Company That Cloned Sheep to Sell Assets and Shut Down

Flashy science does not necessary make for good business. The New York Times is reporting:

Scotland's PPL Therapeutics, a spinoff of the Roslin Institute that propelled the biotechnology industry into a new realm seven years ago when it cloned a sheep named Dolly, said today that it would sell its last assets and close.

The company said its chief executive, Geoff Cook, and four members of the board would step down immediately.

Despite its major scientific advance, PPL Therapeutics was deficient in a crucial area, analysts said. ''Management, management, management," said Erling Refsum, a biotechnology analyst at Nomura International in London.