Pharma Marketletter articles from November 2005

Pharma Marketletter archives from November 2005

211 US med school profs tell FDA: "ban DTC".(direct-to-consumer)(Food and Drug Administration)
November 7, 2005... 211 professors from US medical schools have endorsed a statement urging the Food and Drug Administration to prohibit direct-to-consumer marketing of prescription drugs. The statement, which was to be presented at the FDA's November 1-2...

US Medicare: catastrophic cover for 98% of seniors?
November 7, 2005... The number of Medicare beneficiaries with coverage for catastrophic drug costs in 2006 will rise dramatically under the new US Medicare prescription drug program, and that of seniors paying over $4,000 annual out-of-pocket drug costs, with no...

US GOP Senators defend Medicare Rx benefit.(Government of Parliament)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... More insurers than anticipated are now participating in the US Medicare prescription drug benefit, and competition between them means enrollees will save more than expected, says the US Senate Republican Policy Committee. Defending the...

UK NHS special status for orphan drugs?(National Health Service)
November 7, 2005... The growing number and costs of rare-disease treatments, or orphan drugs, are straining health care budgets, say two articles in the October 29 issue of the British Medical Journal, asking whether the National Health Service should continue to...

Euro scientists develop H7N1 bird flu vaccine.
November 7, 2005... European influenza experts have developed RD-3, the first human candidate vaccine for the H7N1 virus, and it is expected to go into clinical trials next spring 2006. So far, most vaccine development has centered on H5N1, the...

EU Commission plans biotech strategy update, says competitiveness still needs to improve.
November 7, 2005... The European Commission's in-house Joint Research Centre has launched a study on the social, economic and environment consequences, and the challenges, of modern biotechnology. It is estimated that over 80% of biotechnology-related activity...

UCB says Ph III Keppra trial data positive.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Belgian drugs and chemicals firm UCB has announced positive results from a clinical study of Keppra (levetiracetam) used in the treatment of pediatric patients suffering from idiopathic generalized epilepsy and regular tonic-clonic seizures....

Flamel completes Ph III drug delivery trials.(Flamel Technologies S.A.)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... French biopharmaceutical company Flamel Technologies, which is principally involved in the development of polymer-based delivery systems for medical applications, says the results of Phase III trials, which it has been running with...

Taro to test Ovide as Rx head lice treatment.(Taro Pharmaceuticals USA Inc.)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Hawthorne, New York, USA-headquartered drugmaker Taro Pharmaceutical says that it plans to initiate a multi-center Phase III study to evaluate a novel formulation of Ovide (malathion), a prescription product for the control of head lice...

Hemisperx extends drug synergy research prog.(Hemisperx Biopharma)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Hemisperx Biopharma, a USA-based company involved in the manufacture and clinical development of new drug entities for the treatment of viral and immune-based chronic disorders, says it has extended a preclinical research program investigating...

ZymoGenetics starts Ph III trial of rhThrombin in surgery.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... ZymoGenetics, a biopharmaceutical company based in Seattle, USA, says it has begun a Phase III study of recombinant human thrombin in patients undergoing surgery. The trial is designed to assess the efficacy of the drug against bovine-derived...

Biothera begins trial of Imprime PGG in cancer therapy.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... USA-based Biothera, a healthcare company specializing in immunology, says it has filed an Investigational New Drug application with the Food and Drug Administration for Imprime PGG, a monoclonal antibody, for the treatment of cancer in...

Biosite's Triage stroke panel launched in Europe.(Biosite Diagnostics Inc.)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Biosite, a San Diego, USA-headquartered biomedical company, says it has released its Triage Stroke Panel, a battery of blood tests in a compact, portable format, onto the European market. The firm says that the kit can be used at either the...

Quigley sees potential in its MS drug QR-442.(Quigley Pharma Inc.)(multiple sclerosis)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... USA-based Quigley Pharma, a natural health medical science company and subsidiary of the Quigley Corp, says it has completed an animal model study of its compound QR-442 as a potential therapeutic for the treatment of multiple sclerosis. ...

