Russian laboratory equipment market

30-Mar-2007 - The expansion of a Russian laboratory exhibition highlights the growth in the Russian analytical and laboratory equipment market.

Industry News in Brief

30-Mar-2007 - It's been a busy week for acquisitions in the sector, with Beckmann Coulter purchasing Biosite, Roche acquiring 454, and Shimadzu agreeing to buy the assets of Evolved Digital Systems.

Horiba Jobin Yvon's Activa-M excites for bronze

30-Mar-2007 - A new inductively coupled plasma (ICP) optical emission spectrometer (OES) brings the technique into the hands of the non-expert for the first time.

Extreme pipetting

30-Mar-2007 - Artel is sending three of their employees to the most extreme environments in the US to demonstrate the impact of environmental conditions on pipetted volumes.

Cobra: 'process development is the key'

29-Mar-2007 - Process development is the key when outsourcing clinical supply biomanufacturing to a contractor, according to an industry player.

Sunny Skyes as injectables business falls to earth

29-Mar-2007 - UK firm SkyePharma has announced that it has finally completed the sale of its deadweight injectable business, freeing up the company to focus on the development of products that the...

EMEA 'passing the buck' with clinical trial guideline

29-Mar-2007 - The European Medicines Agency (EMEA) makes sensible recommendations in its recently released 'first-in-man' clinical trials guideline but is somewhat passing the buck, according to a statistician with expertise in clinical...

Gerresheimer expands pharma glass ops

29-Mar-2007 - German packaging firm Gerresheimer has bought up the glass manufacturing operations of an American packaging company in its second significant acquisition in three months.

Turning over a new leaf with cellulose drug delivery

28-Mar-2007 - A new cellulose-based drug delivery system could be on the horizon, according to a research team presenting their work this week in the US.

FDA wants tougher conflict-of-interest test for advisers

28-Mar-2007 - The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has tackled escalating concerns about the independence of its advisory committees by proposing more stringent criteria for avoiding potential conflicts of interest when...

Outsourcing key to manufacture 'combo products'

28-Mar-2007 - Outsourcing is key for pharma companies and medical device manufacturers keen to develop and produce "combination products" - medical devices embedded with a pharma component - according to an industry...

Microtest aseptic manufacturing expansion brings new contract

27-Mar-2007 - Microtest Labs has bagged a new contract with UK-based Antisoma to make clinical quantities of the firm's new cancer drug - just a few months after expanding its manufacturing capacity.

Novartis and Bayer bury the Betaseron hatchet

27-Mar-2007 - Novartis and Bayer Schering Pharma have come to an agreement regarding the production of multiple sclerosis (MS) drug Betaseron (interferon beta-1b), with Novartis planning to bring out its own version...

Dow and Colorcon in controlled release collaboration

27-Mar-2007 - Major chemical manufacturer Dow has struck a deal with long-term partner Colorcon forming an alliance to offer a unified package for the development and production of drug ingredients and products.

Rhodia to close French intermediates site

27-Mar-2007 - French chemicals company Rhodia has decided to shut down a local production site for its Rhodia Organics business, citing competitive pressures in the market for pharmaceutical and agrochemical intermediates.

International recruitment outsourcing set to boom

27-Mar-2007 - The demand for international assistance in recruitment processes from pharmaceutical companies is set to boom in the next 12 months, according to an industry player.

Chromos expects more cell engineering contracts as finances stabilise

26-Mar-2007 - Canada's Chromos Molecular Systems plans to step up the human resources behind its cell-line engineering business in anticipation of securing further clients within the next few months for its ACE...

DMF for ScinoPharm's docetaxel

26-Mar-2007 - Active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) specialist ScinoPharm has been assigned a drug master file (DMF) number for its anti-cancer ingredient docetaxel, the first such designation for the API in the US.

Contract manufacturing news in brief

26-Mar-2007 - Eden Biodesign, Pharmatec Laboratories, and SAFC Pharma have all announced new contract manufacturing deals this week.

Brazil to benefit from $19m biopharma deal

26-Mar-2007 - A Brazilian firm has signed a licensing deal to take advantage of a biopharmaceutical manufacturing technology which will allow the company to locally manufacture complex biopharmaceuticals destined for the South...

Kyowa Hakko to raise European amino acid prices

26-Mar-2007 - Kyowa Hakko Europe is to increase prices across its range of L-amino acids by ten per cent as of April 1, in an effort to stave off margin deterioration and...

