Business Roundup

Clariant will work with Emerald Technology Ventures to identify opportunities for investment or cooperation in the clean technology sector. Founded in 2000, Emerald manages energy, advanced materials, and water investment funds valued at close to $300 million.

LyondellBasell Industries has been added to the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index, replacing the iconic retailer Sears. Lyondell CEO James L. Gallogly says the addition is a testament to his firm’s progress.

H&M, the apparel designer and retailer, has banned the use of perfluorinated compounds on outerwear and other items sold in its stores beginning in Jan­uary 2013. The firm says its suppliers will use an unidentified alternative water repellant “with better environmental and health properties.”

Solvay will spend about $13 million to double capacity for specialty fluorinated aliphatic compounds at its plant in Salindres, France. The firm says demand for triflic acid, triflic anhydride, and lithium bis(tri­fluoromethanesulfonyl)­imide is growing from producers of electronics, batteries, and pharmaceuticals.

BioFocus, a unit of the Belgian biotech firm Galapagos, will work with Japan’s Ono Pharmaceutical to discover new drugs for central nervous system disorders. BioFocus will receive an undisclosed fee for finding lead and clinical drug candidates for Ono.

VLST, a Seattle-based biopharmaceutical company specializing in oncology, autoimmune diseases, and inflammatory diseases, has licensed Pfizer’s anti-CD40 monoclonal antibody. VLST plans to advance the compound in preclinical oncology studies.

Cerbios Pharma and XSpray Microparticles have formed a high-potency-drug manufacturing partnership. XSpray will provide its particle design technology, which uses supercritical fluids to control precipitation of active pharmaceutical ingredients, and Cerbios will provide API production.

Scynexis has licensed its dry-eye-disease drug SCY-641 to Dechra Pharmaceuticals for animal health use. A cyclosporine derivative, SCY-641 is the first compound Scynexis has licensed from its cyclophilin inhibitor platform.