Up Front: THE LIST

BIOTECH: STILL SICK

Biotech just can't heal itself. Last fall, Fidelity Investment's Select Biotechnology Fund Manager Karen Firestone said there could be a rebound if news on nine products in development was mostly good. Well, six months later, progress has been mixed. The American Stock Exchange Biotech Index is 38% off its 1994 high. Firestone's own fund is up a solid 8% for this year, thanks to bets on such outfits as Affymax and Chiron, both bought by big drug concerns.

BELLWETHER BIOTECHNOLOGY COMPANIES

Company Outlook Comment

CENTOCOR Positive Won approval to sell blood-clot preventer

NO. AM. VACCINE Positive New DTP vaccine looking good on tests

UNIVAX Positive Blood disorder treatment looks good

BIOGEN Mixed Beta interferon looks good; anticoagulant

drug failed

COR Neutral Awaiting post-heart-attack drug data

CELLPRO Negative FDA questions bone-marrow treatment

CELTRIX Negative Eye treatment failed

TELIOS Negative Wound-healing product failed tests

DATA: BUSINESS WEEKEDITED BY LARRY LIGHT, WITH OLUWABUMNI SHABI