Portuguese drug producers are small and need to merge or form
alliances to compete at a global level, investing more in
innovation and increasing their competitiveness like custom
manufacturer Hovione has done, a new report by market...
After selling a manufacturing plant in Texas to Cardinal Health two
years ago, Adams Respiratory Therapeutics has reacquired the
facility in order to produce its expectorant Mucinex (guaifenesin
extended-release), responding to a...
The Pharsight Corporation has announced it has entered into the
biggest single project workplan in the company's history utilising
its drug-disease modelling, meta-data analysis and model
visualisation services.
Albany Molecular Research (AMRI) has announced a multi-year drug
substance manufacturing agreement with New River Pharmaceuticals,
as its attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medicine
looks set to hit the market.
While Lonza's biopharmaceutical business has taken off, tough
competition from cheap Asian competitors is eating away at its
exclusive synthesis business - meanwhile, the whole business is
being hit by rising raw material and...
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has decided to outsource its research in
genotyping by awarding a contract to Expression Analysis who will
provide the pharma giants with microarray-based genotyping
services.
Cambrex's Q2 results show that the life sciences firm is slowly
making a comeback after being crushed by a $140.3m (€116.7m) loss
in Q4, however, it has failed to completely stem the bleed from its
Biopharma unit, blamed for...
Omnia Biologics has sealed a deal to help the Aeras Global TB
Vaccine Foundation in its quest to make quantities of a new TB
Vaccine that will "fulfil all the needs of the developing
world."
Israeli biopharma firm Kamada will manufacture transferrin for an
undisclosed European pharma firm embarking on the first ever
clinical trials of a drug that includes the substance.
Rentschler Biotechnologie has heralded the start of a €50m
expansion to increase its capacity to produce antibodies and
mammalian cell culture-derived proteins on a commercial scale.
Indian custom chemical synthesis firm Denisco has opened up shop in
the US to capitalise on the growing demand in North America for
high-quality, low-cost complex organic molecules.
Biotechnology firm Alexion has acquired a Dow biomanufacturing
facility in Rhode Island as it gears up for the commercialisation
of its blood disorder drug Soliris, yet the move does not signal
the end of the company's contract...
Active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) manufacturers in Europe are
struggling to differentiate their capabilities and compete in an
outsourcing market suffering from overcapacity, diminishing
profitability and threats from Asia.
UK firm PowderMed has contracted US firm Althea Technologies to
manufacture clinical supplies of its flu vaccine that can
significantly speed up production.
Cambrex Bio Science has successfully completed its first monoclonal
antibody project in the company's new cell culture bioreactor, as
well as its first small-large molecule conjugation project.
A new generation of drugs that target specific areas of the body
has created new challenges for dissolution testing, as many recent
active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) are poorly soluble in
traditional media and need novel testing...
Alpharma has asked one of the largest manufacturers of bulk active
pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) in China, Zhejiang Hisun
Pharmaceutical, to help it double its capacity of making
vancomycin.
Quest Pharmaceutical Services (QPS) has announced the launch of its
new Molecular Biology Services that aims to integrate
pharmacogenomics into drug development programs to deliver more
effective compounds to the market quicker.
Galapagos are to acquire the drug discovery service operations of
Discovery Partners International for $6.4m in a move that cements
Galapagos' BioFocus division as a top three provider in drug
discovery services worldwide.
Biotechnology firm Gilead has acquired Raylo Chemicals, a Canadian
production unit of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and
advanced intermediates, from Degussa for €115m, seeking to bring
more manufacturing capacity and expertise...
Biophage has completed the final phase of its CRO business
restructuring in preparation to meet the expected demand in
immunotoxicity testing, in which its requirement stems from
increasing legislation that calls for stricter standards.
Cardinal Health has taken the contract manufacturing crown after
being honoured with a prestigious award from Frost & Sullivan
in recognition of its ability to provide biopharma firms with a
high quality service, while still remaining...
deCODE and Illumina have entered an agreement to develop and
commercialise DNA-based diagnostics, in which deCODE will use
Illumina's SNP genotyping platform to expand its contract
genotyping business.
Under pressure to ensure cheap supplies of its flu drug in Africa
in preparation for a possible avian influenza, Roche has asked
contract manufacturer Aspen Pharmacare to produce finished doses of
Tamiflu (oseltamivir) in Africa.
Targeting the market for enantiomerically pure drugs, SAFC, a
custom manufacturing group within Sigma-Aldrich, has acquired
Honeywell International's Iropharm unit in Arklow, Ireland.