Scripps researchers free natural product synthesis from the protection racket

26-Mar-2007 - New findings from The Scripps Research Institute in the US have challenged the conventional wisdom that protecting groups are a wearying yet unavoidable rung on the ladder to natural product...

Medical House autoinjector project into next phase

26-Mar-2007 - UK drug delivery and orthopaedic devices company The Medical House (TMH) is entering the second phase of a development project for a European defence agency involving its AutoSafety Injector (ASI)...

Agilent and ABI look east

23-Mar-2007 - Both Agilent and Applied Biosystems (ABI) have announced new facilities in Asia and are looking to gain from the increasing pharmaceutical industry presence in the region.

MDS to finalise Molecular Devices acquisition

23-Mar-2007 - MDS is nearing completion of its $615m (€461m) acquisition of the bio-analytical instrument maker Molecular Devices.

Technology Sector wins in the UK budget?

23-Mar-2007 - On the face of it, the UK's 2007 budget looks good for the technology sector with increased R&D tax relief - but is it all as good as it seems?...

AZs new PR&D centre leverages Indian chemistry expertise

22-Mar-2007 - AstraZeneca is leveraging the process chemistry expertise accumulated in India's generics industry and universities by opening a $15m (€11.3m) process research and development (PR&D) laboratory next to its existing research...

Tec-Tor film defends against contamination

22-Mar-2007 - A UK company has launched what it believes is a unique safeguard against film contamination in the pharmaceutical and food industries.

Patent for vaccine tech to up pandemic protection

22-Mar-2007 - A Canadian firm's vaccine technology platform with the potential to significantly boost global flu vaccine production has been granted its first patent.

Discovery Labs' nightmare ends as lawsuit dismissed

22-Mar-2007 - Discovery Laboratories has announced that a shareholder lawsuit filed against the company was dismissed by a Pennsylvania court, marking the end of its two-year manufacturing nightmare.

Nanocrystals could be route to carrier-free drug delivery

21-Mar-2007 - A novel method of delivering a hydrophobic (water-insoluble) drug, in which the compound effectively acts as its own carrier, has shown comparable efficacy both in vitro and in vivo to...

UK start-up enters contract manufacturing arena

21-Mar-2007 - A small UK company has entered the contract manufacturing arena by offering services to develop and make oral dose drugs and sterile injectables from its new facilities in England.

SoloStar insulin pen to debut on ease-of-use platform

21-Mar-2007 - Sanofi-Aventis is gearing up for the European roll-out of a new disposable insulin pen designed to address a broader spectrum of patient needs than currently available injection devices.

Fines and imprisonment for drug fakers in the EU

21-Mar-2007 - The European Parliament has backed proposed legislation to impose hefty fines and penalties on criminals taking part in piracy and counterfeiting activities.

New smart hologram transforms to protect pharma

21-Mar-2007 - An innovative new platform technology with a myriad of applications has been developed by a UK firm, and promises to be a novel arrow in the quiver of the pharma...

New wheat variety aids fight against blight

21-Mar-2007 - Researchers have created a new strain of wheat with an inbuilt resistance to devastating scab blight which infects wheat heads - reducing crop yields as well as market value and...

'Solid waste' gets a makeover

20-Mar-2007 - The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has proposed loosening requirements regarding certain types of recycling activities involving hazardous solid waste materials produced in chemical and pharmaceutical manufacturing.

Bradman Lake sheds packaging brands in restructuring

20-Mar-2007 - Packaging technology firm Bradman Lake is selling off recently acquired brands Albro, Dico and Gravfil only months after investing in a new multi-million pound manufacturing facility.

Pall protests patent breach

20-Mar-2007 - Pall has filed a patent infringement case in the US, claiming another firm is manufacturing and selling a device that violates patent protection of one of Pall's sterile connector products.

Cook Pharmica biologic facility wins award

20-Mar-2007 - US contract manufacturer Cook Pharmica has won an industry award for its biopharmaceutical facility.

Europe welcomes RFID with new guidelines

20-Mar-2007 - After a year of consultation, the European Commission has finally proposed guidelines for the implementation of radio frequency identification (RFID) technology in the EU.

