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Headlines > August 2006

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31-Aug-2006

IMA's order book packs in more sales

31-Aug-2006 - The recovery that has taken packaging and processing machinery company IMA to profitability in 2006 has continued, helped by new opportunities in the biotech sector and a strong growth in generics.

ZymoGenetics stings Bristol-Myers Squibb with patent lawsuit

31-Aug-2006 - Seattle drug firm ZymoGenetics has taken Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) to court for infringement of its fusion protein technology patents by several products, including arthritis medication Orencia (abatacept).

Maryland mulls 'vaccine manufacturing capital of the world' dream

31-Aug-2006 - Bruised by Novartis's snub over a $600m (€466m) vaccine plant, Maryland has commissioned a study on what more the state can do to attract a major cell culture vaccine manufacturing...

30-Aug-2006

Erbitux' success leads to 190m plant for Merck KGaA

30-Aug-2006 - Germany's Merck has announced its biggest investment in pharmaceuticals in its 338-year-old history, as its top-selling oncology drug Erbitux (cetuximab) has driven the company to allocate €190m for the construction...

Mylan in India's biggest pharmaceutical takeover as it enters the Matrix

30-Aug-2006 - US generic drugmaker Mylan has agreed to spend around $736m (€573.4m) to acquire a controlling stake in Matrix, an Indian manufacturer of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and solid oral dosage...

Scientists target receptors in new anthrax treatment

30-Aug-2006 - Scientists believe they have discovered a novel way in treating people suffering from anthrax poisoning, which could overcome the problem of antibiotic resistance that is becoming increasingly common in southern...

FDA's thumbs up to PFI reverberates through outsourcing industry

30-Aug-2006 - In the first drug master file (DMF) approval of its kind, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the sale of metformin hydrochloride tablets which are produced by...

29-Aug-2006

Patheon breaks into drug delivery

29-Aug-2006 - Canadian contract manufacturer Patheon has teamed up with specialty pharmaceutical firm Depomed to offer its clients a controlled release formulation which can grant their drugs increased bioavailability and less frequent...

Novozymes quenches biopharma thirst down under

29-Aug-2006 - Industrial enzyme maker Novozymes is seeking to strengthen its presence in the biopharmaceutical market by offering to acquire Australian biotechnology firm Gropep for AUD83.6m (€49.6m), eager to become a supplier...

Altus and Althea pair up

29-Aug-2006 - Biopharmaceutical firm Altus has asked contract manufacturer Althea to produce Phase III quantities of a crystallised formulation of human growth hormone (hGH) which can be administered subcutaneously weekly instead of...

25-Aug-2006

New protein discovery gives hope to bowel disease sufferers

25-Aug-2006 - Researchers have identified a protein that is thought to defend the intestinal against microbial invaders offering new insights into how the intestine fends off pathogens and potentially leading to new...

24-Aug-2006

Thermo experiences high operating profit growth

24-Aug-2006 - Thermo Electron has reported an operating profit growth of 26 per cent to $143.2m (€111.2m) and boosted its profit margin by three percentage points to 20 per cent in its...

Fisher reports profit jump

24-Aug-2006 - Fisher Scientific has reported a second-quarter pre-tax profit jump of 31 per cent to $146.1m (€113.4m), reflecting the success of recent acquisitions and operating initiatives.

Pharmacists want manufacturers to sort out their tablets

24-Aug-2006 - Difficulties in identifying tablets have emerged as a major issue in a recent US survey of 150 pharmacists who are warning drugmakers that the lack of distinct appearance in pills...

Teva axes Ivax' Puerto Rico facility

24-Aug-2006 - Looking for $45m (€35m) in savings, Teva has decided to abandon its drug manufacturing plant in Cidra, Puerto Rico, as it scrambles to adjust capacity seven months after its acquisition...

NPIL expands high potency API facility in Scotland

24-Aug-2006 - Strong demand for anti-cancer cytotoxic active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) has led Nicholas Piramal (NPIL) Pharma to upgrade infrastructure and hire more staff at its high potency substances (HPS) facility in...

23-Aug-2006

Consumables and contract manufacturing the drivers of the bioprocessing industry

23-Aug-2006 - Despite its consolidation, the competitive consumable sector still offers potential for rapid growth and better profits in the biopharmaceutical industry, while contract bioprocessing services will be increasingly in demand, according...

Rexam's Indian pharma packaging dreams come true

23-Aug-2006 - Rexam, the world's largest beverage can maker, has bought Indian pharmaceutical packaging firm Truepack for £5m (€7.3m), hungry for a slice of the country's growing pharma market.

