Australian Cancer Center Joins Open Biosystems' Open Access Program
Open Biosystems said this week that Australia's Peter MacCullum Cancer Centre has joined the company's Open Access RNAi program, purchasing Open Biosystems' whole genome human lentiviral shRNAmir library.
Open Biosystems launched the program in February as a way to make its genome-wide shRNA libraries more affordable for its academic customer base (see RNAi News, 2/2/2006).
Through its participation in the program, the hospital's 265 researchers all have access to the shRNAmir library and will receive continual updates and upgrades as extensions of the libraries are released.
Participation grants "us the most advanced shRNA technology at a fraction of the cost compared to the purchase of libraries as individuals," Ricky Johnstone, a principal investigator at the Peter MacCullum Cancer Centre, said in a statement. "The libraries allow us to conduct RNAi-based studies to develop new technologies that will result in significant breakthroughs in biomedical research."
Galapagos Completes $5.42M Acquisition of DPI's Drug Discovery Operations
Galapagos said this week that it has completed its €4.25 million ($5.42 million) acquisition of Discovery Partners International's drug discovery operations, which will now be part of Galapagos' service division, BioFocus DPI.
As a result of the acquisition, Mechelen, Belgium-based Galapagos has increased its 2006 revenue guidance to the range of €33 million to €38 million ($42 million to $48 million), from the range of €25 million to €30 million ($32 million to $38 million).
The operations acquired by Galapagos include DPI discovery services sites in San Diego; South San Francisco, Calif.; Basel, Switzerland; and Heidelberg, Germany.
Galapagos has also acquired DPI's Tokyo sales office.