Life Sciences

Natick-based Boston Scientific Corp. has received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on its new stent system designed to treat coronary heart disease.

AbbVie Inc. said its oral treatment for hepatitis C showed about 96 percent of patients had no detectable levels of the virus after 12 weeks.

Arrhythmia Research Technology of Fitchburg saw a 4.7 percent drop in revenue for the third quarter, but substantially cut its losses as the medical device manufacturer touted several victories from July through September, the company said today.

Precision Optics of Gardner increased fiscal first-quarter revenue 61 percent while cutting its quarterly loss, the maker of optical systems announced Monday.

Westborough-based RXi Pharmaceuticals has signed an agreement with a British company to distribute RXi's clinical-stage dermal scarring drug in the European Union ahead of regulatory approval. RXi said in a statement that Ethicor Ltd., a London-based specialty pharmaceuticals company that distributes unlicensed medicines used for unmet clinical needs, now has the distribution rights to RXI-109 in the European Union with the potential to distribute the drug to other parts of the world before the product is registered in the countries covered by the agreement.

Cardiac and vascular medical device company PLC Systems continued to build on momentum from the first half of the year, increasing revenue 80 percent in the third quarter and narrowing its losses.

RXi Pharmaceuticals of Westborough, which is pursuing approval of a drug aimed at minimizing post-surgical scarring, saw a 61-percent year-over-year increase in revenue for the third quarter, although it posted another loss, the biotech startup reported today.

Advanced Cell Technology of Marlborough reported another quarterly loss as it continued testing for a vision-treatment drug and applied for federal approval of another drug that could potentially treat both humans and animals.

Biopharmaceutical research companies have conducted nearly 500 clinical trials of new medicines in Worcester over the past 14 years, according to a report released today by the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA).

U.S. regulators said Friday that the risks from a multiple sclerosis (MS) drug developed by Cambridge-based Genzyme might outweigh its benefits and recommended against the drug's approval.