Business Roundup

Merck KGaA has agreed to buy California-based Intermolecular, a materials screening laboratory, for $62 million. The lab employs 90 people and has annual sales of $34 million. Merck says the deal will strengthen its semiconductor technology offerings and more quickly bring new materials to market.

Symrise signed a contract to buy Cutech, an Italy-based lab specialized in screening cosmetic active ingredients for efficacy. Symrise says the acquisition will speed the development of new ingredients.

Arkema has chosen Jurong Island in Singapore as the site of a new world-scale plant to make castor oil–derived nylon 11. The firm, which announced plans for the $350 million investment 2 years ago, says completion of the plant in 2021 will increase its global capacity for the resin by 50%.

Vertellus has launched an active pharmaceutical ingredient grade colloidal sulfur for use in over-the-counter treatments for acne, rosacea, and seborrheic dermatitis. The firm also makes cetylpyridinium chloride, which is on the US FDA’s oral antiseptic monograph as an antigingivitis agent in mouthwash.

Spiral Therapeutics has raised $5.6 million from investors in a series A financing round. The funding will help advance Spiral’s lead hearing loss treatment candidate, LPT99, now in Phase I clinical trials.

Takeda Pharmaceutical is tapping Skyhawk Therapeutics to make small molecules that drug RNA and alter its splicing to treat neurological diseases. The terms of the deal weren’t disclosed, but Skyhawk struck recent deals with Biogen and Celgene worth a combined $134 million up front.

Samsung Biologics has signed an agreement under which it will develop cell lines for GI Innovation’s immunochemotherapy candidates. GI Innovation specializes in the development of combination microbiome-protein drugs.

DuPont Nutrition & Biosciences has launched a portfolio of biobased enzymes for medical instrument cleaning applications. The company says its liquid proteases improve stability and enhance liquid detergent performance.