Amgen's Kepivance cleared by EC.(European Union)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... USA-based biotechnology giant Amgen's Kepivance (palifermin) has received regulatory approval in the European Union as a treatment for mucositis (mouth sores) in patients with hematologic cancers undergoing myeloablative therapy associated with...

S-P discontinues vicriviroc trial on efficacy issues.(Schering-Plough Corp.)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... US drugmaker Schering-Plough has discontinued a Phase II study of its investigational CCR5 receptor antagonist, vicriviroc, used in combination with GlaxoSmithKline's Combivir (lamivudine/zidovudine) in treatment-naive HIV patients, due to a...

Eisai to resubmit Aricept sNDA.(supplemental New Drug Application)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Japanese drugmaker Eisai's supplemental New Drug Application for Aripcept (donepezil) for the treatment of severe Alzheimer's disease, has been rejected by the US Food and Drug Administration because of deficiencies in the format of the...

Troubles for B-MS and Merck & Co's Pargluva.(Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. and )(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... US drug major Bristol-Myers Squibb says that its key pipeline product, the type 2 diabetes drug candidate Pargluva (muraglitazar), may need another five years of clinical testing to answer questions raised by the US Food and Drug...

Schwarz posts 3rd-qtr loss on rotigotin buy.(Schwarz Pharma)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... German drugmaker Schwarz Pharma has posted a net third-quarter 2005 loss of 50.5 million euros ($60.5 million) after a 1.6 million euros profit in the like, year-earlier quarter. Analysts had forecast higher losses of about 58.0 million euros...

Zeltia sees profits rise on falling sales.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Spanish group Zeltia has posted a decline of 8% to 58.3 million euros ($69.9 million) in turnover for the first nine months of 2005, although operating profit leapt 60% to 6.6 million euros, but losses increased to 22.8 million euros versus...

Sharp fall in 3rd-qtr losses for Elan.(Elan Corporation PLC)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Troubled Irish drug company Elan Corp, which - with partner Biogen Idec - last year withdrew its key multiple sclerosis drug Tysabri (natalizumab; Marketletters passim) from the market, has significantly reduced its loss for the third quarter...

Novo Nordisk beats consensus forecasts.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Danish drugmaker Novo Nordisk exceeded consensus analysts' expectations, reporting net earnings for the first nine months of 2005 of $791.0 million, a rise of 31% on the like, year-earlier period, and operating profit up 20% at $1.4 billion....

Biolex and Kringle collaborate on novel protein targeting cancer.(Biolex Therapeutics and Kringle Pharma)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... USA-based Biolex Therapeutics, a protein therapeutics company, and Kringle Pharma, an Osaka, Japan-based biopharmaceutical firm developing cancer therapeutics, have formed a collaboration under which the former will use its LEX System for...

Third Wave selects Genzyme Genetics as marketing partner.(Third Wave Technologies Inc.)(Genzyme Genetics Corp.)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Third Wave Technologies has announced the formation of a preferred marketing relationship with fellow US firm Genzyme Genetics to provide testing with the Invader UGT1A1 Molecular Assay for colorectal cancer patients in the North American...

UK gives go-ahead for Biopure's Ph II Hemopure study.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... USA-based Biopure Corp says that it has received regulatory authorization in the UK to initiate a Phase II clinical trial of its investigational oxygen therapeutic Hemopure (hemoglobin glutamer - 250 [bovine]) as a potential cardioprotective...

Global cancer diagnostics market to reach $7.4B by 2009.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... The worldwide market for in vitro cancer diagnosis will reach the $7.4 billion mark by 2009, according to a new study released by Kalorama Information. As the demand for more sophisticated diagnostics continues to grow and synergies between...

Bayer selects name for sorafenib.(Bayer HealthCare L.L.C. Bayer Biological Products Div.)(Onyx Pharmaceuticals Inc.)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Bayer HealthCare and Onyx Pharmaceuticals have announced the selection of Nexavan as the global trade name for sorafenib tosylate, their oral investigational drug which is currently under US Food and Drug Administration review for the treatment...

