Breaking News on Contract Research, Manufacturing & Clinical Trials

News in brief

Cell culture shortage predicted

02-Dec-2008 - A report has predicted that contract mammalian cell culture manufacturers are likely to struggle to cope with increased demand in coming years.

WuXi ends US biologics manufacture; focus on testing

02-Dec-2008 - WuXi PharmaTech is to discontinue its US biologics manufacturing operations as it attempts to cut costs, with 100 employees due to lose their jobs.

Mumbai attacks could hurt India’s outsourcing sector

01-Dec-2008 - Postponement of this year’s CPhI and P-MEC India events for “security reasons” may be only the first impact of last week’s Mumbai terror attacks on the country’s outsourcing industry, according to PwC’s life sciences head Sujay Shetty.

Althea manufacturing drug with novel delivery tech

01-Dec-2008 - Althea Technologies has signed a contract manufacturing deal, under which it will produce Bio-Path’s lead novel therapeutic drug for upcoming clinical trials.

Metrics claims first in cytotoxic services

27-Nov-2008 - Metrics’ new potent and cytotoxic drug development facility was the subject of a press conference at this year’s AAPS, where the company explained how the plant “raised the industry bar”.

News in brief

Akorn inks 5 year deal

25-Nov-2008 - Contract manufacturer Akron will provide an ophthalmic drug to an undisclosed healthcare company as part of a five year supply agreement.

Isogen plant to answer small-scale sterile filling need

25-Nov-2008 - Isogen will start operations in January at a new contract facility in Delaware that will provide small-scale sterile filling services to the pharmaceutical industry.

Patheon broadens portfolio with new commercial partners

24-Nov-2008 - Patheon has signed a slew of agreements to boost its portfolio of contract drug development and manufacturing services, forging new alliances with Omnicare, Depomed, Senopsys and Solvias.

Orbus ducks out of contract manufacturing

24-Nov-2008 - Canada’s Orbus Pharma has decided to exit the contract manufacturing business, saying that the division “posed a distraction to the core business and generated low or negative margins.”

CVC adds analytical services to its offering

19-Nov-2008 - CiVentiChem president Bhaskar Venepalli says that the CiVentiAnalytical unit, the firm’s new state of the art GLP/cGMP accredited laboratory in Cary, North Carolina, will help customers find novel method development solutions for API production.

News in brief

Recipharm signs 12 year AstraZeneca Biotech Lab lease

19-Nov-2008 - Contract research group Recipharm has leased AstraZeneca Biotech Laboratory (ABL) in Sodertalje, Sweden, bolting on recombinant protein and monoclonal antibody development capabilities to its offering.

Irvine fill-and-finish firm to debut in January

13-Nov-2008 - US company Irvine Pharmaceutical Services is gearing up to launch a new subsidiary company to provide fill-and-finish services for biopharmaceutical companies.

Patheon opens European headquarters

10-Nov-2008 - Patheon’s European HQ is up and running to help manage the firm’s growing European operations, specifically its development and commercial service offerings provided by units in France, Italy and the UK.

Cambrex cost-cutting helps in ‘difficult’ Q3

10-Nov-2008 - Cambrex joined a number of its peers in the contract services sector by reporting pressure on third quarter sales and earnings, providing further evidence that outsourcing companies are not immune to the economic downturn.

Indian generics firms welcome Obama despite outsourcing comments

06-Nov-2008 - Barrack Obama’s election as US president has been roundly welcomed by India’s generics sector, despite his somewhat contradictory desire to reduce the level of outsourcing but not "shy away" from globalisation.

News in brief

CMO bucks trend and hires more staff

06-Nov-2008 - Contract manufacturing organisation (CMO) Metrics has completed an $18m expansion of its facility in Greenville, North Carolina, adding at least 50 jobs.

SAFC showcases HPAPI handling capabilities

30-Oct-2008 - SAFC's Mike Harris sets out the firm's role in the expanding high-potency active pharmaceutical ingredient (HPAPI) industry.

Pharmalucence issued with FDA warning letter

30-Oct-2008 - The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a warning letter to Pharmalucence for alleged deviations from current good manufacturing practices (cGMP).

Jubilant rejigs North American operations

30-Oct-2008 - Jubilant Organosys, India's largest custom research and manufacturing services (CRAMS) provider, has reorganised its business in North America in the wake of its recent acquisitions of HollisterStier Laboratories and Draxis Specialty Pharmaceuticals.

Avid seals manufacturing contract

28-Oct-2008 - Avid Bioservices is to manufacture clinical-grade material for the trials of Catalyst Biosciences’ candidate CB 813.

Elan drops EDT sale plans on market uncertainty

27-Oct-2008 - Irish drugmaker Elan has shelved plans to sell its contracting arm EDT in favour of improving the division’s profitability, despite receiving what it describes as “considerable interest” in the unit.

Clarifying the benefits of sonocrystallisation

27-Oct-2008 - David Hipkiss explains the benefits for pharmaceutical manufacturers of using Prosonix’ sonocrystallisation technology.

Borgas sets out ‘top 8’ pharma industry issues

23-Oct-2008 - The pharmaceutical industry must adapt its processes and strategies to cope with a new, tougher operating environment, according to Stefan Borgas, CEO of Lonza.

Bio not necessarily best, says Lonza CEO

21-Oct-2008 - The pharmaceutical industry sometimes seems besieged from all sides at present, and that has implications for contract manufacturers, according to Stefan Borgas, CEO of Lonza, at a recent meeting of the European Fine Chemicals Group (EFCG) in Frankfurt.