Enrolment for the Phase III trial of Bronchitol, developed by Pharmaxis [ASX: PXS], in cystic fibrosis sufferers has begun, with the first patient already on board.

The trial is to be conducted in 41 hospitals across North America, Argentina and Germany. It is the final clinical step required before Pharmaxis seeks approval to market the treatment in the US.

The trial is being conducted under the US FDA's Special Protocol Assessment (SPA) scheme.

HealthLinx [ASX: HTX] has appointed Dr Dominic Autelitano as its new chief scientific officer in an in-house promotion.

Autelitano was previously manager of peptide therapeutics, and has had experience overseeing many of the company's core research projects.

Auteliano received his PhD. from Monash University in 1986 and has performed post-doctoral work at the prestigious Columbia University Medical Center and Mt Sinai School of Medicine in New York.

The US Army plans to provide another A$6.6 million in funding for the upcoming trial of the traumatic brain injury drug developed by Neuren Pharmaceuticals [ASX: NEU].

NNZ-2566 is a synthetic analogue of Neuren's Glypromate.

The US Army has already granted $4.8 million to Neuren to help cover the direct costs of the phase II trial. The total contribution is now $12 million.

Results of the trial are expected by 2010.

Solbec Pharmaceuticals [ASX: SBP] says it has been approached by two parties interested in licensing the company's Coramsine metastatic cancer treatment.

Solbec declined to name the parties while discussions are ongoing, but one is an Australian company with an interest in acquiring later stage drug development compounds and the other an Israeli with an interest in drug re-purposing.