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Zafgen to scrap lead obesity drug, shares slide

(Reuters) – Zafgen Inc said it was suspending the development of its lead obesity drug, beloranib, more than six months after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration asked the company to halt all tests on the drug following the death of two patients. Zafgen’s shares tumbled more than 40 percent in extended trading on Tuesday after the company also said it would reduce its workforce by about 34 percent to 31 employees by December. The FDA has approved drugs made by Vivus Inc, Orexigen Therapeutics Inc and Arena Pharmaceuticals Inc in the past few years, but asked for additional studies to check for safety of these drugs.

China curbs Baidu healthcare ads business after student’s death

By Paul Carsten BEIJING (Reuters) – Chinese regulators imposed limits on the lucrative healthcare adverts carried by Baidu Inc on Monday following the death of a student who underwent experimental cancer treatment he found via China's biggest search engine. Baidu's shares fell by 5 percent in pre-market trading in New York following the move, as healthcare provides 20 to 30 percent of the company's search revenue, analysts at Nomura and Daiwa said. Baidu shares have fallen since the controversy over the death of student Wei Zexi erupted at the start of the month and had lost 10.5 percent of their value by last week's close.