Baxter Biotech Group

Executive Summary

Adds fourth business operation with establishment of Gene Therapy unit to consolidate research efforts being undertaken at Round Lake, Illinois, Santa Ana, California and the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, Baxter announces Aug. 24. Bill Johnson, PhD, is general manager of the unit and a VP of Baxter Healthcare. The Baxter Biotech Group, formed in 1992 from the company's blood products businesses, includes Hyland, Fenwal Automated Systems and the Immunotherapy Group. Gene therapy researchers at Baxter are working on, among other projects, a Factor VIII therapy; an implantable system for hemophiliacs to deliver genetically altered material; and a cancer therapy that "splices the cancer-adhering capability of a monoclonal antibody into T-cell receptors," the company reports.