Breaking News on Contract Research, Manufacturing & Clinical Trials

US firm unveils new cell culture services

09-Oct-2007 - US drug discovery firm BioProcessors has unveiled a new range of cell culture services to assist in biopharmaceutical process development.

Weekly Comment

Pharmaceuticals is top R&D spender

08-Oct-2007 - As an increasingly desperate pharma industry strives to fill drug pipelines, the sector has, for the first time, topped a poll of which industries spend the most on research and development.

UK innovation to get billion pound boost

08-Oct-2007 - The UK government has set-aside £1bn (€1.45bn) to give early-stage companies better support after a review of the UK's science and innovation policies by Lord Sainsbury of Turville.

Bayer, Biocon discuss potential R&D and outsourcing deal

04-Oct-2007 - German pharma firm Bayer is currently discussing with Indian company Biocon about a potential deal that would include the co-development of new biologics with an outsourcing element, according to Biocon.

Big pharma enters stem cell domain to address safety, attrition

04-Oct-2007 - Three of the world's biggest pharmaceutical companies have signed a landmark deal with the UK government that will see them use stem cell technology to road-test the safety of new compounds.

Recordati adopts Orphan Europe

03-Oct-2007 - Eighty-year-old Italian pharma company Recordati believes its future lies in rare diseases and has put its money where its mouth is by spending €135m on speciality firm Orphan Europe.

'In-house' outsourcing firm in line for EU accolade

02-Oct-2007 - Synergy has been short-listed in three categories for the upcoming European Outsourcing Awards - an accolade that could give a boost to its innovative "in house" outsourcing model.

IOTA breaks into fragment-based screening field

26-Sep-2007 - A new player, IOTA Pharmaceuticals, has entered the fragment-based drug discovery (FBDD) services arena this week.

New UK joint venture bets on membrane biology services

25-Sep-2007 - A UK university and a British consultancy firm have teamed up to offer outsourced R&D services focused on membrane biology - an increasingly promising area of drug development.

Inside India: special series

Innovation 'key' to India's pharma future

24-Sep-2007 - The key to the future of India's pharmaceutical industry will depend on its ability to scale back its over-reliance on low-cost manufacturing and to foster innovation, with drug discovery and biosimilars presenting particular opportunities.

New US player in contract assay services field

20-Sep-2007 - The burgeoning US contract assay services arena has witnessed the arrival of a brand new player with the launch of ReachBio, which is opening its business operations this week.

Three-way approach to personalised medicine

20-Sep-2007 - UK antibody specialists Oxford Genome Sciences (OGeS) has signed new deals with Medarex and Biosite in order to help it produce personalised anticancer drugs faster.

Evotec snaps up preclinical pharma firm, extends into US

19-Sep-2007 - Evotec has taken its first real foray into the US through the acquisition of a US speciality pharma company, as it continues to move further away from a services business to a fully fledged pharma company.

Preclinical services news in brief

19-Sep-2007 - In this week's review of activity within the preclinical research services arena, new deals have emerged involving Alligator Bioscience, Indivumed, and Xceleron.

Novel assay tests tRNA inhibitors for HIV

18-Sep-2007 - US-based contract research organisation (CRO) Southern Research Institute (SRI) and drug maker Trana Discovery have teamed up to develop a high-speed screening method to identify new HIV drugs.

Weekly Comment

Cheap drugs, no profit, just cures

17-Sep-2007 - A group of leading drug developers have set up an international talent network for a 'global assault' on some of the world's deadliest diseases, such as tuberculosis (TB), malaria and AIDS, on a not-for-profit basis.

BioReliance launches new genotoxicity testing service

17-Sep-2007 - Bioreliance has signed a deal with Gentronix to provide the UK firm's novel DNA damage testing tool as a service for biopharma companies for the first time.

Celsis jumps on ADME-Tox services bandwagon

13-Sep-2007 - US-based pharma services firm Celsis International has announced the addition of ADME-Tox services to its portfolio thanks to a recent acquisition.

New funding drive for 'Eurostars'

13-Sep-2007 - The European Commission has named research-performing small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) as 'the entrepreneurial stars of Europe', and hopes to raise €800m of extra funds for them.

Budding researchers offered showcasing opportunity

12-Sep-2007 - The UK's Institute of Clinical Research (ICR) is offering successful budding researchers the chance to showcase their work to a global audience.

AstraZeneca to help Biovator replace in vivo allergy testing

11-Sep-2007 - AstraZeneca (AZ) is to assist Biovator in the development of its in vitro test for identifying potential allergens that could replace many experiments on animals.

Antibody alternatives continue to pull in the cash

10-Sep-2007 - Ablynx, one of the two main players in the miniature antibody sector, has signed 'by far' the biggest deal in its history, to help Boehringer Ingelheim develop up to ten so called 'Nanobodies'.

Merck in search of Korean deal

10-Sep-2007 - Merck & Co. is planning to reach further into the Korean market and is looking for potential deals with biotech companies in the country, according to local media.

AMRI launches new early-stage Indian facility

10-Sep-2007 - US firm Albany Molecular Research (AMRI) has opened a new multimillion dollar research and development facility in Hyderabad, India, confirming its commitment to the region.