Pharmaceutical manufacturing: people on the move

20-Mar-2007 - Albany Molecular Research, Ranbaxy Laboratories, IBS Pharma, PhRMA and Globalpharma have all had people on the move in the world of pharmaceutical manufacturing.

Affymetrix wins round one against Illumina

16-Mar-2007 - The US District Court of Delaware returned a verdict in favour of Affymetrix in the first stage of its patent infringement case against Illumina.

Thermo induces silver at Pittcon

16-Mar-2007 - A new mass spectrometer (MS) that is claimed will provide proteomics researchers with far more information than ever before, in dramatically reduced time frames, is now available.

Millipore licenses neural stem cells

16-Mar-2007 - A new licensing deal will allow Millipore to supply researchers with a commercial source of neural stem cells for the first time.

LAB trade show announced

16-Mar-2007 - A new laboratory equipment trade show in London has been announced filling the gap in the UK's trade exhibition landscape.

FDA comes down on Actavis

15-Mar-2007 - The New Jersey facility of Icelandic firm Actavis has been slapped with a warning letter from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) following inspections that revealed a concerning lack of...

Cambrex finally making a comeback

15-Mar-2007 - Cambrex's Q4 results show that the life sciences company is finally beginning to make a comeback after deciding to sell its Biopharma unit, blamed for much of the company's financial...

Sanofi to shut Irish plant

15-Mar-2007 - In the latest of a rash of pharmaceutical plant closures, Sanofi-Aventis has announced proposals to cease operations at its Waterford, Ireland site.

New biogenerics law no goldmine for CROs

15-Mar-2007 - A potential new law mandating the running of clinical trials before a "generic" biologic drug approval may seem like a potential goldmine for contract research organisations (CROs), however, this vision...

UK issues consultation on enforcing EU chemicals law

15-Mar-2007 - The UK has become one of the first countries in the EU to issue draft proposals on enforcing the bloc's new chemicals controls law, due to add to the regulatory...

In-PharmaTechnologist journalist honoured as award winner

15-Mar-2007 - In-PharmaTechnologist.com and Outsourcing-Pharma.com journalist Kirsty Barnes has received the honour of being announced among the place winners of the 2006 Awards for Excellence in Health Care Journalism (AHCJ).

Cobra to develop spore-based oral vaccines

15-Mar-2007 - UK biopharmaceutical Cobra has joined an international consortium to develop a new drug delivery technique based on live bacterial spores.

US Oncology kicks off E-pedigree protection

14-Mar-2007 - US Oncology has implemented an electronic pedigree system to protect its cancer drug distribution system, bringing it firmly in line with federal drug pedigree requirements and ensuring a more secure...

Fuji gets DMF for fast dissolving excipient

14-Mar-2007 - Japanese firm Fuji Chemical has been assigned a drug master file (DMF) number for its new excipient for fast-dissolving oral tablets.

Whatman makes it through the year

14-Mar-2007 - After getting through a difficult 2006, separation technology specialist Whatman has made it through to the end of the year, reporting preliminary annual financial results and looking towards a more prosperous 2007.

MDS Pharma profit dips further into the red

14-Mar-2007 - MDS has reported a lower first-quarter profit for its Pharma Services unit as a result of a regulatory probe of its operations.

Hospira's contract biz set for slump

14-Mar-2007 - Hospira's US injectables contract manufacturing unit reported a sales jump of 32 per cent to $43.4m (€33m), however, this stellar performance is not indicative of the strength of the unit...

US biotech firm ramps up bioprocessing capacity

14-Mar-2007 - Biotech company Grifols has announced the expansion of its US manufacturing capacity which will allow it to increase the production of its haemophilia therapies.

How to survive an FDA inspection

13-Mar-2007 - A new white paper is now available to offer drug manufacturers top tips on surviving a US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) inspection.

Mobile phones call up counterfeits

13-Mar-2007 - A twist on an existing security technology will use enhanced mobile phones to help establish the authenticity of pharmaceutical products in developing countries.

BMS extends large Lonza deal

13-Mar-2007 - Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) has extended its large contract manufacturing arrangement with Lonza by four years.

Micro-jets for painless needle-free injections

13-Mar-2007 - Novel needle-free injections that don't cause the pain and bruising common with existing needle-free devices have been developed by a team in California.

Patheon on the road to recovery

13-Mar-2007 - Patheon has managed to reduce its first-quarter loss as the company cut jobs and took steps to resolve issues at its troubled Puerto Rico plant.

