DSM invests in microchip compliance packaging

30-Sep-2008 - DSM has invested in The Compliers Group (TCG), a company developing pharmaceutical packaging containing microchips to monitor a patient's compliance.

Marketing deal for Prosonix’s SonoLab

30-Sep-2008 - Syrris has become the primary marketer for Prosonix’s new SonoLab laboratory scale sonocrystallisation and sonoprocessing equipment.

Pharma manufacturing products: News in brief

30-Sep-2008 - in-PharmaTechnologist.com’s latest round up of products launched in the pharmaceutical manufacturing sector includes new offerings from Premier Pneumatics, GE Healthcare and WaterSep.

Handheld device for validating raw materials

29-Sep-2008 - Ahura Scientific has launched an updated version of its TruScan handheld instrument, which allows for raw materials to be quickly verified.

PEPFAR drops Ranbaxy from recommended list

29-Sep-2008 -  Ranbaxy’s antiretrovirals zidovudine, lamivudine, and nevirapine have been removed from PEPFAR’s list of approved products until ongoing GMP problems at two of the firm’s Indian manufacturing plants are resolved. ...

Sagent acquires rights to multi-chamber syringe

29-Sep-2008 - Sagent Pharmaceuticals has acquired the rights to a patented, multi-chamber, sequential dose syringe from Infusive Technologies.

BioTrove clears the way for new disease pathway research

28-Sep-2008 -  BioTrove has launched a series of assay panels that enable researchers to skip the laborious initial steps of gene selection and assay optimisation and start studying disease pathways straightaway.

TTP mosquito nanolitre liquid handler ‘bulks up’

26-Sep-2008 -  TTP LabTech has transformed its ‘mosquito’ nanolitre liquid handler into a highly flexible system for preparing microplates for high throughput (HT) screening applications.

Dragon files new drug packaging film with SFDA

25-Sep-2008 -  Chinese packaging specialist Dragon International is seeking SFDA marketing approval for a new composite film product for the suppository drug market. 

Teva Kowa JV to target Japanese generics market

25-Sep-2008 -  Teva and Kowa have set their sights on Japan’s $4.6bn (€3.1bn) generics market with their development and manufacturing joint venture Teva-Kowa Pharma.  

Alpharma licenses transdermal delivery patch

25-Sep-2008 - Alpharma has licensed an investigational transdermal bupivacaine patch from Durect for an initial $20m, with further payments based on reaching developmental milestones.

Manufacturing facility news in brief

24-Sep-2008 -  in-PharmaTechnologist.com’s periodic round-up of developments in the pharmaceutical manufacturing space includes news on MannKind, Nycomed, ABS and Tris. 

Pfizer’s API unit to use Prosonix' Prosonitron

24-Sep-2008 - Prosonix, a specialist developer of ultrasonic industrial processing solutions, says that global drug giant Pfizer is to begin using its Prosonitron reactor and sonocrystallisation technology at its manufacturing facility in...

Health Canada adds to Ranbaxy’s woes

24-Sep-2008 - A domino effect appears to have been started by the FDA blocking Ranbaxy imports, with other regulatory bodies paying close attention to the generics giant.

EU cash for plant cell biosynthesis

24-Sep-2008 - The production of pharmaceutical products in plant cells has been given a boost, after the European Union ploughed $8.8m into a research programme.

Zentiva board accepts Sanofi’s revised €1.8bn offer

23-Sep-2008 -  Sanofi-Aventis’ €1.8bn ($2.6bn) offer for Czech generics firm Zentiva has been unanimously accepted by the latter firm’s board after four months of wrangling that has seen the bid increase by...

Sandoz’ SA plant gets WHO NoC letter

23-Sep-2008 -  The WHO has issued Sandoz with a Notice of Concern (NoC) after an inspection of the firm’s Kempton Park facility in South Africa identified 41 deviations from GMP standards. ...

FDA guidance on GE animal drug production

23-Sep-2008 - The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued draft guidance for the use of genetically engineered (GE) animals to produce drugs.

Pharma manufacturing: People on the move

23-Sep-2008 - in-PharmaTechnologist.com presents its latest round-up of personnel changes in the pharmaceutical sector.

DSM and LibraGen enter transaminase deal

22-Sep-2008 -  Dutch chemicals giant DSM and France’s LibraGen are targeting the chemical and pharmaceutical industries with their new chiral amine production accord, which aims to develop a range of new catalytic...

