Xoma's bet provides a payoff

When many companies downsize, they pare down to the bare bones necessary to keep a few core programs running. But when Xoma Corp. downsized in 1992-93 and again in late 1994, the company maintained its manufacturing and clinical development infrastructure, on the theory that it was a resource that shouldn't be wasted.

Thus when Genentech Inc. (GNE, South San Francisco, Calif.) decided to develop its anti-CD11a monoclonal antibody through an external partnership, XOMA was a natural choice. The Berkeley, Calif., company has experience with genetic engineering, cell line scale-up, recombinant products and monoclonal antibodies, and has run clinical trials in organ transplant and psoriasis...