New laws to stop increasingly violent animal extremists from
harassing scientists involved in medical experiments have received
the seal of approval by the Association of the British
Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI).
In-Pharmatechnologist.com's periodic round-up of pharma production
developments from around the world sees Cognis mulling the sale of
process chemicals, Perrigo buying a generics and API manufacturer
and two new contract manufacturing...
The predicted deficit in manufacturing capacity for biologic drugs
that has been tipped to impede the development of the market has
not materialised, with capacity exceeding demand, according to new
market research.
AstraZeneca has started construction a €30 million tablet
manufacturing plant in Egypt that could form a springboard for an
expansion into emerging markets.
A joint proposal by the UK and Hungarian governments that would
allow chemical companies to share the cost of testing to comply
with the new REACH legislation has received the support of the
European Union's Competitiveness Council.
Japanese drugmakers Dainippon Pharmaceutical and Sumitomo
Pharmaceuticals are to merge in an attempt to increase their
standing in international markets and fend off competition at home.
Switzerland-based BioPartners has submitted a second Marketing
Authorisation Application in Europe for a generic copy of a
biologic drug under the recently agreed European Union framework
for so-called 'biosimilar' drugs.
German chemical and pharmaceutical company Merck KGaA has sold off
a manufacturing facility in France in a move aimed at consolidating
its global production infrastructure.
Overcapacity remains the main issue affecting the European market
for active pharmaceutical ingredients, with lack of capability
differentiation and competition from low-cost manufacturers also
holding back growth in the sector.
Bioengineers at the University of Oxford have developed a solution
to the problem of toxicity testing for new drugs, which can prove
to be ineffective or at worst dangerous to humans.
German chemical giant BASF is to shed about 3,600 jobs at its main
Ludwigshafen plant over the next three years as part of efforts
ensure the site's competitiveness.
The first in a completely new class of drug for multiple sclerosis
has been approved in the US, opening up a new avenue of treatment
for sufferers of the debilitating diseases and potential
blockbuster revenues for developers Elan...
Contract pharmaceutical manufacturer Patheon is to buy Puerto Rican
rival Mova Pharmaceuticals in a transaction that could be valued as
high as $350 million in cash, stock and assumed debt.
Dutch chemicals and ingredients company DSM is to purchase a stake
in North China Pharmaceutical Group in a move that boosts its
presence in the country, writes Phil Taylor.
High throughput protein (HTP) crystallography is set to undergo key
technical developments in which the development of automation in
protein expression, protein engineering and crystallisation will
provide the accurate screening data...
Applying automation to tissue culture techniques can improve the
development, maintenance and expansion of mammalian cells,
increasing the efficiency of drug discovery efforts, reports Wai
Lang Chu.
France's drug industry has started filling in the detail of its
strategic plan to boost the standing of the biotechnology sector,
first unveiled at the end of last month. At the heart of the plans
is a quadrupling of the production...
In-Pharmatechnologist.com's periodic round-up of manufacturing
developments from around the world sees Fujisawa expanding in
Ireland, Solvay partnering in Russia, Vietnam's machinery firms
undercutting competitors and...
Germany drugmaker Schering is planning to reduce its headcount by
1,250 with most of the cuts coming in production. The company is
blaming increased cost pressures due to European and international
competition.
A number of measures to help make the UK Medicines and Healthcare
Products Regulatory Authority (MHRA) and the pharmaceutical
industry operate more openly and transparently were announced late
last week by the country's Health...
A new study suggests that there are important differences between
Merck & Co's Vioxx (rofecoxib) and other COX-2 inhibitors and
that this may account for variations in cardiovascular safety
within this drug class, writes...
Plastics are featuring more often in the packaging of healthcare
products, including pharmaceuticals, and this will drive a 28 per
cent increase in the volume of plastic resins used between now and
2009 in North America.
BioProgress, which makes cellulose based XGEL films for coating
tablets and capsules, has signed an agreement with a contract
manufacturing organisation to accelerate the installation of its
own film manufacturing capacity.