EnWave’s new dehydration method shows promise

22-Sep-2008 -  EnWave says that its freezeREV dehydration technology can reduce the moisture content of single vial vaccines to between 3 and 3.5 per cent, bettering the mark achieved by its bioREV...

Joint API inspection service to cut costs

22-Sep-2008 - Germany-based Diapharm has launched a service allowing pharmaceutical manufacturers to perform joint third-party audits of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs).

Skills shortage predicted in Massachusetts

22-Sep-2008 - Massachusetts needs to do more to produce workers for its life sciences industry if it is to avoid a skills shortage in years to come, according to research.

Reaxa and RohnerChem partner on EnCat scale-up

22-Sep-2008 -  UK-based Reaxa and Switzerland’s RohnerChem have teamed up to develop the former’s EnCat catalyst technology for industrial applications in the API and drug manufacturing sector.  

Invitrogen and ABI unveil new company structure

19-Sep-2008 -  Despite the credit crunch, Invitrogen’s acquisition of ABI (Applied Biosystems) is expected to be complete by early November and details of how the merged entity will be structured have just...

deltaDOT to replace plaque assays with deltaTITER

19-Sep-2008 -  UK-based deltaDOT has launched a new assay that dramatically reduces the time needed to quantify the number of baculovirus expression vectors present in a sample.

Illuminating the life cycles of parasites

19-Sep-2008 -  European researchers have devised a method of purifying parasites that will enable scientists to gain deeper insights into the biology of the organisms responsible for millions of infections every year....

Aseptic outsources “revolutionary” vial filler

18-Sep-2008 - CMO NextPharma has signed a deal to make Aseptic Technologies “revolutionary” ‘closed-vial’ filling system available as part of its offering to clients.

Capsugel targets toxics sector with vibration-free hood

18-Sep-2008 -  Oral dose filling specialist Capsugel hopes that its new Xcelohood containment system will improve industrial weighing operations during the preparation of high-potency drugs.

DSM and Caliber team up to develop drug delivery balloon

18-Sep-2008 - DSM Biomedical and Caliber Therapeutics aim to expand their presence in the balloon catheter market with a project to develop new drug delivery devices for vascular diseases, including atherosclerosis.

Exclusive interview with IPEC China chairman Nevin Cheng

IPEC China’s chairman sets out next steps

18-Sep-2008 -  IPEC China must become a “harmonisation bridge between China and other countries,” according to Colorcon’s Nevin Cheng who was recently elected chairman of the new organisation. 

Neose sells PEG tech for $43m

18-Sep-2008 - BioGeneriX and Novo Nordisk have signed deals to acquire most of Neose Technologies’ intellectual property for a combined total of $43m.

FDA blocks imports from two Ranbaxy plants

17-Sep-2008 -  The FDA has issued generics giant Ranbaxy Laboratories with two warning letters, detailing “extensive deviations from US cGMP requirements” at the firm’s manufacturing plants in Dewas and Paonta Sahib, India. ...

Small step for MannKind resurrects inhaled insulin

17-Sep-2008 - MannKind’s inhaled insulin treatment, Technosphere, has met its study goal in the first of three Phase III trials, leading to Pfizer transferring its remaining Exubera patients to the treatment.

Formatech’s solution for improved solubility

17-Sep-2008 -  Formatech hopes its new formulation method, which solubilises compounds in micelles consisting of fatty acids or alcohols, will improve both the safety and bioavailability of pharmaceutical products. 

hGH to drive novel drug delivery market

17-Sep-2008 - A surge in research into novel drug delivery systems will occur as companies seek to differentiate their products in response to pressure from biosimilars, according to a publication from Frost...

Manufacturing facilities: News in brief

16-Sep-2008 - in-PharmaTechnologist.com's latest round-up of developments in pharmaceutical manufacturing features news of the world’s “biggest pharmaceutical allergen production unit”, Lentigen’s relocation and a cytotoxic robot.

Millipore plans to close four facilities

16-Sep-2008 - Millipore is planning on closing four facilities, generating annual savings of up to $15m, as it attempts to cut costs by streamlining its operations.

FDA fast-tracks ocular drug delivery tech

16-Sep-2008 - The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted fast track designation to Neurotech’s treatment for two ocular diseases.