Australia rejects flu drug compulsory license call.
November 7, 2005... Australian Health Minister Tony Abbott has rejected calls from Australian National University experts for compulsory licensing of antiviral drugs used in the treatment of avian flu. Writing in the Medical Journal of Australia (October 27...

Apotex Tamiflu move as Roche halts sales.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Canadian generic drugmaker Apotex says that it has started work on developing a copy version of Roche's antiviral drug Tamiflu (oseltamivir). The firm announced late October that it would know within six to eight weeks whether the project...

Jamaica to pay up 80% of diabetics' Rx costs.(Jamaica's National Health Fund )(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... On November 1, Jamaica's National Health Fund increased the subsidy on diabetes drug treatments to 80% of their reference prices, and began subsidizing other products used by diabetics, in a move which is expected to cost JM$495.0 million ($7.7...

Vietnamese firms to produce generic Tamiflu.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Three Vietnamese firms will start making Roche's antiviral drug Tamiflu (oseltamivir) by December, the Swiss firm has agreed with Cao Minh Quang, director of the Vietnam Pharmaceuticals Administration Department. The Vietnamese News Agency...

New Zealand Rx trade.(pharmaceutical industry)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... New Zealand exported pharmaceutical products valued at NZ$206.0 million ($146.0 million) in the 12 months to end-September 2005, a year-on-year increase of 2.4%, while imports of such products rose 14.3% to NZ$916.0 million, reports Statistics...

Chiron to supply US flu vaccine stockpile.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... US biotechnology firm Chiron has won a $62.5 million contract to supply the US government with pre-pandemic influenza vaccine for a stockpile to protect against the H5N1 avian influenza virus strain. Under the agreement with the Department...

Biogen Idec's 3rd qtr EPS down 26%.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... The world's third-largest biotechnology firm, Biogen Idec, has posted earnings of $27.2 million, or $0.08 per share, for the third quarter of 2005, down 26% on the like period of the previous year, disappointing analysts' expectations. ...

ImClone Systems' 3rd-qtr income falls 22.1%.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... US cancer specialist ImClone Systems said that its third-quarter 2005 net income dropped 22.1% on the year-ago period, to $31.0 million, due to lower manufacturing revenue and higher operating costs. Diluted earnings per share totaled $0.35...

Celera's 1st-fiscal qtr net loss narrows 21.7%.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... US small-molecule drugmaker Celera Genomics reported a net loss of $16.7 million, or $0.23 per share, for the first quarter of fiscal 2006 ended September 30, 2005, an improvement of 21.7% on the year-ago period following a $4.5 million pretax...

ULURU set up for wound management.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... ULURU Inc is an emerging pharmaceutical company focused on the development of a portfolio of innovative topical delivery technologies to provide patients and consumers with an improved clinical outcome through controlled delivery, which has...

Merck KGaA reorganizes in Japan.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... German drugmaker Merck & Co is to reorganize its pharmaceuticals business in Japan. It says that, effective April 2006, the ethicals division and the Japanese generic drugs subsidiary Merck Hoei Ltd will be combined to form the new company...

Chiron succumbs to increased offer from Novartis, previously rejected as too low.
November 7, 2005... US biotechnology group Chiron, having previously rejected overtures from Swiss drug major Novartis to acquire the remaining 57.8% stake in the company it does not already own (Marketletter September 5), has now accepted a higher offer. This...

B-MS posts 3rd-qtr 30% non-GAPP earnings slump on flat sales.(Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.)
November 7, 2005... US health care conglomerate Bristol-Myers Squibb disappointed investors after it posted flat sales from continuing operations of $4.80 billion for the third quarter of 2005. The company has recently sold its US and Canadian non-prescription...

Amylin slumps on increased 3rd-qtr loss.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... US biopharmaceutical group Amylin saw its share price plunge 10.5% in after-hours trading on October 26, following the firm's release of third-quarter 2005 results which showed that its net loss had more than doubled to $69.5 million, or $0.65...

Strong 1st-qtr sales for Myriad Genetics.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... USA-based Myriad Genetics has reported total turnover of $25.1 million for its first quarter of its 2006 fiscal year, an increase of 50.0%, with predictive medicines sales up 49.3% at $21.5 million. Research revenues grew 57% to $3.6 million....

