U.S. investigates drug makers

U.S. investigates drug makers
By John Carreyrou and Barbara Martinez in New York, and John R. Wilke in Washington
The Wall Street Journal Europe
28 Jul 2006

Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. and Sanofi-Aventis SA surprised investors by disclosing that they are the subjects of a criminal investigation by the U.S. Justice Department over their proposed agreement to pay a generic-drug manufacturer tens of millions of... read more...

GSK hails bird flu vaccine data but profit figures fail to impress

GSK hails bird flu vaccine data but profit figures fail to impress
Fiona Walsh
The Guardian
27 Jul 2006

GlaxoSmithKline yesterday hailed new test data on its H5N1 bird flu vaccine as a “real breakthrough" but results from Europe's largest drugs manufacturer, also released yesterday, failed to match the market's expectations. Stripping out the impact of... read more...

TransPharma arranges financing

TransPharma arranges financing

Jerusalem Post
25 Jul 2006

TransPharma Medical Ltd., a specialty pharmaceutical company, said it secured $18 million in Series C financing led by Argonaut Private Equity. Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. was a new investor in the financing, which also included previous... read more...

AstraZeneca boosted by US approval of asthma drug

AstraZeneca boosted by US approval of asthma drug
LOUISA GAULT
Business
23 Jul 2006

SHARES in AstraZeneca are expected to rise tomorrow morning after Britain’s second largest pharmaceutical company said yesterday that it had won US approval for its asthma drug Symbicort. The approval from the US Food and Drug Administration came... read more...

Governor to unveil prescription drug discount plan for poor

Governor to unveil prescription drug discount plan for poor
By Kate Folmar Mercury News Sacramento Bureau
San Jose Mercury News
22 Jul 2006

SACRAMENTO — Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s administration will agree today to a prescription-drug plan for up to 5 million poor Californians that requires pharmaceutical companies to offer hearty discounts within five years — or potentially lose the... read more...

Drug giant forks out $65,000 on posh nosh for doctors

Drug giant forks out $65,000 on posh nosh for doctors
Ray Moynihan
Australian
21 Jul 2006

SWISS drug giant Roche has been accused of breaching the pharmaceutical industry’s code of conduct by providing lavish meals to doctors at several of Australia’s top restaurants. In one case, Roche spent more than $65,000 taking more than 200 top... read more...

Ipsen and Roche sign deal for Type 2 diabetes drug

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Ipsen and Roche sign deal for Type 2 diabetes drug

The Wall Street Journal Europe
20 Jul 2006

FRENCH pharmaceuticals company Ipsen SA said it signed a licensing agreement with drug maker Roche Holding AG for a diabetic treatment that could earn the company as much as OE229 million ($286 million), excluding royalties. Roche, based in... read more...

Contraceptive approved

Contraceptive approved
by Jonathan D. Rockoff
Baltimore Sun
19 Jul 2006

WASHINGTON // Adding to women’s options for birth control, federal drug regulators announced approval yesterday of a long- acting contraceptive implanted in the upper arm. The new drug, Implanon, is a matchstick-sized rod that steadily releases a... read more...

Novartis plans to build flu-vaccine plant in U.S.

Novartis plans to build flu-vaccine plant in U.S.
By Jeanne Whalen
The Wall Street Journal Europe
19 Jul 2006

Swiss drug maker Novartis AG said it plans to build a $600 million flu-vaccine plant in the U.S. that will use new technology designed to eliminate production glitches that can occur at older plants and result in flu-shot shortages. The factory... read more...

SLEEP: AMA wants moratorium on drug ads

SLEEP: AMA wants moratorium on drug ads

Chicago Tribune
16 Jul 2006

about $100 million to launch an array of Rozerem ads, but the company would not confirm that figure. The TV portion of the campaign will typically run late at night or early in the morning. But Takeda said it has taken steps to educate doctors before... read more...

Ads may jolt pill sales

Ads may jolt pill sales
By Bruce Japsen Tribune staff reporter
Chicago Tribune
16 Jul 2006

Hoping to help Americans snooze while also putting to rest controversies dogging the crowded group of prescription sleeping pills, a Chicago-area drugmaker this week will launch a nearly $100 million consumer ad campaign for its insomnia pill. Takeda... read more...

Roche seeks wider usage of cancer drug in Europe

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Roche seeks wider usage of cancer drug in Europe

The Wall Street Journal Europe
11 Jul 2006

A WALL STREET JOURNAL NEWS ROUNDUP Swiss drug maker Roche Holding AG said it filed its Avastin drug for use in previously untreated advanced breast cancer in Europe, following positive late-stage trial data. A Phase III study had shown the addition... read more...

PowderMed seeks to start bird-flu vaccine trial

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PowderMed seeks to start bird-flu vaccine trial

The Wall Street Journal Europe
11 Jul 2006

POWDERMED Ltd., a closely held U.K.-based vaccine company, said it applied to U.K. regulators for permission to conduct a clinical trial to test a needlefree vaccine targeting the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu. The trial will study for the first... read more...

How a tobacco farm in Kent could provide a life-saving drug for millions

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How a tobacco farm in Kent could provide a life-saving drug for millions
Ian Sample Science correspondent
The Guardian
04 Jul 2006

In the perfectly controlled atmosphere of a brick-proof, hermetically sealed greenhouse deep in the Kent countryside, a fresh crop of tobacco plants is beginning to flourish. There is nothing unusual about the plants’ appearance, but they are... read more...

Study: Maximum dose of Tylenol may do harm (San Jose Mercury News, 05 Jul 2006, Page 8A)

Study: Maximum dose of Tylenol may do harm
By Denise Gellene Los Angeles Times
San Jose Mercury News
05 Jul 2006

The highest recommended dose of Extra Strength Tylenol sharply increased liver enzymes in healthy adults in a clinical study, an early sign of possible organ damage. Although overdoses of Tylenol can harm the liver, the study published today in the... read more...

Anti-smoking drug backed by 3 studies (The Washington Times Daily, 05 Jul 2006, Page A6)

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Anti-smoking drug backed by 3 studies
By Joyce Howard THE WASHINGTON TIMES Price
The Washington Times Daily
05 Jul 2006

Three studies released yesterday indicate that the newly approved drug varenicline is more effective than bupropion or a placebo in helping smokers overcome nicotine addiction. “Varenicline was significantly more efficacious than placebo for smoking... read more...