The Challenge of Change - Managing Excipients Control
Colorcon
| « Previous month | Next month » |
Microscopy giants Olympus have added a confocal laser scanning microscope to its ever expanding range packing this latest model with a 1310 nm laser that can image components encased within a silicon shell.
A prominent medical institution is putting its money where its mouth is by providing $600m funding for high risk research to advance scientific discovery in biological fields that include microbiology, genetics, and immunology.
Canada has bought its laboratory legislation in line with other international standards as the country proposes new legislation designed to tighten safety and access to human pathogens and toxins.
The world's first high-powered benchtop wavelength dispersive XRF spectrometer has been introduced as high-precision analysis at low concentration levels is now available to laboratories and research institutions.
A recently published study extolling the virtues of using maize to produce the next generation of drugs believes that AIDS sufferers could be the first to benefit if regulations can contain the inherent risks of using plants.
in-PharmaTechnologist's round-up of developments in the field of drug delivery, this week includes: Access' Cobalamin technology; AlphaRx' nanobiotics; Inovio's DNA delivery system; and PTG.
Genetically modified (GM) maize is the most effective biomanufacturing platform for the production of monoclonal antibodies to combat HIV, according to research published in PNAS.
Adoption of a new chemical technique could make manufacturing a drug considerably more "green", according to research in Angewandte Chemie.
A 20ft container of counterfeit pharmaceuticals has been impounded by the Nigerian National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC).
India's Neuland Laboratories is expanding its service offering with a shift into contract research and clinical testing via a joint venture with Cato Research of the US.
in-PharmaTechnologist.com presents its periodic round-up of personnel changes in pharmaceutical manufacturing and development.
US-based Novavax has made advances in its attempt to develop a vaccine to combat severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) by improving the production of a key component.
Packaging and printing specialist Cadmus is to start making an intelligent pharmaceutical packaging with enhanced child-resistance for clients in US the drug industry.
Specialty pharmaceutical firm Durect has begun manufacturing the key components of Remoxy, ahead of a planned NDA filing.
The Indian Drug Manufacturer's Association (IDMA) believes that local firms may be forced to stop production of some medications in as little as two months unless national price restrictions are relaxed.
A pump-powered nebulizer for delivering vaccinations in the developing world is being worked on by researchers at Aerovax, at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
An artificial self-assembling virus capable of serving as a drug delivery system has been created by researchers in Korea, according to a publication in Angewandte Chemie.
Pharmaceutical manufacturers are now withdrawing from manufacturing at an unprecedented rate, with four of the top 10 players announcing major new outsourcing programmes in 2007, says IMS in a new document which explores the implications of that trend.
Michigan-based drugmaker Perrigo and Cobrek Pharmaceuticals, a newly formed subsidiary of Pentech Pharmaceuticals, are teaming up to develop a range of topical generic products for the dermatology sector.
Irish drugmaker Elan is considering a separate stock exchange listing for its contract services unit, Elan Drug Technology, according to comments by executives at its recent annual general meeting.
in-PharmaTechnologist.com's periodic round-up of developments in the pharmaceutical manufacturing space includes one production deal, news on India's API sector and an update on Jubilant's move to acquire Draxis.
Buccal drug delivery specialist Generex Biotechnology reports that the production of its chewing gum-based metformin, MetControl, has been completed ahead of forthcoming trials in patients with diabetes.
Prometheus Laboratories has initiated US Phase II trials of Colal-Pred, a treatment for ulcerative colitis which uses Alizyme's drug delivery technology to provide therapeutics solely to the colon.
Process chemistry specialist ThalesNano and Sanofi-aventis R&D are teaming up to examine the development and implementation of continuous process technologies in the latter's manufacturing facilities.
The Transatlantic Economic Council (TEC) has set out its vision of how increased cooperation between the US and European Union can improve the pharmaceutical regulatory process.
Invitrogen has announced the creation of a new business unit that aims to further integrate its presence within the cell therapy market, as it aims to stamp its authority specifically in the cell analysis tools market.
The repercussions of America's foreign policy on science research were partially addressed this week as the Senate looked to top up the National Institutes of Health's (NIH) 2008 budget by $400m.
Cell culture analysis specialists, Innovatis makes available a new range of bench-top systems that boasts a standardised cell counting and analysis of the quality of cell culture samples in as little as 10 seconds.
