Allergan has tried to go after alopecia in the past; Exicure brings a new spherical nucleic acid (SNA) technology. In other recent deals, AstraZeneca sells Seroquel, Losec rights to Germany’s Cheplapharm.

The justices struck down an appeals court ruling that a single device component could count as a “substantial portion” under patent infringement laws.

The case between Promega and Life Tech turns on whether a company violates US patent law by shipping a single allegedly patented component overseas for assembly. The Solicitor General’s office says it does not, arguing that the Federal Circuit’s reading would expose US manufacturers to too much risk of patent liability.

Swiss start-up Covalys Biosciences AG believes it has developed a protein tag technology that will improve the way researchers label, immobilize and purify proteins. It's proprietary SNAP-tag, says the company, is more stale and versatile than existing protein tag technologies and can be employed anywhere proteins are studied.