In a sign that life science-focussed VC activity may be picking up, Melbourne-based venture capital firm Starfish Ventures has closed its AUD$123 million Starfish Technology Fund I. [ + ]

VPAC, in collaboration with BioMelbourne Network and the Victorian Bioinformatics Consortium, has launched the BioPlatform.

Information-based medicine is reaching mainstream medical practice faster than expected, according to Dr Joseph Jasinski, the program director of IBM's Healthcare and Life Sciences Institute. [ + ]

A report on ASX-listed life sciences companies has predicted that the Australian industry is on track to at least equal the amount raised in initial public offerings in fiscal year 2004, with a bountiful first quarter of fiscal 2005 -- in which seven Australian companies raised AUD$93.5 million -- already under its belt. [ + ]

The British government has promised a big boost to spending on scientific research and more measures to combat animal extremists. [ + ]

Levon Khachigian, an associate professor at the University of NSW, has been awarded the 2004 Australasian Science prize for his team's work on developing potential therapeutics for vascular diseases, such as artherosclerosis, and cancer. [ + ]

Norwood Abbey (ASX:NAL) and Australian Wool Innovation (AWI) have agreed to collaborate on the development of a non-surgical mulesing technology to prevent sheep flystrike using Norwood's needle-free injection technology. [ + ]

Starpharma (ASX:SPL) has reported preliminary results from the Phase I clinical trial on its dendrimer-based vaginal microbicide indicate no adverse effects from the product in any of the women taking part in the trial. [ + ]

Researchers at the Queensland Brain Institute and the University of Melbourne have identified a molecule which they believe may play a crucial role in preventing spinal cord regeneration. [ + ]

Sydney-based proteomics company Proteome Systems (ASX:PXL) has released a standalone software package for proteomics research and analysis, Version 3.0 of BioinformatIQ. Its first customer was the Australian Proteome Analysis Facility (APAF), Australia's Major National Research Facility for functional proteomics . [ + ]

IVFAustralia and the Diabetes Transport Unit (DTU) at the Prince of Wales Hospital in Sydney have been granted a licence by the NHMRC to create up to six new human embryonic stem cell (hESC) lines from spare IVF embryos. [ + ]

The latest round of Australian Research Council linkage and discovery grants, announced today, have allocated AUD$381 million over five years to more than 1300 new research projects from 2005. [ + ]

New Zealand biotech Neuren today lodged the prospectus for its mid-January IPO with ASIC, announcing that it will aim to raise AUD$15 million, giving it an indicative market capitalisation of AUD$40 million. [ + ]

Peptech's (ASX: PTD) share price jumped 26 per cent in the first hour of very heavy trading today after announcing that its net profit in 2004-2005 was likely to be between AUD$18-21 million following the settlement of its dispute with Johnson & Johnson subsidiary Centocor over royalties for Centocor's anti-TNF drug Remicade. [ + ]

Chemeq (ASX: CMQ) has received a conditional GMP licence for its new manufacturing facility from the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA). [ + ]