Spinout's gamble on Xigris

Eli Lilly and Co. spinout BioCritica Inc. and its investors are betting that new data on sepsis drug Xigris drotrecogin alfa can increase the drug's use, reversing a negative sales trend.

Lilly, NovaQuest Capital and Care Capital formed the newco last month, providing it with an undisclosed investment and an exclusive license to Xigris in the U.S. BioCritica also has options to license Xigris in the rest of the world and to undisclosed preclinical critical care candidates from Lilly...