Medicis files suit against Upsher-Smith and Prasco.
November 7, 2005... Arizona, USA-based Medicis says that it filed suit on October 27 against Upsher-Smith Laboratories of Plymouth, Minnesota, and Prasco Laboratories of Cincinnati, Ohio, for infringement of patent no 6,905,675, entitled Sulfur Containing...

FDA accepts PharmaFrontiers' MS drug protocol.(Food and Drug Administration)(multiple sclerosis)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Texas, USA-based PharmaFrontiers, a company involved in the development and commercialization of cell therapies, says that the protocol for its Phase IIb clinical trial of Tovaxin, a novel T cell therapeutic vaccine for multiple sclerosis, has...

Merck & Co/B-MS to contribute AIDS drugs to IPM.(International Partnership for Microbicides)(Merck and Company Inc.)(Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... In a preliminary announcement, US drug majors Merck & Co and Bristol-Myers Squibb have said that they will each contribute promising new anti-HIV entry inhibitor compounds to the International Partnership for Microbicides for development as...

Accentia Biopharma prices offering.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Florida, USA-based Accentia Biopharmaceuticals says that it has priced its initial public offering of 2.4 million of its common stock at a price to the public of $8.00 per share. All of the shares are being offered by the company. In addition,...

Natural alternative to arthritis drugs?
November 7, 2005... Arthritis sufferers could have a natural alternative for the treatment of this painful condition, according to new university-based research. The work, conducted by the Australian Centre for Complementary Medicine Education and Research, shows...

Nutratech's Advantra Z safe in weight loss.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Two recent scientific studies, conducted at McGill Nutrition and Food Science Center and University of California at San Francisco, USA, have shown Advantra Z, US nutraceutical ingredient maker Nutratech's proprietary Citrus aurantium (bitter...

Pomegranate juice may cut CHD progress.(coronary heart disease )
November 7, 2005... Men and women with coronary heart disease who drink one glass of pomegranate juice daily may improve blood flow to their heart, according to a new study. This research is the first randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial showing...

Chromium picolinate aids glycemic control.
November 7, 2005... A sub-set of analysis from a Diachrome XLHealth clinical trial has demonstrated that adding daily supplementation with Diachrome (a chromium picolinate and biotin supplement from Nutrition 21) to prescription treatment regimens can...

Arakis' AD 337 completes Ph I.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Japanese drugmaker Sosei says that its wholly-owned subsidiary Arakis has successfully completed Phase I single and multidose studies of AD 337, a novel enantiomer of an approved centrally-acting non-opioid analgesic, which is under...

Actelion's Tracleer: strong results in Eisenmenger's syndrome.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Swiss drugmaker Actelion says that its cardiac drug Tracleer (bosentan) is the first ever to demonstrate clinical benefit in patients with Eisenmenger's syndrome, as part a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. ...

Roche and PDL expand daclizumab accord.(Protein Design Labs Inc.)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Swiss drug major Roche and USA-based humanized antibody specialist Protein Design Labs have expanded their partnership to co-develop and commercialize daclizumab for organ transplant patients on long-term, maintenance therapy. The two...

US FDA extends review period for Pfizer/ Sanofi-Aventis' Exubera three months.
November 7, 2005... US Food and Drug Administration approval of Exubera (insulin [rDNA origin] powder), an inhaled insulin product with peak annual US sales forecast at $1.5 billion, has been delayed by three months. Approval of the potential blockbuster,...

FDA approves GSK's cancer drug Arranon.(GlaxoSmithKline PLC)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... UK drug major GlaxoSmithKline says that the US Food and Drug Administration has approved its injectable chemotherapeutic Arranon (nelarabine), for the treatment of patients with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia and T-cell lymphoblastic...

Group Health's five principles for US health plans when deciding which drugs to cover.
November 7, 2005... With prescription drug costs rising faster than any other part of health care, more US insurers and health systems have begun adopting restrictive policies for coverage of newer drugs. How consumers and health care organizations can be sure...

