable energy, and dozens of startups have been formed to develop new technologies in the field.Now this year’s extraordinary spike in crude oil prices is being matched by an equally spectacular swoon. Crude oil prices fell to … Continue reading “Plunging Oil Prices Require Alternative Fuel Startups to Take a Long View”

Resolvyx Closes in on Clinical Trials, Radius Health Reels in $15M, Luke Zeros in on Public Biotechs’ Bottom Line, & More Boston-Area Life Sciences News

All was far from quiet on the Boston-area life sciences front this past week. Behold… —Luke did a massive analysis of the finances of public Boston-area life sciences firms, looking at how much money each one has in the bank—and how fast that cash is going up the chimney. Bottom line: Boston companies are overall … Continue reading “Resolvyx Closes in on Clinical Trials, Radius Health Reels in $15M, Luke Zeros in on Public Biotechs’ Bottom Line, & More Boston-Area Life Sciences News”

Microsoft Cuts Staff at FAST Search Division

Xconomy received a report last week that the Oslo, Norway-based FAST Search division of Microsoft, which has a 180-person outpost in Needham, MA, and a smaller office in New York, had laid off 25 people in its U.S. offices. We have now confirmed that report, and have learned that 10 of the affected staff members … Continue reading “Microsoft Cuts Staff at FAST Search Division”

Battery, Charles River Fund Flat-Rate Wireless Network for Northeast

Battery Ventures of Menlo Park, CA, and Waltham, MA, said today that it is the lead investor in a $100 million venture round for Pocket Communications Northeast, a new cellular network that will offer flat-rate, unlimited-use calling plans to wireless subscribers in parts of Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New York. Charles River Ventures, which also has … Continue reading “Battery, Charles River Fund Flat-Rate Wireless Network for Northeast”

Sky Cowboys: Cambridge’s Aurora Studies Ways to Lasso Robot Planes In Flight

Here’s an idea worthy of Tom Swift: Send a big, long-range unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) such as Northrup Grumman’s Global Hawk into a battle area with a flock of smaller, bird-sized robot planes in its belly. Jettison the baby planes for short-range, low-altitude, low-speed reconnaissance missions, then lower a cable to recapture them, one by … Continue reading “Sky Cowboys: Cambridge’s Aurora Studies Ways to Lasso Robot Planes In Flight”

Xconomy Closes Second Financing Round

Xconomy has closed the first tranche of its second financing round, we are extremely pleased to announce. Return investor CommonAngels, the premier angel group in New England, led the round. New investor LaunchCapital—a small (and very astute) early-stage venture fund with offices in Cambridge, MA; New Haven, CT; and Palo Alto—also participated. And they were … Continue reading “Xconomy Closes Second Financing Round”

Hold on Tight: Biotech Execs Predict Hard Times for Industry as Cash Dwindles

Most biotech companies live and die based on how much cash they have in the bank to fuel drug development. So we’ve combed through the cash statements of more than 70 publicly traded life sciences companies in Xconomy’s home cities of Boston, San Diego, and Seattle, to see just how well-positioned the local clusters are … Continue reading “Hold on Tight: Biotech Execs Predict Hard Times for Industry as Cash Dwindles”

Biotech Survival Index: Boston Life Sciences Companies Brace for Long, Hard Winter

Boston is the biggest center of life sciences in the Xconomy network, and by our analysis, the Bay State’s biotech sector is also the best equipped to survive the economic crisis. I reached this conclusion by combing through public company filings of more than 70 life sciences companies in Boston, Seattle, and San Diego. For … Continue reading “Biotech Survival Index: Boston Life Sciences Companies Brace for Long, Hard Winter”

Xconomy Garners Series B Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=3233d7cf-5c5a-43c4-b6eb-c8d7a23bffca&Preview=1 Date 11/25/2008 Company Name Xconomy Mailing Address 10 Rogers St. Cambridge, MA 02142 Company Description Xconomy is dedicated to providing business and technology leaders with timely, insightful, close-to-the-scene information about the local personalities, companies, and technological trends that best exemplify today’s high-tech economy. Our goal is to become the authoritative voice … Continue reading “Xconomy Garners Series B Round”

