The dealmaking column is a survey of recent transactions, including strategic alliances, mergers & acquisitions, and financings, in the life sciences industries. Deals are listed by the following industry sectors: in vitro diagnostics, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and research/analytical instrumentation and reagents. All transactions are excerpted from Windhover's Strategic Transactions database, providing comprehensive transaction coverage from 1991 to the present.

The traditional drug-delivery business model of service for hire has fallen from popularity. Big Pharmas are doing few deals of this sort, and investors want bigger returns than fees and royalties can provide. Start-ups with drug delivery technologies are increasingly using their platforms on their own behalf, to create products they can out-license or possibly market themselves. Now content--getting the molecules to be delivered--is an issue.