Merck & Co out-licences clinical-stage gene therapy asset to new start-up

A new Finnish company has been set up to develop a gene therapy licensed from Merck & Co. FKD Therapeutics is being led by the former CEO of Ark Therapeutics, which stumbled at the final regulatory hurdle with Cerepro, a gene therapy candidate for brain cancer (scripintelligence.com, 21 December 2009).