Genzyme Asks FDA To Approve Drug for Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Genzyme said today it has applied for FDA approval of clofarabine (Clolar) for patients over age 60 with acute myeloid leukemia, in addition to its existing use for acute lymphoblastic leukemia. The Cambridge,MA-based biotech company (NASDAQ: [[ticker:GENZ]]) has asked for an expedited six-month review of the new use, which means the treatment could be approved … Continue reading “Genzyme Asks FDA To Approve Drug for Acute Myeloid Leukemia”

Ambient Raises $8M from Vicis

Ambient (OTC:[[ticker:ABTG]]), a Newton, MA-based provider of software and services to help electrical utilities use existing power lines to deliver IP-based services, reports it has raised $8 million from Vicis Capital Master Fund. The capital, which brings Vicis’ total investment in Ambient to $23.5 million, is intended to fund operations and future growth.

Panacos to Repay $20M Loan

Panacos Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:[[ticker:PANC]]), a Watertown, MA-based developer of antiviral drugs for HIV, says that it has agreed to repay $17.9 million in outstanding principal, interest, and fees on a $20 million loan granted to the firm in June 2007. The repayment, which Panacos expected to execute today, follows lender Hercules Technology Growth Capital’s (NASDAQ:[[ticker:HTGC]]) claim … Continue reading “Panacos to Repay $20M Loan”

Casual Games May Be Recession-Proof; Companies Report Record Revenues, and Some Surprising Trends

“Countercyclical” is a word you’re probably going to hear a lot in the coming months—from entrepreneurs professing that their businesses are not only recession-proof, but will actually fare better during lean times. It’s a word that the leaders of the casual games industry, which has a strong presence in both Seattle and Boston, have been … Continue reading “Casual Games May Be Recession-Proof; Companies Report Record Revenues, and Some Surprising Trends”

Agios Pharmaceuticals Forges Ahead With Lab to Starve Cancer Cells

Agios Pharmaceuticals is moving full steam ahead. The company has moved into a new 21,000-square-foot space in Cambridge, MA, that it says is the world’s largest lab devoted to studying how to throw a wrench into the overactive metabolism of cancer cells that normally allows them to grow and thrive. It has also recruited five … Continue reading “Agios Pharmaceuticals Forges Ahead With Lab to Starve Cancer Cells”

Antigenics Cancer Vaccine, In Small Study, Helps Brain Tumor Patients Live Longer

(Update: Antigenics stock surged 13 percent today after this news appeared.) Antigenics is offering a glimmer of hope for patients with terminal brain tumors. The Lexington, MA-based biotech company said its experimental treatment, designed to stimulate the immune system to fight cancer, helped a small group of patients live about four months longer than their … Continue reading “Antigenics Cancer Vaccine, In Small Study, Helps Brain Tumor Patients Live Longer”

In Praise of Senator Ted Kennedy For His Contributions to Biomedical Science

Earlier this month, I had the tremendous honor of being asked to discuss Senator Ted Kennedy’s remarkable contributions to biomedical science at an event celebrating The Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate that was organized by The Massachusetts healthcare and life sciences communities. Following are my comments: As I studied the record … Continue reading “In Praise of Senator Ted Kennedy For His Contributions to Biomedical Science”

SunEthanol Picks Up $25M, New Name; Infinity Pharma Pairs with Purdue Pharma; In-Q-Tel Taps Two Local Firms, & More Boston-Area Deals News

Half a dozen Boston-area tech and life sciences startups have something to be thankful for heading into this week’s holiday, all of them having managed to close venture deals in a very tricky environment. A few public companies cut some interesting deals as well. —ReGen Power Systems, a Salem, MA-based firm developing a power-producing external … Continue reading “SunEthanol Picks Up $25M, New Name; Infinity Pharma Pairs with Purdue Pharma; In-Q-Tel Taps Two Local Firms, & More Boston-Area Deals News”