Researchers show efficacy of first Staph drug for decades

23-Aug-2006 - Researchers have demonstrated the effectiveness of a new drug for treating infections caused by Staphylococcus aureus bacteria representing the first drug of its kind to be FDA approved in two...

Merck offers first glimpse of $300m vaccine plant

23-Aug-2006 - For the first time Merck has opened the doors of its under-construction manufacturing plant in North Carolina to public officials, boasting it will eventually contribute about two-thirds of its annual...

22-Aug-2006

Plant survey: Performance gaps of drug manufacturers exposed

22-Aug-2006 - A survey of eleven production plants of major drugmakers has revealed considerable variation in capacity utilisation, with the top performers being those who embrace automation and spend little on non-core...

New automated tool to remove sample tube caps

22-Aug-2006 - Instrumentation provider ABgene has launched the first automated device for the opening and closing of screw caps on sample tubes that it claims is three times faster than the manual...

Emergent BioSolutions flaunts $75m anthrax vaccine production facility

22-Aug-2006 - Buoyed by lucrative biodefense contracts, Emergent BioSolutions has showcased a new large-scale vaccine production facility in Michigan which it will use to make Biothrax, the only vaccine approved in the...

New patent strengthens Generex' oral insulin spray

22-Aug-2006 - Generex has registered a new patent in the US that covers broad claims for the delivery of macromolecules via the buccal cavity of the mouth, further safeguarding its RapidMist drug...

Opto Technology launches new heater plate

22-Aug-2006 - Optoelectronic specialist Opto Technology has launched a new low profile heater plate to be used for thermal reactions.

Wanted: science and business journalists

22-Aug-2006 - As it continues to expand, Decision News Media is currently seeking two new journalists to join its Pharmaceutical & Science News Group in Central London.

21-Aug-2006

Novartis seeks to patch up Alzheimer's drug delivery

21-Aug-2006 - Patients suffering from Alzheimer's disease are one step closer to receiving Novartis's Exelon as a transdermal patch instead of a capsule following an international clinical study which showed that the...

Byetta supply recovers on the back of Baxter production

21-Aug-2006 - A cartridge shortage that forced Amylin and Eli Lilly to ask 40,000 physicians in the US to stop prescribing their injectable diabetes drug Byetta to new patients has come to...

Pearlescent pigments may help halt counterfeiting, says Merck KGaA

21-Aug-2006 - Newly-approved pearlescent pigments that can produce sparkly metallic, satiny and shimmery finishes on drug coatings could be used as one additional step in the fight against counterfeiting, say its developers,...

17-Aug-2006

Bio-Rad buys Ciphergen's life science instrument business

17-Aug-2006 - Ciphergen Biosystems has agreed to sell its proteomics instrument business to life science research firm Bio-Rad Laboratories for $20m (€15.6m).

Dendreon completes plant for world-first cancer vaccine

17-Aug-2006 - Dendreon has finished the construction of its New Jersey manufacturing facility which it will use to produce its investigational active cellular immunotherapy for advanced prostate cancer, hoping to be the...

AMRI fishes manufacturing contract in New River

17-Aug-2006 - Albany Molecular Research (AMRI) has announced a multi-year drug substance manufacturing agreement with New River Pharmaceuticals, as its attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medicine looks set to hit the market.

Pearlescent pigments may help halt counterfeiting, says Merck

17-Aug-2006 - Newly-approved pearlescent pigments that can produce sparkly metallic, satiny and shimmery finishes on drug coatings could be used as one additional step in the fight against counterfeiting, say its developers,...

FDA under pressure to 'open the floodgates' for biogenerics

17-Aug-2006 - Spurred on by the frustration of drug manufacturers, governors from four US states have petitioned the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for clarity in their requirements for the production...

New automated cell counting tool to save labs time

17-Aug-2006 - Nexcelom Bioscience, a provider of instruments for cell-based assays, has just launched a new cell counter to make the cell counting process quicker and easier.

16-Aug-2006

Packaging belongs to manufacturers says trade body

16-Aug-2006 - US manufacturers must stop shipping prescription drugs in bulk containers, leaving pharmacies to repackage them, as this practice makes the supply chain more vulnerable and leads to medication errors, the...

Merck 'delayed or impeded' probe into release from production plant

16-Aug-2006 - Pennsylvania environmental regulators have accused Merck of hampering their investigation of a chemical discharge from its West Point facility that resulted in a major fish kill on the local creek...