With just a few weeks to go before the introduction of India's new
patent regime - which will increase protection to include product
as well as process patents - a group of government Ministers is
calling for a waiver that would...
The first ever-manufacturing agreement for a drug based on small
interfering RNA emphasises the potential of this pioneering
therapeutic approach, which could be a fertile stamping ground for
contract manufacturers.
The news that US President George Bush will be residing at the
White House for a further four years has been greeted with some
measure of relief by the pharmaceutical industry, which had been
worried about drug price curbs in the...
Danish pharmaceutical firm Novo Nordisk has announced plans for a
significant expansion of its production facilities in China,
expanding its capabilities to accommodate the increasing demand for
its FlexPen, NovoPen and Penfill products.
In-Pharmatechnologist's periodic round up of personnel moves in the
pharmaceutical sector includes a crop of new chief executives and
senior managers across the pharmachem, drug development and
manufacturing sectors.
The European Union has put forward new legislation that would allow
generic manufacturers to make drug products with in-patent active
pharmaceutical ingredients, provided that they are intended for use
in developing countries, reports...
Dimensional Dosing Systems has received US Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) approval for over-the-counter use of the
company's insulin dosing technology in clinical trials.
According to a report, it takes 7-10 years to develop and market a
drug with costs exceeding $800 million (€625 million). This
revelation is set to add to the pressure already facing
pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies which...
Singapore-based biologics contract manufacturer, A-Bio Pharma has
won its first contract after entering into a process development
and clinical supply service agreement with GlaxoSmithKline's
vaccine division, GlaxoSmithKline...
European companies have announced hefty spending on new
manufacturing facilities this month, suggesting that despite a
difficult operating environment the pharmaceutical sector is still
prepared to make significant capital investments
Animas has entered into a license and development agreement with
Debiotech, which aims to develop the next generation of insulin
pumps and micro needles using Debiotech's Micro Electromechanical
Systems (MEMS) microfluidic technology.
A team at Purdue University in the US is developing a virtual 'data
cave' for scientific discovery that uses high-performance computing
and artificial intelligence software to display information and
interact with researchers.
Cambrex has recorded a loss in the third quarter of this year after
writing down goodwill in its biopharma division in a move that
paints a pessimistic picture of the market for outsourced
manufacturing of biological drugs.
In the wake of the expansion of the European Union with 10
additional states, attention has been fixed on the development of
the pharmaceutical industry in these and other Eastern European
states. In-Pharmatechnologist.com provides...
A report by the UK's Health and Safety Executive has concluded that
the safety of the tiny particles created by the emerging
nanotechnology industry has not been fully assessed.
Cardinal Health reported its long-delayed fourth-quarter financial
results yesterday, revealing a hike in profit and revenues for the
three months to end June, but lowered guidance for the first half
of this fiscal year.
A report focusing on the pharmaceutical and biotechnology markets
in Europe has singled out high throughput screening (HTS) as an
approach that will provide mechanistic insights and new drug leads
with improved efficiency whilst reducing...
More than half of pharmaceuticals outsourced at least 20 per cent
of their ADMET (absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion and
toxicology) studies in 2003, according to a new market research
report looking at outsourcing in...
Novis, now with almost half a million readers, last week earned
broad industry recognition with two further publishing awards,
following on from its best publication prize earlier this year.
India is gearing up for the introduction of new legislation on
intellectual property that will bring it into line with its World
Trade Organisation commitments.
Swiss biopharmaceuticals company BioPartners has filed its first
application in Europe for a generic version of interferon alpha, a
biological drug. If approved, the 'biosimilar' could be on the
market as early as next year.
The growing loss of patent protection on blockbuster drugs over the
next few years and the rising need to contain spiralling healthcare
costs are going to lend significant impetus to the growth of
Europe's generics and biogenerics...
A marriage between US chemicals group Rockwood Specialities and
French separations specialist Novasep will create a unique company
to serve the life sciences industry, according to the two
companies.
Dutch chemicals and drugs group Akzo Nobel saw its net income
accelerate in the third quarter of this year, to the surprise of
analysts and investors, and helped by cost reductions and a big
gain from the divestment of its coatings...