Artelis and Selexis’ project achieves record MAb yield

16-Sep-2008 - Artelis president Jose Castilo believes that the record MAb yield from CHO cells grown in its iCELLis bioreactor shows the platform could shift the paradigm for the "production of recombinant...

Fresenius’ APP expands Grand Island capacity

15-Sep-2008 -  APP Pharmaceuticals has bought additional facilities at a site in Grand Island, New York seizing the opportunity created by Astellas Manufacturing’s decision to shift production of its dermatitis drug Protopic...

MonoSol film technology gets US protection

15-Sep-2008 -  US drug delivery specialist MonoSol Rx says it has received USPTO patent rights to processes used in the manufacture of PharmFilm, its proprietary thin film drug delivery technology. 

Fluorotechnics expands into the US with GelCo buy

15-Sep-2008 -  Australian proteomics fluorescence expert Fluorotechnics has agreed to buy The Gel Company as part of its strategy to cement itself as a world leader in protein electrophoresis.

Alcan Packaging may break-up after year on the shelf

15-Sep-2008 -  Speculation is rife that Australia’s Amcor is one of several companies to have tabled bids for Rio Tinto’s $4.4bn (€3.1bn) Alcan Packaging division that serves the pharmaceutical, food and tobacco...

Agilent and Millipore join forces to further epigenetics research

15-Sep-2008 -  Agilent and Millipore have formed a collaboration to develop fully validated chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) microarray kits that will improve productivity and streamline epigenetic analysis.

New EC GMP regulations for radiopharma

15-Sep-2008 - Revised good manufacturing practice (GMP) requirements for the production of radiopharmaceuticals have been published by the European Commission (EC).

Nanoparticle made for delivering combination therapies

15-Sep-2008 - A nanoparticle capable of carrying a soluble and insoluble drug has been created for the delivery of combination therapies, according to research published in Nature.

Residual solvents guidelines cause ANDA “uncertainty”

11-Sep-2008 - Companies have failed to provide the information needed under the USP’s new chapter regarding residual solvents, causing them to incorrectly file ANDAs, according to the Office of Generic Drugs (OGD)....

CFC-free compliance a "blessing in disguise"

11-Sep-2008 -  As the December 31 deadline for the removal of CFC albuterol inhalers in the US approaches, a new report by Kalorama Information forecasts big changes in the global $36bn (€26bn)...

CSL begins this year’s Alfuria shipments

11-Sep-2008 -  CSL Biotherapies, part of Australia’s CSL group, has begun shipping the first of six million doses of its thimerosal-free vaccine Afluria to the US CDC ahead of this year’s flu...

Le Fur flies as GSK exec made Sanofi CEO

11-Sep-2008 - GlaxoSmithKline’s head of North American operations, Chris Viehbacher, is to takeover as chief operating officer (CEO) at Sanofi-Aventis after he missed out on the top spot at GSK last year....

Sandoz boosts Canadian production capacity

10-Sep-2008 -  Sandoz Canada, a unit of Novartis’ generics arm, has opened a second manufacturing plant at its site in Boucherville, Quebec, boosting local production capacity 66 per cent. 

Merger beefs up German CMO Haupt Pharma

10-Sep-2008 -  Haupt Pharma has completed its merger with fellow German companies Amareg and Wülfing Pharma to create a major new force in the European contract development and manufacturing sector, with around...

US OK for Akorn’s first lyophilised product

10-Sep-2008 -  The FDA has granted sNDA approval for Akorn’s IC-Green injection dye, which is the first lyophilised product manufacturered at the firm’s Decatur facility to gain such status. ...

Pharma manufacturing products: News in brief

10-Sep-2008 - in-PharmaTechnologist.com’s latest round up of products launched in the pharmaceutical manufacturing sector includes new offerings from Genevac, Lock and AdvantaPure.

Gene delivery helped by deadly worm

10-Sep-2008 - Gene therapy could be advanced by a worm more commonly associated with causing a deadly parasitic disease, according to researchers presenting at the British Pharmaceutical Conference (BPC).

Alembic seeks to mix it with US and European players

09-Sep-2008 -  Indian pharmaceutical firm Alembic is seeking to expand its presence in the lucrative US and European drug markets through an expanded partnering programme. 