European inhaled insulin market to explode

16-Aug-2006 - The convenience of non-invasive insulin delivery methods is set to overcome their high cost and concerns about safety and efficacy, with the greatest beneficiary being the European inhaled insulin market...

15-Aug-2006

Researchers identify potential new RA pathway

15-Aug-2006 - Biogen has revealed details of a potential new pathway in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) that could provide unique insights into the disease process and eventually a new approach to developing RA...

Embrex helps Chinese vaccine producer not to lay an egg

15-Aug-2006 - Agricultural firm Embrex has installed its in ovo delivery system and egg remover at the production facility of Shenzhen Neptunus Interlong, believed to be the largest and most advanced human...

New light microscope to pinpoint single proteins

15-Aug-2006 - Researchers have developed a new light microscope that is so powerful ituses a nanometre-scale resolution to spot individual proteins in a cell byusing a fluorescent labelling method.

India geared up for unprecedented manufacturing growth

15-Aug-2006 - India's potential to further boost its already dominant role in global generics production, as well as an offshore location of choice for contract manufacturing, presents an opportunity worth an estimated...

Manufacturing double whammy to cost Patheon millions

15-Aug-2006 - More problems at Patheon's Puerto Rican production facilities in the third quarter of 2006 are expected to reduce the contract manufacturer's earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) by...

14-Aug-2006

FDA cracks down on the unauthorised production of inhalation drugs

14-Aug-2006 - The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has censured three American national pharmacies for using the traditional practice of compounding as a ruse in order to operate as drug manufacturers,...

Genzyme given green light to make kidney drug at Irish plant

14-Aug-2006 - US biotech firm Genzyme has been given a green light by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to begin manufacturing its kidney drug at its Waterford facility in Ireland.

IBM pushes RFID for pharma

14-Aug-2006 - IBM has unveiled a radio frequency identification (RFID) system for the tracking and tracing of pharmaceuticals, confident it will accelerate the adoption of the technology by the drug industry.

Defence peptide forms basis for new HIV drug

14-Aug-2006 - Researchers have theorised that a peptide found in primates could halt the HIV-1 virus from infecting blood cells. The discovery could form the crux of an effective drug therapy, which...

11-Aug-2006

In-vitro genotoxicity proves viable alternative to animal testing

11-Aug-2006 - Gentronix has been granted a research award, which is to fund a potentially viable alternative to animal testing, reducing the need for their use during drug development.

10-Aug-2006

Lonza losing out to Asian competition

10-Aug-2006 - While Lonza's biopharmaceutical business has taken off, tough competition from cheap Asian competitors is eating away at its exclusive synthesis business - meanwhile, the whole business is being hit by...

Infra-Red analyser awarded best product

10-Aug-2006 - An Infra-Red analyser has been named one of the Top 100 most technologically significant products introduced into the marketplace over the past year.

Seeing through formulation problems

10-Aug-2006 - Drug manufacturers are increasingly turning to specialised providers of analytical services for the solid state characterisation of their formulations, seeking answers to processing issues, drug delivery challenges and even protecting...

Changing a drug to match a drug delivery technology

10-Aug-2006 - When selecting a pharmaceutical formulation, the conventional wisdom has been to manipulate a drug delivery platform to make it compatible with a drug's properties, yet the opposite approach may have...

New test to identify patients at low blood clot risk

10-Aug-2006 - Researchers have found that a simple and inexpensive test can help determine which patients with venous thromboembolism (VTE) are at low risk for recurrence and can therefore avoid unnecessary and...

Campbell Brothers targets Scandinavian market

10-Aug-2006 - Australian-owned Campbell Brothers has entered the Scandinavian laboratory market by acquiring Swedish-based lab group Analytica.

09-Aug-2006

Manufacturing affects protein performance

09-Aug-2006 - The excipients used in a protein formulation and the method of production can impact not just the physical and chemical stability of biologics but also their in vitro and in...

Pharma industry to drive activated carbon growth

09-Aug-2006 - The global demand for virgin activated carbon is tipped to rise five per cent per year to reach 1.2m metric tons by 2010, fuelled by increased use in the pharmaceutical sector.

DNA hunt uncovers important target gene

09-Aug-2006 - In their hunt for DNA that is amplified in cancers, researchers have discovered a new cancer-promoting role for a gene that has been shown to transform mammary epithelial cells into...

EU pharma manufacturers face increased costs under new customs restrictions

09-Aug-2006 - Pharmaceutical manufacturers will be among a number of exporters and importers operating within the EU that face paying tens of millions of euros to comply with a new regulation aimed...