Germany's Rentschler Biotechnologie and Boehringer Ingelheim have inked a preferred partnership agreement to jointly offer customers a more streamlined biopharmaceutical production option.
in-PharmaTechnologist.com presents its periodic round-up of personnel changes in pharmaceutical manufacturing and development.
The new StabilitySolutions line of high-barrier plastic bottles aims to set new standards for pharmaceutical packaging, according to its developer.
UK governmental body the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has issued its response to the European Commission's proposals to tackle counterfeiting.
Archimedes Development, a subsidiary of Archimedes Pharma, expects that the intellectual property it has licensed from fellow UK firm Ploughshare Innovations will help extend the application of its ChiSys drug delivery system.
Big pharma's lust for biotech's pipelines appears to be continuing unabated with a record $27bn-worth of acquisitions and licensing deals being made last year.
XF-73, a new gel-based bacteriocidal drug being developed by UK biotechnology firm Destiny Pharma, could represent a significant advance in the battle against bacterial resistance.
Germany's Gerresheimer has now finished all the preparatory work required for the sale of its technical plastics division and will start the process of finding a buyer shortly.
The Indian government is close to rubber-stamping an $80bn industrial hub near Vishakhapatnam (Vizag) which is expected to attract pharmaceutical companies to the region.
The FDA has issued US drug maker Scientific Laboratories with an injunction preventing it from producing drugs until manufacturing operations are brought up to code.
Cambridge Major Laboratories, VGX Pharmaceuticals, Xcelience and Dr Reddy's Laboratories have all recently announced new contract manufacturing news.
Cambridge Major Laboratories (CML) says that it will begin construction of its new $30m (€19.2m) high tech API prodcution facility in June.
A grim future awaits workers in the French pharmaceutical industry, with 32,000 jobs at risk between 2005 and 2015, according to a study commissioned by Leem, the French pharmaceutical industry body.
The European Union's 2007 pharmaceutical counterfeiting data shows that almost 40 per cent of fake medicines seized by the EU originated in Switzerland.
Packaging component manufacturer West Pharmaceutical Services has shrugged off the after-effects of a difficult 2007 with an increase in revenues in the first quarter of 2008 that came ahead of analyst estimates.
Pharmaceutical companies are having to radically change their practices when it comes to tackling emerging markets such as China, India, Russia and Brazil, according to IMS.
Tongjitang Chinese Medicines, which produces traditional treatments, has stopped manufacturing operations at its facility in Guiyang, Guizhou province due to damage caused by the recent earthquake.
Germany-based chemical company BASF has committed itself to doubling its manufacturing capacity for certain alkylethonalamines by mid 2009.
Pfizer is planning to close its Terre Haute, Indiana manufacturing facility which had received $300m of investment to prepare it for Exubera production.
SynCo Bio Partners has completed production of AG011 for ActoGenIX, enabling the latter firm to begin examining it in patients suffering from ulcerative colitis (UC).
Bio-Rad unleashes its new real-time PCR detection system to the scientific community that aims to make genetic research less laborious by introducing unique features to aid real-time PCR experiments to analyzing gene expression.
Becton Dickinson (BD) revealed this week that it has purchased all of the outstanding stock of Cytopeia, which produces advanced flow cytometry cell sorting instruments. The acquisition further expands BD's range of flow cytometry platforms.
This year's Interpack exhibition in Düsseldorf, Germany saw the launch of a range of new packaging, analytical and manufacturing solutions for the pharmaceutical industry.
The European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA) has called for a ban on the repackaging of medicines as part of a "zero tolerance" approach to the growing problem of counterfeit medicines in the region.
in-PharmaTechnologist.com presents its periodic round-up of personnel changes in pharmaceutical manufacturing and development.
The Chinese State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA) has revealed plans to tighten the drug registration review process as it attempts to improve standards in the nation.
Bushu Pharmaceuticals, Japan's largest dedicated contract manufacturer, has been going from strength to strength as Japan's pharma outsourcing industry awakens.
Another difficult quarter for US-based packaging company Chesapeake has seen it make plans to close its factory in Brussels, Belgium.
Creation of complex therapeutic proteins appears to have taken a sizeable step forward after researchers increased production levels 300-fold.
