Elan Corporation is to invest $39 million (€43.9 million) in a joint venture with the Canadian group Inex Pharmaceuticals to develop and commercialise Inex's drug delivery treatment for cancer.

The joint venture involves Elan and Inex forming a joint company that will hold the worldwide marketing rights for Inex's Onco TCS drug delivery technology.

Elan has also invested £4 million sterling (€6.45 million) for a nine per cent stake in the British group Allergy Therapeutics. Elan has also agreed to collaborate with Allergy Therapeutics to develop products for the treatment of allergic treatments.

The Elan investment is part of a financial restructuring of ATL which sees British drugs giant GlaxoSmithKline convert loans to ATL into a 28 per cent equity stake. ATL's bankers have also agreed to convert loans into equity totalling 42 per cent.