Shire looking to buy more US biomanufacturing space

13-Mar-2007 - With a new drug on the market and its Massachusetts plant at capacity, British drug maker Shire is actively looking to buy more biomanufacturing space in the US.

Industry project aims to cut animal testing of excipients

12-Mar-2007 - 10 major pharmaceutical companies are taking part in an international data-sharing initiative to drive down the need for animal testing.

People on the move: pharmaceutical manufacturing

12-Mar-2007 - Qualicaps, Eurotherm, Acambis, Invetech have all had people on the move in the world of pharmaceutical manufacturing.

Avantium pushes crystallisation services forward

12-Mar-2007 - Crystallisation specialist Avantium is doubling its research capacity as demand for this type of services is set to grow.

UK to pull pseudoephedrine

12-Mar-2007 - Drugs containing pseudoephedrine and ephedrine could soon be reclassified as prescription-only the UK, in proposals drawn up last week by the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).

Oestrogen patch safer than pill

12-Mar-2007 - Amidst swirling concerns over the side-effects of oestrogen replacement therapy in postmenopausal women, new evidence suggests that using an oestrogen patch may be safer than taking a pill.

Pittcon Editors' Awards - 2007

09-Mar-2007 - The editors and reporters pick of the new product launches made at this year's Pittcon, held last week in Chicago, Illinois.

Waters pan for gold at Pittcon2007

09-Mar-2007 - The Pittcon 2007 gold-award winning mass spectrometer allows the differentiation of sample ions not only by charge and mass but also by size and shape.

Patenting stem cells is 'ethical'

09-Mar-2007 - A recent article published in the journal Stem Cell has advocated the patenting of isolated stem cell lines.

Genome study drives cancer drug development

09-Mar-2007 - The broadest ever survey of the human cancer genome has revealed that the number of mutated genes that can cause the disease is even greater than previously thought.

Drug imports debate rumbles on

08-Mar-2007 - Proposed legislation to allow cheap drug imports into the US met with opposition this week as representatives from the pharmaceutical industry resisted the move saying there are 'better, safer alternatives'...

World's first nanospecific safety label

08-Mar-2007 - A Swiss firm is offering the first process risk management and safety certification for pharma companies working with nanoparticles and technologies.

Stellar results H&R Wasag pharma unit

08-Mar-2007 - Operating profit has almost quadrupled at H&R Wasag's chemical-pharmaceutical raw materials division over 2006, hitting €82.4m for the year.

Paraytec's David snatches silver from Goliaths at Pittcon2007

08-Mar-2007 - A two-year-old lab equipment company has beaten off competition from more established rivals to scoop an award for its new UV detector.

Omnicare calls Cardinal to the repackaging rescue

08-Mar-2007 - Omnicare has picked Cardinal Health to be its contract repackager for the drugs previously produced at its troubled Ohio facility.

AstraZeneca protects Nexium supply chain

08-Mar-2007 - AstraZeneca has opted for unit-level mass serialisation in a bid to protect its drug supply chain from tamperers and counterfeiting.

FDA drug safety tracking system flawed, report says

07-Mar-2007 - The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has failed in its attempt to revamp its flawed drug safety tracking system, the Wall Street Journal reported last week, citing a report commissioned...

New online RNA access to speed drug discovery

07-Mar-2007 - Biobanking firm Asterand has launched a new online service to offer researchers access to human RNA samples via the internet that it claims could potentially speed up the early stage...

GSK ramping up drug production in Poland

07-Mar-2007 - UK drug goliath GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) is ramping up drug production at its Polish site as it prepares to more than double the number of markets the plant will supply.

New child-proof blisters

07-Mar-2007 - Alcoa Flexible Packaging has introduced a range of new child-resistant blister-lidding packaging solutions for the pharmaceutical market.

Inhaler to deliver powerful anti-flu drugs

07-Mar-2007 - A new dry power inhaler has been developed to deliver potent anti-influenza drug treatments that last longer and require only a single dose.

Second generation HIV drug enters clinical trials

07-Mar-2007 - The second generation of a new class of HIV drugs have entered clinical trials and could prove more difficult for HIV to develop resistance to, according to developers Panacos.

In-Pharma Technologist Special Feature

Focus on: radio frequency identification (RFID) technology

07-Mar-2007 - In-PharmaTechnologist takes an indepth look at the new radio frequency identification (RFID) technology that will soon revolutionise pharmaceutical supply chain management.