Reported Job Cuts at NameMedia, WSI Add to Week’s Total

Our apologies to all Xconomy readers for ending the week on a downer, but it’s time for a roundup of the week’s tech layoff news around Boston. On Wednesday, Cambridge, MA-based Akamai said it would cut 110 jobs, or about 7 percent of its workforce. On Thursday Luke reported news of 30 more layoffs at … Continue reading “Reported Job Cuts at NameMedia, WSI Add to Week’s Total”

Off-Deck Mobile Content

Get the latest information on how carriers, content providers, brands, advertisers and software providers can monetize the mobile Internet at this two-day conference focusing on the “off-deck” model—i.e. mobile applications not controlled by the mobile carriers. Topics to be covered include: * Opportunities for content providers and brands as operators move towards an open market … Continue reading “Off-Deck Mobile Content”

Ironwood, Flush With Cash, Anticipates Big Year with Constipation Drug

Ask Ironwood Pharmaceuticals CEO Peter Hecht what he’s trying to accomplish in the next six to 12 months, and he doesn’t tiptoe around. “We’re trying to build the next great pharmaceutical company,” Hecht says. “I know that sounds ludicrous, but I thought I’d just start out with our ambition first.” It’s an open question whether … Continue reading “Ironwood, Flush With Cash, Anticipates Big Year with Constipation Drug”

Springpad Wants to Be Your Online Home for the Holidays, And After

If you’re like me, you go through life with the vague hope that someday, technology will help you become a more efficient person. How often I’ve driven to the grocery store or the library to pick up one thing, knowing full well that there’s some other item I needed, but that I’ll never be able … Continue reading “Springpad Wants to Be Your Online Home for the Holidays, And After”

Infinity Snags $75 Million Through Alliance with Purdue Pharma and Mundipharma

Infinity Pharmaceuticals, a Cambridge, MA-based developer of cancer drugs, got a significant boost today. It signed a partnership worth $75 million upfront from Stamford, CT-based Purdue Pharma, the maker of the pain reliever oxycodone (OxyContin), and Mundipharma, an affiliated company with operations outside the U.S. Under the deal, Purdue Pharma has agreed to pay $45 … Continue reading “Infinity Snags $75 Million Through Alliance with Purdue Pharma and Mundipharma”

CombinatoRx Cuts 30 More Jobs, Wiping out Two-Thirds of Staff in Last Month

CombinatoRx, the Cambridge, MA-based biotech company, said this afternoon it is cutting 30 more jobs, which means it has now eliminated two-thirds of its staff since its lead drug candidate for arthritis failed in a clinical trial in early October. The company (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CRXX]]), which will be left with 55 employees, should have enough cash … Continue reading “CombinatoRx Cuts 30 More Jobs, Wiping out Two-Thirds of Staff in Last Month”

Massachusetts, Washington Top Kauffman Foundation’s List of “New Economy” States

In a report released Tuesday, the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation named Massachusetts the nation’s leading state when it comes to the structural economic factors that make the state’s businesses competitive in the “New Economy”—defined as global, entrepreneurial, knowledge-based, rooted in information technologies, and innovation-driven. Massachusetts hung onto … Continue reading “Massachusetts, Washington Top Kauffman Foundation’s List of “New Economy” States”

From Virtual Threads to Polar Bear Cubs: MITX Honors Region’s Top Web Marketing Campaigns

The Massachusetts Innovation & Technology Exchange (MITX), the industry association for Boston-area digital media and marketing companies, handed out its 13th annual “Interactive Awards” last night in a ceremony at the Boston Marriott Copley Place hotel. A kind of multimedia version of the national Clio awards, but recognizing the years’ most creative advertising campaigns by … Continue reading “From Virtual Threads to Polar Bear Cubs: MITX Honors Region’s Top Web Marketing Campaigns”

Adimab Closes Third VC Round

Adimab, a Lebanon, NH-based biotech firm focused antibody discovery, says it has closed a Series C round of financing from new investors OrbiMed Advisors, Borealis Ventures, and return backers Polaris Venture Partners and SV Live Sciences. Financial details weren’t disclosed. Tillman Gerngross, CEO and co-founder of the company, said in a statement that his company … Continue reading “Adimab Closes Third VC Round”

