Terray/Calico tie-up will focus on small molecule discovery for diseases of aging, including cancer. Lilly, AstraZeneca sign discovery pacts with Nimbus and Illumina, respectively.

Private Company Edition: While the tough state of financing for publicly traded drug developers continues, venture capital firms and private biopharma companies revealed billions of dollars in new VC funds and start-up financings, including $100m-plus mega-rounds for Tessa, Alladapt and ImCheck.

Derived from Strategic Transactions, Elsevier Business Intelligence’s premium source for tracking life sciences deal activity, the Dealmaking column is a survey of recent health care transactions listed by relevant industry segment – In Vitro Diagnostics, Medical Devices, and Pharmaceuticals – and then categorized by type – Acquisition, Alliance, or Financing. This month’s column covers deals announced September through October 2013.

Stryker’s adoption of MAKO’s RIO (Robotic-arm Interactive Orthopedic) system could give the global medical supplier a competitive edge over other orthopedic implant makers if the company can win converts to robotic surgery by leveraging its own experience in selling capital equipment.