US FDA mulls case-by-case approvals of follow-on biologics.(Food and Drug Administration)
November 7, 2005... The US Food and Drug Administration is considering making case-by-case decisions on biogeneric product approvals, according to Steven Kozlowski, acting director of the agency's Biologics Products Office. For some biogenerics there may be a...

Calif Rx Props neck-and-neck ahead of Nov 8.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... A late-October Internet poll showed Californians to be virtually equal in terms of support and opposition to the dueling pharmaceutical access initiatives included in Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's November 8 Special Election. The...

Abbott's Kaletra: price rise slammed.(Abbott Laboratories Inc.)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... The AIDS Healthcare Foundation has attacked the 7.9% price rise granted to Abbott Laboratories' reformulated HIV/AIDS drug Kaletra (lopinavir/ritonavir), approved by the US Food and Drug Administration on October 31, saying this increase far...

Core products boost Chugai's results.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Chugai, the Japanese subsidiary of Swiss drug major Roche, has reported strong results for the January-September 2005 period, due to growth of core products such as anti-influenza agent Tamiflu (oseltamivir) and cost controls. Despite...

Ranbaxy to invest $59M in new SEZ.(pharmaceutical special economic zone facility )(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... India's largest pharmaceutical firm, Ranbaxy, says that it plans to establish a "product-specific" pharmaceutical special economic zone facility on 80 acres of land in Mohali, Punjab, involving an investment of 2.65 billion rupees ($58.8...

Dr Reddy's profit up 72%, despite US pressures.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Indian drugmaker Dr Reddy's Laboratories has posted a 7% rise to 5.80 billion rupees ($128.9 million) in revenues for the second quarter ended September 2005 and, despite pricing pressure in the US generics market, a 72% leap to 890.0 million...

GlaxoSmithKline pleases with 3rd-qtr results and raised full-year guidance.
November 7, 2005... The world's second-largest pharmaceutical group, GlaxoSmithKline, has reported a 16% increase (at constant exchange rates) in pretax profit for the third quarter of 2005, which reached L1.75 billion ($3.10 billion), or 21.3 pence per share, on...

AstraZeneca posts whopping 52% 3rd-qtr EPS rise but disappoints investors.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Anglo-Swedish pharmaceuticals major AstraZeneca failed to please analysts and investors, despite reporting extremely strong third-quarter 2005 results, showing that turnover had increased 10% to 5.79 billion, with operating profit up 45% to...

Japan stock market week to Oct 31.
November 7, 2005... Tokyo saw a comeback in the week ended October 31 on active buying of domestic economy-oriented issues with favorable earnings prospects. The recovery of New York markets and positive economic data were also factors pushing up the Tokyo market....

Discovery gains milestone from Allergan.(Discovery Partners International Inc.)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... San Diego, USA-headquartered Discovery Partners International says that it has received a milestone payment from Allergan, for the identification of lead compounds from an on-going multi-target drug discovery collaboration. The two firms...

Sanofi Pasteur to license novel adjuvant from Eisai.(Eisai Company Ltd.)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Sanofi Pasteur, the vaccines business of French drugs giant Sanofi-Aventis, has entered into an agreement with Japan's Eisai to license its novel adjuvant, E6020, for use in the development of new vaccines to treat or prevent human illnesses....

CEL-SCI in $5M equity financing deal.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Virginia, USA-based CEL-SCI Corp, a developer of novel products for the treatment of cancer and infectious diseases, says that it has entered into a binding agreement to provide the company with up to $5.0 million in equity financing. Terms of...

Abbott gets FDA approval for new Kaletra formulation.(Abbott Laboratories Inc. (Abbott Park, Illinois))(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... US health care major Abbott Laboratories says that it has received Food and Drug Administration approval for a new tablet formulation of its HIV protease inhibitor Kaletra (lopinavir/ritonavir), which will allow adult patients to take fewer...

Teva gains US approval of glipizide and metformin.(Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... The US Food and Drug Administration has granted final approval for Israeli drugmaker Teva Pharmaceutical Industries' Abbreviated New Drug Application for glipizide and metformin hydrochloride tablets, 2.5mg/250mg, 2.5mg/500mg, and 5mg/500mg....