Biopharmaceuticals manufacturer Cobra will provide process
development and manufacturing of two HIV vaccine candidates for
evaluation in clinical trials under an agreement with the
International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) and...
Contract manufacturer Dalton has announced the completion of its
oligonucleotide (oligos) manufacturing facility, in a $500,000
(€400,000) investment drive to dominate pilot and large-scale DNA
and RNA oligo synthesis.
Chemicals firm Lonza has vowed to spend $200m (€160m) over the next
few years to expand in southern China, further limiting its
dependence on external suppliers of intermediates and active
pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs).
Discovery Partners International is offloading its unprofitable
contract drug discovery operations and merging with Infinity
Pharmaceuticals to create a new public company focused on cancer
drug discovery and development.
US-based contract research organisation The Smithers Group,
announced the acquisiton of UK company Rapra Technology in a deal
that seals the fate of Rapra, which was forced into Administration
last month.
Thanks to a £2.7m (€3.9m) access fund from the UK's National
Biomanufacturing Centre (NBC), biotech firm Onyvax has hired
contract manufacturer organisation (CMO) Eden Biodesign to supply
it with clinical current good manufacturing...
Research Dynamics have struck a deal with VirtualScopics in which
they have signed a non-exclusive partnership agreement to co-market
their clinical research services and technologies.
Sun Pharma of India has provided additional details of its plans
for its new facility in Hungary, purchased in August and intended
as a springboard to launch the company's ambitions in Europe and
around the world, and its recently-acquired...
The production capacity for biopharmaceutical manufacturing will
expand an average of 48 per cent over the next five years for
mammalian and microbial production systems, according to an
industry survey.
KemFine, the fine chemicals business created via a management
buyout from chemicals group Kemira last year, has acquired Avecia
Fine Chemicals' business based in Grangemouth, Scotland.
UK pharmaceutical testing company Cirrus Laboratories has been
acquired by Bodycote Materials Testing, an international provider
of materials testing services to industry.
Switzerland's Lonza has boosted its ability to make active
pharmaceutical ingredients (API) at its Visp site in response to
what it said was 'ever increasing hygienic and regulatory
requirements'.
The first (14) Carbon microdosing study to take place in the United
States has been completed by Radiant Research, who believe this
approach to clinical trials will lead to more accurate and earlier
human pharmacokinetic (PK) data...
Pharmaceutical outsourcing firm Quintiles Transnational Corp is
selling three of its business units, covering preclinical services,
pharmaceutical sciences and clinical trial supplies, to newly
formed company Aptuit.
Germany's Evotec is to provide a broad range of pharmaceutical
discovery and chemical development services to Procter & Gamble
Pharmaceuticals in a lift for its outsourcing business.
US firms Large Scale Biology Corp and privately-held Planet
Biotechnology have expanded their biomanufacturing program to
extract and purify the latter's lead product, CaroRx, a plant-made
antibody to control dental caries.
Solutia has drawn up an agreement with former parent Monsanto that
could finally bring it out of the state of bankruptcy
reorganisation it has resided in since the end of 2003, reports
Phil Taylor.
Australia's Nufarm has sold SEAC, the fine chemicals custom
manufacturing business it acquired in 1988, to recently-formed
Minakem Holdings for €23 million.
US generic company Alpharma has turned to an Indian company to
supply its finished products and active pharmaceutical ingredients,
saying that this could cut its costs in half, reports Phil
Taylor.
UK-based contract researcher Synprotec has been acquired by India's
Dishman Pharmaceuticals & Chemicals in a move that marks a
continuing expansion of the latter firm into foreign markets,
reports Phil Taylor.
Solutia has elected to retain its Pharmaceutical Services Division
(PSD) despite suggestions that a spin out or sale of the business
were being considered, reports Phil Taylor.
Sun Pharmaceutical Industries is to acquire the entire business of
fellow Indian pharmaceutical company MJ Pharmaceuticals in another
example of the consolidation affecting the country's fragmented
pharmaceutical sector, writes...
Solvents are defined as organic chemicals that are used to dissolve components. They are used during the manufacture of drug substances and can also potentially...
Oral tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) are a class of cancer drugs that can be highly susceptible to issues with solubility in the gastrointestinal tract
Various options exist for freezing biopharmaceutical bulk material, but selecting the most effective and efficient approach for each cold chain can be...