FDA publishes final rule on cGMP amendments

09-Sep-2008 - The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has published its latest amendments to current good manufacturing practice (cGMP) regulations.

Abraxis and ProMetic target US biopharma market

09-Sep-2008 -  Abraxis has licensed rights to use ProMetic’s protein technology in the development of four new biopharmaceuticals that it hopes will generate around $600m (€422.5m) in US sales.  

FDA lists drugs with potential safety issues

09-Sep-2008 - A list of drugs currently being evaluated for potential safety issues by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has been posted on its website.

Pharma manufacturing: People on the move

08-Sep-2008 -  in-PharmaTechnologist.com presents its latest round-up of personnel changes in the pharmaceutical sector.  

“Volatile” Asian markets drive Aceto’s Q4 growth

08-Sep-2008 -  US fine and industrial chemicals specialist Aceto says that its expansion on the global stage, particularly in Europe and Asia, is starting to pay financial dividends. 

Drugmakers within EC's REACH, says SAFC

08-Sep-2008 -  Despite a decade-long build up, drugmakers are yet to wake up to the “no data, no market” mantra of the EC’s REACH legislation, according to SAFC’s marketing director Amanda Halford. ...

Bee Alert: new threat to US honeybees identified

08-Sep-2008 -  US scientists have discovered a new threat to the US honeybee population using technology developed for detecting viruses on the battlefield.

ReInnervate the difference for stem cells

08-Sep-2008 -  UK researchers have developed two synthetic molecules that coax stem cells to differentiate into either neurons or epithelial cells for use in drug discovery applications.

Tocris launches Target Detective

08-Sep-2008 -  Tocris Bioscience has launched a new search facility that enables researchers to search for chemicals by the biological targets they work on, rather than the chemical name itself.

Cost of drug licensing on the wane, says Lehman Bros

04-Sep-2008 -  Growth in licensing deals between large drugmakers companies and their smaller, research-based counterparts continued apace in 2007, but the average total value of each deal has started to fall.

Loramyc’s excipient shows BioAlliance the whey

04-Sep-2008 -  Drug delivery specialist BioAlliance Pharma says that its decision to focus on the oncology and infectious disease markets helped it reduce its half-year 2008 losses.

SAFC Pharma to get even bigger in high-potency APIs

04-Sep-2008 -  US fine chemical company Sigma-Aldrich said this morning that subsidiary SAFC Pharma has kicked off a $30m expansion plan for its active high-potency pharmaceutical ingredient (API) manufacturing facility in Madison,...

Bioxel signs up new generic docetaxel customers

03-Sep-2008 -  Canada’s Bioxel Pharma believes that the six new generic docetaxel supply deals it has signed, represents a real leap forward in its business plan

Pharma manufacturing news in brief

03-Sep-2008 -  in-PharmaTechnologist.com's periodic round-up of developments and deals in the pharmaceutical manufacturing space, includes news on 3M and Ligacon, Dishman, Stiefel and Barrier and Forbes.

Antibiotic alternative could make protein production cheaper

03-Sep-2008 -  UK and Swedish researchers have developed a system that eliminates the need for antibiotics and resistance genes in the engineering of biopharmaceutical products, making the process both safer and less...

Chromatide signs HPLC deal

02-Sep-2008 -  UK-based polymer technology specialist Chromatide and Akzo Nobel's Separation Products (SP) unit are teaming to develop a HPLC media for purification applications in the drug manufacturing industry. 

bioMerieux launches new clean room testing range

02-Sep-2008 -  bioMerieux hopes that its new specially-packaged growth media products will help it “clean up” in the pharmaceutical industry’s lucrative sterility testing market

Shionogi seeks US sales boost with $1.4bn Sciele bid

02-Sep-2008 -  Japan’s Shionogi is paying $1.4bn (€959m) for US drugmaker Sciele Pharma as part of a plan to strengthen its sales position in the country’s $286bn a year drug market. ...

Marksans sets sights on EU generics sector

01-Sep-2008 -  Contract services firm Marksans Pharmaceutical says that the RPS 1bn (€15.4m) acquisition of UK generics group Relonchem will expand its distribution network and build its presence in the European market....

UCB refocuses and cuts workforce 17%

01-Sep-2008 -  UCB is moving forward with efforts to focus on CNS disorders and immunology and plans to cut around 2,000 jobs as part of its SHAPE restructuring program.