Ansaris, a structure-based drug discovery company and division of Locus Pharmaceuticals, has elected Christopher Cashman to its board of directors. He was previously CEO of Protez Pharmaceuticals and Message Pharmaceuticals and global director of business and new development for Pfizer. Mr Cashman is also on the boards of JDP Therapeutics, Noble Biomaterials and MBF Therapeutics.

Novartis is to pay Paratek Pharmaceuticals' up to $485 million for the commercialisation rights to oral broad-spectrum antibiotic PTK 0796.

Highlights from the Q2 2008 review of pharmaceutical and biotechnology dealmaking: Despite the dearth in biopharmaceutical financings in the quarter (total money raised was just $2 billion) acquisitions thrived with total M&A volume of $11.8 billion. And biopharma alliance activity reached $2.7 billion in potential deal value during 2008's second quarter with only a handful more deals than the first quarter, but a 43% increase in dollar volume.

Novartisis expecting its pharmaceuticals business to accelerate in the fourth quarter, when net sales should increase at a high-single digit rate, in local currencies. This is better news than expected, because lower growth had previously been forecast, commented chairman CEO Daniel Vasella.