Liposome technology to help DNAi-based cancer drug delivery

07-Mar-2007 - Biotech company ProNAi Therapeutics plans to use a new liposome technology to help deliver its new class of DNA interference (DNAi)-based drug.

Alpharma's APIs benefit from generics sale

06-Mar-2007 - Revenues for Alpharma's active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) division went up by around $30m over fiscal 2006, over half of which was generated by products previously part of the company's divested...

Contract manufacturing news in brief

06-Mar-2007 - Dalton Pharma Services, Granules India and Lonza have all announced new contract manufacturing deals this week.

Spray-on contraceptives to penetrate $6.7bn market

06-Mar-2007 - Contraceptives delivered by a simple spray onto the skin are being developed in a bid to offer easier, more convenient pregnancy protection.

Eisai begins building its first European production plant

06-Mar-2007 - Eisai has today begun building a £100m (€147m) European headquarters in the UK which will include a new pharmaceutical manufacturing facility - its first production plant in Europe.

Zentiva snaps up Eczacibasi generics for €460m

06-Mar-2007 - Pharmaceutical manufacturer Zentiva has signed a deal acquiring 75 per cent of Turkish Eczacibasi's generic pharmaceuticals business for €460m, making it the third largest generics company in the country.

First anti-psychotic patch in development

06-Mar-2007 - Two US companies have teamed up to develop a prototype patch to deliver an existing anti-psychotic drug through the skin.

Flood of fake drugs must be stopped, warns UN

05-Mar-2007 - The flood of fake drugs now available in many countries must be tackled as it could have fatal consequences for consumers, a new UN report shows.

New vaccine technology holds double promise

05-Mar-2007 - A new nanotechnology-based vaccine delivery method could allow the development of single-dose vaccines as well as new vaccines in disease areas of unmet need.

Patheon to resuscitate thanks to $150m rescue

05-Mar-2007 - Canadian contract manufacturer Patheon has announced a $150m (€114m) investment by a private equity firm - a move the company sees as the best viable option to end its financial...

Bayer confirms over 6,000 job cuts

05-Mar-2007 - Bayer Healthcare last week confirmed that 6,100 jobs will be cut in the reshuffle following Bayer's takeover of Schering announced last year.

Oral strip for generic Zofran

05-Mar-2007 - A new rapidly dissolving oral strip for ondansetron, the active ingredient in GSK's anti-emetic drug Zofran, has been developed in a Swiss-German collaboration.

Agilent launch next generation GC instruments

02-Mar-2007 - Agilent looks to maintain its strong market presence in the gas chromatography (GC) sector with the launch of two new instruments.

Pharmacogenetics to fuel molecular diagnostics market

02-Mar-2007 - The market for molecular diagnostics is predicted to grow to over $92.1bn (€70m) by 2016, a significant jump from $17.9bn in 2006.

Alpha results for new cancer radiotherapy

02-Mar-2007 - An anti cancer therapy that emits the most lethal from of radiation has successfully made it through second stage human trials.

FDA delays at Wyeth site

01-Mar-2007 - Food and Drug Administration (FDA) staffing and timetabling problems have delayed the re-inspection of Wyeth's Puerto Rico site, the company said this week.

Contract manufacturing news in brief

01-Mar-2007 - Lonza, Athersys, TyRx Pharma, JFC and Precision Pharma Services have all announced new contract manufacturing deals this week.

First six-month cancer dosage introduced to Europe

01-Mar-2007 - MediGene's six-month dosage of its prostate cancer drug Eligard (leuprolide acetate) is now available in Germany, the company announced today.

Implantable/injectable drug delivery market set to hit $12.6bn by 2010

01-Mar-2007 - The implantable/injectable drug delivery market generated record revenues of $9.8bn (€7.4bn) worldwide in 2006 but is set to continue growing, driven by growing demand for novel drug delivery technologies.

High-shrink film covers unusually shaped containers

01-Mar-2007 - A new label film designed for narrow neck containers, can combine high-shrink properties with a tamper evident seal, its manufacturer claims.

Dry goods batch system operates remotely

01-Mar-2007 - A precision batching system for dry goods can be monitored from abroad, providing diagnostics and performance reports to managers working remotely, its manufacturer claims.