At least 3000 scientists from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa will be lining up to use the Australian Synchrotron when it opens for business in 2007, according to a report released this week by the project. [ + ]

Eminent physiologist and founding director of Melbourne's Florey Institute, Professor Derek Denton, was made a Companion (AC) in the General Division of the Australia Day Awards for his service to medical science and Professor Denton made pioneering discoveries about how the brain regulates the body's sodium balance, and fluid and electrolyte levels. [ + ]

Starpharma shares (ASX:SPL) have surged more than 8.5 per cent on heavy trading after details of the company's three way deal with Dow Chemical and Dendritic NanoTechnologies (DNT) were finally revealed this morning. [ + ]

Plastic surgeon Prof Fiona Wood, co-founder of Perth-based biotech Clinical Cell Culture (ASX:CCE), has been honoured for her role in developing a living spray-on skin to treat burns victims by being named the 2005 Australian of the Year. [ + ]

US artificial heart firm Heartware expects to have a market capitalisation of AUD$76.42 million when it lists on the ASX on Monday, having raised US$24.95 million (AUD$32.42 million) in an oversubscribed initial public offering. [ + ]

Investment in biopharmaceutical companies by US venture capitalists increased by 20 per cent in 2004 over the previous year, a new report has shown. [ + ]

Shares in Sydney drug-developer Novogen (ASX: NRT, NASDAQ:NVGN) were up 6 per cent to $5.35 today on news that experiments with its cancer-drug booster phenoxodiol had confirmed its power to restore the ability conventional cancer drugs to kill drug-resistant ovarian cancer cells in vitro. [ + ]

Dr Roland Scollay, CEO-in-waiting for Melbourne biotech Metabolic Pharmaceuticals (ASX:MBP) believes a new dose-ranging trial of Metabolic's anti-obesity drug AOD9604 will confirm its promise as "a big one". [ + ]

Peptech (ASX:PTD) has declared a fully-franked dividend of AUD$0.08 per share, and announced that its UK-investee Domantis is to join a European Commission cardiovascular research project which will receive Euro 9 million (AUD$15.2 million) in funding over four years. [ + ]

Former Benitec CEO John McKinley appears to have been a casualty of continuing adverse publicity surrounding the Brisbane gene-therapy company's ongoing battle with Pennsylvania rival Nucleonics over ownership of key patents to RNA-induced (RNAi) gene-silencing technology. [ + ]

Pfizer Australia has hired cryogenic storage company Cryosite (ASX:CTE) to handle storage of its clinical trial drugs in Australia, and Cryosite CEO Gordon Milliken has pointed to a growing trend for big pharma and international biotechs to outsource the storage and logistics of their newest drugs to local service providers. [ + ]

ASX debutant Dia-B Tech (ASX:DIA) suffered a poor debut today; although its shares listed at $0.27, they quickly fell below their $0.20 issue price and at time of writing were trading at $0.17. [ + ]

Chemgenex Pharmaceuticals (ASX: CXS) has raised US$6.2 million (AUD$8.2 million) in a placement to existing and new shareholders including a number of US investors. [ + ]

Sydney's Biosignal (ASX:BOS) and its Institute for Eye Research (IER) partner have finalised a deal with an anonymous suitor - one of the world's biggest contact lens makers - to test Biosignal's novel antibacterial coating for extended-wear lenses. [ + ]

An appeals court has ruled against Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries in its bid to keep 180 days of exclusivity for its generic version of Pfizer's popular Zoloft antidepressant. [ + ]