Business Roundup

MOF Technologies, a start-up from Northern Ireland making metal organic frameworks, will spend $1.5 million on new production facilities and equipment in Belfast, Northern Ireland. CEO Paschal McCloskey says the firm will roll out “a whole suite” of MOFs over the next two years.

Takeda Pharmaceutical will work with Canada’s NuBiyota to develop oral microbial consortia products for gastroenterological conditions. In exchange for applying its microbiome-based therapeutic approach, NuBiyota will receive an up-front payment and potential milestone payments.

International Flavors & Fragrances has acquired PowderPure of The Dalles, Ore. PowderPure makes so-called clean-label food ingredients by drying whole fruits, vegetables, and juices into powder without altering flavor, nutrition, or color.

Frutarom has acquired French flavors firm René Laurent for $21 million and a 60% interest in Vietnam’s Western Flavors & Fragrances for $1.3 million. Earlier this year, the acquisitive Israeli company bought South Africa’s Unique Flavors.

Syngenta says a U.S. district court has found that the agrochemical maker Willowood infringed two Syngenta patents relating to the fungicide azoxystrobin. Damages for the infringement will be assessed at a trial later this year.

Cirius Therapeutics has raised $40 million in its first large round of financing, led by Frazier Healthcare Partners and Novo. The biotech is developing an insulin sensitizer to help alleviate inflammation and fibrosis in people with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, a progressive liver disease.

PeptiDream will collaborate with Janssen Pharmaceutical to identify peptides that are effective against Janssen-provided metabolic and cardiovascular targets. Tokyo-based PeptiDream gets an undisclosed up-front payment and up to $1.2 billion in milestone payments.

Novartis has licensed ECF843, a recombinant human lubricin protein, from the Boston-based firm Lubris. Novartis says ECF843 has the potential to be the first therapeutic to provide rapid relief of dry eye symptoms.