The markets extended is losses during the midday with the Dow tumbling 93 points to 14,842 as the October 17 debt ceiling deadline weighed on investors. Nasdaq plummeted 61 points to 3708.

On the upside

Arrowhead Research (Nasdaq: ARWR) completed enrollment in a Phase 1 clinical trial of its chronic hepatitis B treatment ARC-520.

The Wall Street Journal reported that McKesson (NYSE: MCK) engaged in advanced talks to acquire Celesio.

Canaccord lifted its price target on EnteroMedics (Nasdaq: ETRM) from $1.50 to $3.00.

On the downside

Wall Street Cheat Sheet noted that Acadia Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: ACAD) was one of two companies developing a very promising treatment for Parkinson’s disease psychosis but the stock price dropped. 

Investors locked in profits on Renren (NYSE: RENN).

Alcatel-Lucent (NYSE: ALU) will eliminate 10,000 jobs worldwide.

In the broad market, declining issues outpaced advancers by a margin of 3 to 1 on both the NYSE and on Nasdaq. The broader S&P 500 dropped 13 points to 1662.