The opening of ORF Genetics' $1m production site for recombinant proteins in Grindavik, Iceland, is yet another groundbreaking move by this year's winner of the Icelandic Centre for Research's innovation award.
IMS has identified 10 critical developments in 2007 that could have a fundamental effect on the operating environment for pharmaceutical companies in the coming years.
2005 marked the real beginning of contract manufacturing in Japan, which had been held back by an overly-cautious regulatory environment and significant and unique quality and specification demands in the marketplace.
Agilent's purchase of DowPharma's Nucleic Acid Medicines business is the second time in recent years that the US scientific measurements specialist has ramped-up its nucleic acid manufacturing capabilities.
China is on course to having its own version of the International Pharmaceutical Excipients Council - joining its fellow organisations in Europe, the Americas and Japan.
In-PharmaTechnologist's periodic round-up of events in the pharmaceutical excipient space includes one product launch and two regulatory developments.
Canada-based Biovail has revealed plans to close two Puerto Rican manufacturing plants and lay off 250 people as it attempts to cut costs.
Switzerland-based Schweizerhall appears to have circumnavigated patent law, with approval of its generic version of Bristol-Myers Squibb's (BSM) and Sanofi-Aventis' Plavix (clopidogrel bisulfate) in Germany "expected shortly".
The decision to end manufacturing operations at its facility in Morgan Hill, California in the next three years may cost Hospira up to $35m (€22.7m), according to a document the firm filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Cambrex has experienced a jump in profitability for the first quarter 2008, despite a decrease in sales, assisted by previous cost-cutting initiatives.
With its new Eisai Machinery Shanghai (EMS) subsidiary, Eisai is hoping to increase both its sales and manufacturing support presence in China.
Researchers have discovered a method of producing human monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) in just a few weeks, as opposed to three months using traditional techniques.
Although Japan's pharma market sits in firm second position on the global stage, the country's foothold is slipping as other more innovative countries grasp for a greater presence.
Applied Biosystems (ABI) reported slight revenue rises in its third quarter performance, but long term, the lab firm acknowledged its instrument arm had been negatively affected by a weakened pharmaceutical environment.
Scientists have uncovered a technique that significantly shortens the automation time for a particular method that analyses cell cultures and other biologically important specimens.
Continued weakness in the market for products used in the manufacture of biologic drugs was the main reason why Millipore experienced a 'challenging' quarter, according to CEO Martin Madaus.
Goodwin Biotechnology has announced that it has finally completed the construction of its expanded manufacturing facilities, which were 10 years in the planning.
UK-based Cambridge Consultants has developed a portable instrument which it says could "revolutionise" the way airborne drug delivery devices are tested.
Pfizer's plans for a new €190m manufacturing plant in Shanbally, Ireland suggest that the firm is intent on fulfilling its pledge to become a "top five biologics producer in the next eight years."
Teva's sales of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) for the first quarter of 2008 rose by 51 per cent on the previous years figure, taking to total to $510m.
GEA Pharma Systems believes that its new Performa P system, which was presented at this year's Interpack conference in Dusseldorf, Germany, can help increase output and reduce costs for tablet manufacturers worldwide.
A heart medication sold by Mylan Laboratories in the US has had to be recalled, after it emerged that some doses may contain twice the intended dose of active ingredient.
US scientists have developed a system of 'microcontainers' that one day could enable the simultaneous and targeted delivery of a range of drug dosages in a single injection.
US-based Chesapeake's manufacturing facility in Kunshan, China has become the first pharmaceutical packaging plant in the nation to receive the PS9000:2001 certification.
Italy-based IMA has posted a 30.3 per cent increase in net operating profit for the 2007 calendar year, taking the total to $108m.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has sent Merck & Co a warning letter saying it has failed to correct a number of manufacturing deficiencies at its main vaccine manufacturing plant in West Point, Pennsylvania.
QSV Biologics, SynCo Bio Partners and the American Peptide Company have all recently announced new contract manufacturing news.
UK-based AM Technology has developed the Coflore Agitated Cell Reactor (ACR) which it claims offers significant advantages over traditional continuous stirred tank reactors.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has withdrawn its long-standing block on the manufacture of new products at Watson Pharmaceuticals' facility in Davie, Florida.
| « Previous month | Next month » |