Alan Auerbach, CEO, president, and chairman of Puma Biotechnology (NYSE: PBYI) , you just personally made over $700 million after your biotech suddenly soared 295% (more if you exercise all those warrants and options you have), what are you going to do now? "You have my word that I will do what is in the best interest of the investors. And since it's public information that I am the largest shareholder of the company, I think my interests are heavily aligned with those of the other shareholders."-On Tuesday's conference call to announce the positive clinical trial results. Good answer. But no really, what are you going to do? Sell the company? License it out? Sell it yourself? Later in the call: "My goal is to do what is in the best interest of the investors." I can see where not getting anywhere here. This cat should be smiling. Source: Puma Biotechnology Let's speculate anyway If history repeats itself, Puma Biotechnology will get sold. That's what Auerbach did with his previous company, Cougar Biotechnology. Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) snatched up Cougar for $970 million to get a hold of its prostate cancer drug Zytiga while the drug was still in … Continue reading →

Regional News of Sunday, 27 July 2014 Source: GNA A book on biotechnology in agriculture has been launched in Accra with a stress on the importance of political will towards agricultural biotechnology in solving food and nutritional security in Africa. The 291-page book, dubbed Biotechnology in Africa Emergence, Initiatives and Future is a collection of science policy reports from African scientists based purely on their experiences with the use of biotechnology in agriculture in different parts of the continent. Edited by Florence Dr Wambugu, Chief Executive of Africa Harvest and Daniel Kamanga Communication Expert of the Africa Harvest Biotech Foundation, the book for the first time, offers African voices from multidisciplinary fields to be allowed to set the continents biotechnology development agenda. Dr Wambugu noted that the book has come at a time when the debate on the safety of biotechnology has heightened, particularly with the advent of the use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in agricultural production. She confirmed that Africa has made a tremendous shift from general discussions and was focusing on the safety of plant biotechnology to a concrete exploration of crops and traits deemed useful for various African countries. She noted that Africas political and scientific … Continue reading →