Radius Adds $15M to Series C

Radius Health, a Cambridge, MA-based developer of drugs for osteoporosis and women’s health, says it has added $15 million more to its Series C round of venture capital, which now totals $82.5 million, with investments from MPM Capital, the Wellcome Trust, HealthCare Ventures, Oxford Bioscience Partners, BB Biotech Ventures, and Scottish Widows Investment Partnership. The … Continue reading “Radius Adds $15M to Series C”

Idera and Merck Extend R&D Deal

Idera Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:[[ticker:IDRA]]), a Cambridge, MA-based developer of drugs that target a family of immune system receptors, reports it has inked a one-year extension to its research collaboration with New Jersey-based drug giant Merck. The two companies began the collaboration in December 2006 to investigate Idera’s drugs as treatments for cancer, infectious diseases, and Alzheimer’s.

Got Dry Eye? Take Fish Oil. Resolvyx Moves First Compound Into Human Test

Resolvyx Pharmaceuticals is eying the ophthalmic market. The Bedford, MA-based biotech firm plans to announce today that the first human clinical tests of its resolvins—compounds with anti-inflammatory properties that occur naturally in fish oil—will be in patients with dry eye syndrome. Mind you, many initial clinical trials are done with small pools of 40 or … Continue reading “Got Dry Eye? Take Fish Oil. Resolvyx Moves First Compound Into Human Test”

Shire HGT Adds 150 Mass. Workers, Genetic Therapy Sales Soar, President Says

We in Massachusetts don’t read as much about Shire Human Genetic Therapies (HGT) as other large biotech organizations headquartered here like Genzyme (NASDAQ:[[ticker:GENZ]]) and Biogen Idec (NASDAQ:[[ticker:BIIB]]). Why? Well, for one thing, Shire HGT is a unit of Irish specialty drug company Shire. (The division was formed through Shire’s $1.6 billion acquisition of Cambridge, MA-based … Continue reading “Shire HGT Adds 150 Mass. Workers, Genetic Therapy Sales Soar, President Says”

RXi Tackles RNAi Delivery, Pfizer Launches A Two-Cambridge Stem Cell Effort, Archemix Plows An Alternative Path to the Public Market, & More Boston-Area Life Sciences News

The news was mostly good for Boston-area life sciences firms this past week, with some money raised, some deals done, and some intriguing new technologies unveiled. —Luke talked to Tod Woolf, CEO of RXi Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:RXII]]), about the tremendous challenge of delivering RNAi-based drugs—and how the Worcester, MA-based firm plans to overcome it. Its … Continue reading “RXi Tackles RNAi Delivery, Pfizer Launches A Two-Cambridge Stem Cell Effort, Archemix Plows An Alternative Path to the Public Market, & More Boston-Area Life Sciences News”

Radius Health, Inc. Receives $15,000,000 Series C Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=e6ffffa1-53cd-454c-b10b-a8986bc91a8b&Preview=1 Date 11/20/2008 Company Name Radius Health, Inc. Mailing Address 300 Technology Square, Fifth Floor Cambridge, MA 02139 Company Description Radius is a leading company in the discovery and development of a new generation of drug therapies for osteoporosis and women’s health. Website http://www.radiuspharm.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $15,000,000 Transaction … Continue reading “Radius Health, Inc. Receives $15,000,000 Series C Round”

Adimab, Inc. Receives Series C Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=ea916dda-1b46-4da8-97cb-a8ce2fed1381&Preview=1 Date 11/20/2008 Company Name Adimab, Inc. Mailing Address 16 Cavendish Court Lebanon, NH 03766 Company Description Adimab–which stands for Antibody Discovery Maturation Biomanufacturing–is developing a platform that’s deliberately engineered to minimize and potentially eliminate third party royalties, offering a one-stop-service-shop to a select few Big Pharma partners. Website http://www.adimab.com Transaction Type … Continue reading “Adimab, Inc. Receives Series C Funding Round”

