Wyatt Technologies has launched a new instrument that automates
protein aggregation measurement for use in all areas of the
pharmaceutical industry from drug development to quality control
(QC).
Netherlands-based DSM has invested an undisclosed sum in Danish
purification technology company Upfront Chromatography to boost its
protein separation business.
Swiss supplier and services provider Lonza has added another
product to its catalogue of cell culture media, the most recent
addition to the offering of its new bioscience unit.
ProMetic's purification technology has been implemented in a
large-scale biomanufacturing process with an undisclosed client for
a product that will be used in clinical trials.
Vivalis is set to stamp out the Chinese Hamster Ovary (CHO) cell
line competition as the French company announces initial results in
a second study on monoclonal antibody production using its
avian-derived cell line.
German firm Biotest has bought up Nabi Biopharmaceuticals biologics
division in a multi-million Euro deal, less than three months after
the unit was created following Nabi restructuring efforts.
French pharmaceutical firm LFB has announced its plans to
incrementally acquire fellow biotech company MAbgene through
the development of a new entity for a total of €6m.
US biopharmaceutical company CytoGenix has announced breaking
ground on a new $3.8m facility to expand the company's
manufacturing capability of synthetic DNA.
Acambis has had its smallpox vaccine approved by the US, coming one
step closer to closing another supply contract for the US Strategic
National Stockpile.
US researchers have shown certain organic solvents can be used to
selectively extract therapeutic proteins from host bacteria,
avoiding the need for cell lysis and increasing product purity by a
factor of five.
Merck Serono's new and improved version of its blockbuster multiple
sclerosis (MS) drug Rebif (interferon beta-1a) has been approved in
the EU, providing a little added protection to the company's MS
franchise.
In the latest phase of growth at chemical firm SAFC's flagship high
potency active pharmaceutical ingredients (HPAPIs) facility in
Madison, Wisconsin, the site will be treated to another
multi-million dollar expansion and new...
ALK-Abello will be funding a new DKK 300m (€40.3m) production line
dedicated to its oral grass pollen allergy vaccine at Catalent
Pharma Solutions' UK facility.
Novartis last week began construction of a major new flu vaccine
manufacturing facility in North Carolina, the very first cell
culture-derived flu vaccine plant in the United States.
A new guide on the prickly issue of electronic data archiving has
been published for the pharmaceutical manufacturing industry, the
latest offering from the International Society for Pharmaceutical
Engineering (ISPE).
Adams Respiratory Therapeutics is positive about its plans to build
its prescription products portfolio after announcing its financial
results for the 2007 fourth quarter and year-end.
Solvay Pharmaceuticals still believed it was on track for meeting
US regulatory deadlines for pancreatic insufficiency drugs despite
receiving an approvable letter for its own newly formulated drug
Creon.
Danish diabetes care specialist Novo Nordisk has expanded an
agreement with biotech supplier Millipore, granting exclusive,
long-term distribution rights to the company's insulin
products for cell culture applications.
Pfizer was taken by surprise this week as a US engineering firm
announced that it had been awarded a contract to manage
construction of the firm's proposed biotech production plant in
Ireland, before the plant plans themselves...
Solvay's first Chinese plant for a key chemical disinfectant is now
fully operational, serving the growing Chinese market and spreading
the international chemical group's global reach ever further.
Pharmaceutical packaging and processing machinery specialist IMA
has announced its half year results, with its active expansion
plans paying dividends and its pharma business going strong.
UK Hikma Pharmaceuticals has acquired Egyptian pharmaceutical
company Alkan Pharma in a deal worth $60.5m (€44.2m), and
establishes the London-based company in the Egyptian market.
US-based Gilead Sciences has ditched its plans to build a new €60m
plant in Dublin, Ireland, instead acquiring Nycomed's Irish
manufacturing facility in Cork for almost €34m.
German pharma firm Stada has acquired Russian pharmaceuticals group
Makiz in a deal worth up to €135m, giving the company a sturdy
foothold in the growing Russian market and enhanced in-house
production capacity.
Indian biotech heavyweight Biocon has today announced that its
joint venture with Abu Dhabi-based Neopharma has spawned new
company NeoBiocon, operating out of one of Dubai's newest
biotechnology parks.
Rentschler Biotechnologie has completed the first phase of a €50m
expansion of its biomanufacturing capacity with the launch of two
new bioreactors aimed at making protein-based drugs for biopharma
clients.
French firm Vivalis has announced the first data evaluating its
proprietary EBx cell lines for the production of monoclonal
antibodies (MAbs), with initial results suggesting high cytotoxic
properties in the resultant MAbs.
Swiss researchers have developed a method that combines bacterial
capture, lysis and the purification of plasmid DNA to improve
industrial-scale bioprocesses.
At a packed out session at last week's Controlled Release Society
meeting in the US, two experts battled it out to win one of the key
debates in gene delivery: which is superior - viral or non-viral
delivery?
US biopharmaceutical company VGX has strengthened its position in
the plasmid DNA area with the award of two new patents covering the
use and manufacture of plasmid DNA.
A drug developed from the milk of transgenic animals is one step
closer to being the second such drug on the market following a
European thumbs up of its facilities, marking a significant move in
the controversial drug development...
A UK firm has introduced a new piece of kit for pharma firms to
test how the contents of their hard gel capsules can affect the
strength and stability of the outer shell.
Australia is soon to boast the largest monoclonal antibody
production facility in the Southern Hemisphere, which will go some
way in alleviating the increasing demand for the biologic agents.
AstraZeneca has sold a manufacturing plant in France to a contract
manufacturer who will continue to supply the drug giant with its
products under a new outsourcing contract.
The finishing touches are being added to the new Bradman Lake
Group's packaging machinery facility in Norwich, Norfolk, as the
company continues on its global expansion plan.
Researchers have developed a new 'supermacroporous cryogel'
bioreactor for the long term continuous production of monoclonal
antibodies (mAbs) that outperforms T-flask batch cultivators.
Just over a week after Roche was forced to initiate a Europe-wide
recall of HIV drug Viracept (nelfinavir), in-PharmaTechnologist.com
considers the contamination case and the pharmaceutical processes
blamed for the incident.
Designed as a next generation cellulose-based virus removal filter, Planova™ S20N has demonstrated robust filtration performance for challenging molecules...
Bispecific antibodies (BisAbs), which can bind to two distinct antigens, are prone to high levels of aggregate (10-30%), challenging traditional platform...
Various options exist for freezing biopharmaceutical bulk material, but selecting the most effective and efficient approach for each cold chain can be...