BFDA approves Savient's Soltamox.(Savient Pharmaceuticals Inc.)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Savient Pharmaceuticals, an emerging US specialty pharmaceutical company engaged in developing, manufacturing and marketing pharmaceutical products that address unmet medical needs, says that the Food and Drug Administration has approved its...

Enzon amends Oncospar deal with Sanofi group.(Enzon Pharmaceuticals Inc.)(Sanofi-Aventis S.A.)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... New Jersey, USA-based Enzon Pharmaceuticals says that it has amended its license agreement with members of the Sanofi-Aventis Group for the company's oncology product, Oncospar (pegaspargase). The amendment, which will become effective in...

Neurobiological gets $1.3M memantine royalty from Merz.(Neurobiological Technologies Inc.)(Merz und Company GmbH)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... US firm Neurobiological Technologies says that it has received a royalty payment of nearly $1.3 million from German company Merz Pharmaceuticals GmbH for sales of memantine for the treatment of moderate-to-severe Alzheimer's disease for the...

Czech Rep 's "very low rate of drug spending".(Czech Republic)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... The Czech Republic's low rate of annual per capita medicine spending, at 523 euros ($628.59), has been criticized by the multinational drugmakers' group in the country, the MAFS. The lowest spender is Poland at 93 euros, but France, the...

ABPI Rx info initiative targets cancer patients.(Association of the British Pharmaceutical industry)
November 7, 2005... As part of the UK's annual Ask About Medicines Week (November 7-11), the Association of the British Pharmaceutical industry has launched a cancer medicines information campaign with the national charity CancerBACUP. In a new development...

New UK Rx Code in Jan.(Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... The new version of the UK Code of Practice for the Pharmaceutical Industry will appear next January, the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry has said. The revisions will reflect stakeholders' concerns relating to the Code's...

Spain: pharma mobilizes over govt price plan.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... The Spanish drug industry association, Farmaindustria, has entered into urgent talks with major parliamentary groups to stress the industry's concern over the government's draft legislation affecting the drug sector (Marketletters passim). ...

Gates Foundation pledges $258.3M for malaria R&D, including GSK vaccine.(GlaxoSmithKline PLC)
November 7, 2005... The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has announced three grants totaling $258.3 million for advanced development of a malaria vaccine, new drugs and innovative mosquito control methods to help defeat malaria. The grants are for: - $107.6...

Roche OKs Tamiflu production in S Korea.(South Korea)
November 7, 2005... Swiss pharmaceutical major Roche has given its permission for local manufacturers in South Korea to produce its antiviral drug Tamiflu (oseltamivir), the Korean Food and Drug Administration has said. The KFDA announced on November 2 that it...

Solvay nine-month sales up 15%.(Solvay Pharmaceuticals B.V.)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... Belgian pharmaceuticals and chemicals group Solvay says that sales for the first three quarters of 2005 increased 15% to 6.24 billion euros ($7.47 billion), with pharmaceutical revenues rising 19% to 6.24 billion euros, chemicals up 15% at 20.8...

Altana's search for partner proving difficult.
November 7, 2005... German drugmaker Altana AG is finding the search for strategic partners in the pharmaceutical sector is proving difficult, with its current operation meeting with limited interest, note observers. Some European and US drugmakers have already...

York Pharma outlines ambitions for Japan.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... UK-headquartered York Pharma, which recently established a base in Japan, expects to file a New Drug Application for its lead product, the antifungal Abasol (abafungin), in that market in the second half of 2006, the firm's chief executive,...

Biomedical research investment grows 154% to $94B in last decade.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... A new report from Biomed Discoveries.com explores the soaring investment in US biomedical research in recent years, in the country's public and private sectors, and the practical implications and impact of this decade-long trend on emerging...

Dundee University gets L8M from Wellccome Trust for drug research.(Brief Article)
November 7, 2005... The UK's Dundee University has been awarded an L8.0 million ($14.2 million) grant by The Wellcome Trust to create a pioneering pharmaceutical research unit which will aim to bridge the gap between academia and the drug industry. The...