Here today, gone tomorrow

Repligen Corp. discovered just how fast the wind can shift last week when Eli Lilly and Co. elected to discontinue their 1992 collaboration in inflammatory disease, citing a reallocation of resources for Lilly's research priorities. The collaboration was developing RGEN's monoclonal antibody candidates m60.1 and h60.1, in addition to developing another MAb against the CD11b receptor on neutrophils.

In June, the companies agreed to extend the collaboration through 1996. "We were suprised about the outcome," said RGEN CFO Avery Catlin, "because they went through an internal review of the program a few months ago."...