08-Aug-2006

West profits surge; Exubera contract gains momentum

08-Aug-2006 - West Pharmaceutical Services has reported a huge surge in both sales and profits for its second quarter, spurred on by the increasing demand for injectable drugs as well as the...

Optical discovery opens way to lab-on-a-chip technology

08-Aug-2006 - Researchers have created a compact optical device that could make"lab-on-a-chip" possible by shrinking all the sensing power of biosensorsand developing a new design for photonic crystals in the process. ...

New two-fluid nozzle for inhaled drug production

08-Aug-2006 - Niro Pharma Systems has launched a new spray-drying nozzle to produce commercial quantities of fine powder drugs for inhalation.

When fine chemical firms flirt with drug delivery

08-Aug-2006 - Pharmaceutical excipients can have a profound impact on the release profile of drugs, driving fine chemical companies to raise their game since they realise their clients see excipients as more...

07-Aug-2006

Merck Sharp & Dohme Singapore investment tops S$1bn

07-Aug-2006 - Merck Sharp & Dohme (MSD) has invested $100m to expand its manufacturing plant in Singapore, bringing the drug giant's investment in this budding region to over S$1bn (€0.5bn).

Steritool launches cleanroom-friendly crowbar

07-Aug-2006 - Steritool has launched the world's first crowbar made entirely of stainless steel - designed to serve in zero-particulate environments and eliminate contamination.

Scaling up for commercialisation

07-Aug-2006 - Failure to get it right in designing and implementing a manufacturing process results in the loss of time and money, but the risk of this can be minimised if some...

Nanogen and Fisher Scientific expand molecular diagnostics deal

07-Aug-2006 - Nanogen and Fisher Scientific have announced an expansion to their relationship to include a research and development collaboration in molecular diagnostics. The collaboration agreement complements Fisher's equity investment in Nanogen...

03-Aug-2006

The whole nine yards in drug delivery development

03-Aug-2006 - More and more drugmakers are turning to health care companies not just for their drug delivery technologies but also for their regulatory and manufacturing expertise, asking them to take their...

New method to "glue" cells on carriers

03-Aug-2006 - Researchers have developed a new method by which cells can be glued to an exact position on a carrier.

Cambrex yet to stem Biopharma bleed

03-Aug-2006 - Cambrex's Q2 results show that the life sciences firm is slowly making a comeback after being crushed by a $140.3m (€116.7m) loss in Q4, however, it has failed to completely...

Canadian lab named reference centre for BSE

03-Aug-2006 - Canada's National Centre for Foreign Animal Disease (NCFAD) has been designated as a reference lab for Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) by the World Organisation for Animal Health known as the...

Is big pharma killing innovation in drug formulation? - GSK defends the industry

03-Aug-2006 - Are big pharma companies uninterested in supporting novel formulations, preferring to stick to low-risk drug delivery systems, or are they resourceful innovators that bring new technologies to the market? Two...

02-Aug-2006

CHDI and Edison target therapy for Huntington's

02-Aug-2006 - CHDI and Edison Pharmaceuticals have entered into alliance that looks to develop effective therapeutics in targeting Huntingdon's disease - a disorder that currently has no way to stop or reverse...

FDA moves to quell claims over conflict of interest

02-Aug-2006 - The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will beef up its process for disclosing the conflicts of interest of its advisory experts in a bid to restore its reputation after a...

Nektar abandons UK operations

02-Aug-2006 - Nektar Therapeutics has closed its processing plant in Bradford, UK as it shifts its focus to developing its own drug products using its own drug delivery technology.

The challenges of protein formulation

02-Aug-2006 - Even with the most advanced analytical equipment, elucidating the complete conformational characteristics of proteins still represents mission impossible, often making their formulation problematic, yet there are always ways to improve...

01-Aug-2006

India's pharma market says: "Enter the Dragon"

01-Aug-2006 - Chinese company Dragon International has fought its way into its first packaging materials distribution deal in the burgeoning Indian pharmaceutical market.

FDA red-faced over claims it is suppressing evidence

01-Aug-2006 - The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has been left red-faced after a survey recently released by the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), found a "disturbing level of interference in the...

PerkinElmer acquisitions expands maternal diagnostics arm

01-Aug-2006 - PerkinElmer has announced the acquisition of Macri Technologies and NTL Laboratories in a deal that means the Health Sciences and Photonics company take charge of a novel screening test for...

Overcoming bottlenecks in the manufacturing of biologics

01-Aug-2006 - Most pharmaceutical companies know little about how to make biopharmaceuticals on a large scale and so they need to develop in-house expertise as well as outsource several steps in their...

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