Akamai to Cut 110 Workers Worldwide

Akamai Technologies (NASDAQ:[[ticker:AKAM]]) is contributing to our growing list of local tech firms laying off workers recently, saying it will cut about 110 employees or 7 percent of its total staff this quarter to reduce operating costs. But the Cambridge, MA-based company, which operates a worldwide network of servers that speed delivery of its clients’ … Continue reading “Akamai to Cut 110 Workers Worldwide”

Targanta Antibiotic Shot Down By FDA Panel

(Update: The fourth paragraph includes a statement from Targanta about the panel’s vote.) Targanta Therapeutics was dealt a blow late this afternoon. A panel of expert advisers to the FDA voted by a 10-8 margin that the Cambridge, MA-based company’s experimental antibiotic for complex skin infections hasn’t yet shown enough evidence that it’s safe and … Continue reading “Targanta Antibiotic Shot Down By FDA Panel”

2008 New England Venture Summit

As if the economy wasn’t exciting enough as is, this one-day summit culminates with a VC Smackdown—an exciting debate format between VCs and entrepreneurs centering on issues in financings and deals that get under their skin. Before that, topics touch on early-stage funding, presentations by startups, and exit strategies. Presented by youngStartup Ventures.

Information and Communications Technology at Greenbuild: The Springboard for Innovation and Execution

Interactive panel of experts on lessons learned from The Greenbuild International Conference and Expo on the future of information and communication technologies (ICT) in green building. The role of ICT is a consistent thread throughout Greenbuild, from new teaching tools and performance measurements, through interactive technologies, real-time response, and the vast array of ICT tools that … Continue reading “Information and Communications Technology at Greenbuild: The Springboard for Innovation and Execution”

In-Q-Tel Invests in Febit

Febit, a Heidelberg, Germany-based maker of automated, microfluidic gene and RNA sequencing devices with laboratories in Lexington, MA, said today that In-Q-Tel, the venture wing of the U.S. intelligence community, has made a strategic investment in the company. The size of the investment was not disclosed, but In-Q-Tel’s investments usually range between $1 million and … Continue reading “In-Q-Tel Invests in Febit”

EnerNOC Wins Fed Business

Boston’s EnerNOC, which runs “demand-response pools” consisting of companies, municipalities, and other organizations that agree to dial back their electricity consumption during hours of peak demand, said today that it’s won permission to sign up U.S. federal and military facilities as pool participants. The Pentagons’ Defense Energy Support Center (DESC) formally approved EnerNOC as a … Continue reading “EnerNOC Wins Fed Business”

Elixir Reports Positive Results in Late-Stage Clinical Trial for Diabetes Drug

Elixir Pharmaceuticals says it has the clinical data to support an application for approval of its combination drug for Type 2 diabetes—expected, as earlier announced, to be submitted to the FDA next year—based on positive results from a late-stage clinical trial and previous studies, according to a company statement. The Cambridge, MA-based biotech firm reports … Continue reading “Elixir Reports Positive Results in Late-Stage Clinical Trial for Diabetes Drug”

$7 Million for Rave

Rave Wireless, a Framingham, MA, startup that makes security and emergency alert software for mobile phones, has closed a $7 million Series D financing round, according to a November 15 report in PE Hub that cited regulatory filings. The report said Rave has now raised about $42 million, with major contributions from Bain Capital Ventures, … Continue reading “$7 Million for Rave”

Slydial Users Pass 1 Million Messages; We Test New Slydial iPhone App, Which Isn’t Always So Sly

Back in July I wrote two somewhat skeptical stories about Slydial, the free service that lets you leave voicemail messages for cell-phone users without causing their phones to ring. My problem wasn’t with the technology itself, but with the misanthropic way that MobileSphere, the Boston company that created Slydial, was marketing it. They were promoting … Continue reading “Slydial Users Pass 1 Million Messages; We Test New Slydial iPhone App, Which Isn’t Always So Sly”