Anti-angiogenic drugs for the treatment of kidney cancer have once again been highlighted at ASCO, with the first presentation of the full data from the AVOREN study of Roche/Genentech's Avastin showing that it nearly doubled progression-free survival when combined with standard interferon treatment in the first-line metastatic setting.

Arthur Higgins was elected president of the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations at its annual meeting in Brussels, Belgium, last week and immediately set four objectives for the association during his term of office.

Pfizer asked the US Supreme Court on May 31st to delay the effect of the Federal Circuit's rulings against the company relating to its patents on Norvasc. It argues that the Circuit Court failed to apply the Supreme Court's unanimous ruling a few weeks ago in KSR v Teleflex, "which altered the Federal Circuit's established framework for determining obviousness".

The US FDA is seeking 15 individuals, who will all have voting rights, to sit on its new risk communication advisory panel. The committee will advise the FDA on the development of plans to communicate the risks and benefits of all products regulated by the agency, not just medicines.

Experts at ASCO have hailed Bayer/Onyx's Nexavar (sorafenib) as the first effective systemic treatment for treat advanced liver cancer after the drug improved survival in a Phase III trial. They said it would become the new reference standard in the disease.

In theory, the current volatility in the financial markets shouldn't have much effect on funding for bio/pharmaceutical companies. The market for mortgage-backed securities has little or no relation to the venture capital world: venture capital investors don't invest in mortgage-backed securities, and don't package their investments into traded securities. Further, venture capital investing is high-risk by definition, so you don't expect VC investors to be spooked by a general heightening of risk aversion.

Still, we think that investment could be negatively impacted by the current turmoil in several ways. One way would be for the general decline in liquidity and heightened risk awareness to reduce the availability of debt financing for bio/pharmaceutical companies. According to data collected by investment bank Burrill and Company, bio/pharmaceutical companies have raised nearly $30 billion through debt placements in the past three years. The biggest deals have been done by big pharma companies, of course, but mid-size companies and even early-stage have benefitted. The latter have used convertible debt instruments (which gives the lenders the right to convert their debt into stock) to raise capital for R&D investment, especially during times when it has been difficult to complete IPOs. In the current risk-sensitive environment, when major private equity firms like Blackstone and KKR are having trouble selling bonds for their leveraged buyout deals, debt deals for early stage companies could be difficult to complete.

Another negative secondary effect for the bio/pharma industry would be for current events to change investor perceptions of risk. One of the factors that drove the mortgage-backed securities business has been the large sums of money available for investment. That drove investors to seek ever-riskier investments in an effort to boost returns, and the competition to invest in those vehicles drove down the risk premiums that they normally would be expected to command. We think that all that money has fed venture capital investing in bio/pharma, and the need to put that money to work has led to a lot of questionable companies and compounds being funded. How else do you explain why there are 50+ HIV/AIDS vaccines in development? A new attitude toward risk could affect the funding available for these marginal companies.

A reduction in funding for bio/pharmaceutical companies would impact the CRO and CMO business quite negatively. The ramp up in early phase compounds over the past 5 years as fed the tremendous growth in demand for early development services including preclinical toxicology and clinical scale API manufacturing. It has also encouraged a resurgence of the "one-stop shop" model, which first emerged during the funding frenzy of the late 1990s. If the funding bubble bursts, a lot of CROs could find themselves in a heap of trouble.

The latest data on the drug development pipeline from IMS (provided to us by an equity analyst who tracks the CRO industry) indicates the continuation of a disturbing trend: the number of drug candidates in early development continues to grow, but the number of candidates in Phase III and registration remains flat. As the chart indicates, this picture has been the same for 5 years now, and there is no indication that it will change any time soon.

The pipeline data contrasts with other indicators we track, especially the continuing climb in CRO backlogs (work under contract but not yet performed). It's also at odds with the anecdotal reports we get from contract manufacturers, who seem to be having a strong year for new signings. However, the data is very much in sync with the low number of NME approvals by the FDA in recent years.

We've seen little discussion of why the sharp fall-off in candidates from Phase II to Phase III continues. Although there are many novel therapies in the pipeline, e.g., gene therapy and antisense drugs, we haven't seen an indication of a massive failure of candidates in any particular classes of drugs. Of course, there are a large number of oncology candidates in the pipeline and they have an inherent high failure rate.

Another hypothesis is that companies are trying to move more candidates from discovery into early development but then killing them before they get into costly Phase III trials. This suggests that industry is pursuing strategies based on accepting that the only way to bulk up late stage pipelines is to offset high early attrition rates with the sheer volume of new candidates.

One implication of this picture is that CMOs should probably not be too optimistic about their future prospects despite a large number of new contract signings. It seems that the probability of candidates actually making it to commercial success is pretty slim.

If you've got some hypotheses on what is going on in the pipeline, we'd like to hear them.

News from the bond markets this week may have some implications for Blackstone Group's plans to finance its acquisition of Catalent Pharma Solutions. The Wall Street Journal is reporting that investors are starting to insist on stiffer terms in bonds sold to finance leveraged buyouts by private equity firms. Investors apparently are balking at provisions that have allowed borrowers to pay interest by issuing additional debt to bondholders (so-called payment-in-kind provisions) and that have imposed minimal covenants on the borrowers. These provisions have not been typical in buyout lending in the past, but had become popular in the lax lending environment. Investors are starting to demand higher interest rates as well.

The WSJ reported on June 27^th that a $1.5 billion bond deal meant to finance the leveraged buyout of U.S. Foodservice by two major private equity firms had to be pulled because investors balked at the terms, while a $4.5 billion debt offering to finance the acquisition of ServiceMaster had to reduce its payment-in-kind provisions.

The WSJ article noted that the stiffening bond environment reflected the large volume of offerings coming to the market and the recent difficulties of two high-risk hedge funds managed by Bear, Stearns. It noted that a $60 billion bond offering to finance the buyout of Chrysler from DaimlerChrysler also hit the street this week.

The Blackstone acquisition of Catalent was completed in April and is not at risk; most of these deals are closed with bank financing to bridge the time until the debt can be raised. However, Blackstone and Catalent could be looking at more costly debt, which could change their strategy and plans for operating the company.

Hopefully, the changing environment won't change Blackstone's plans to do the deal with public bond debt. Companies issuing public debt must file reports with the SEC similar to what publicly-held companies must file. If Blackstone chooses to go an alternate route, we will miss out on a valuable window into Catalent's performance and plans.

ProteoTech Inc. says it has completed regulatory Investigational New Drug (IND) requirements and has been cleared by the FDA to initiate its Phase 1 human clinical trial on Exebryl-1. Exebryl-1 is a small ....

Biota Holdings Limited has announced the commencement of dosing in the first Phase IIa challenge study of BTA798, an orally delivered and potent inhibitor of human rhinovirus (HRV). HRV is the major cause ....

Pfizer Inc says in patients with heart disease, type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney disease, Lipitor (atorvastatin calcium) 80 mg significantly reduced the risk of major cardiovascular events, including ....

Exco InTouch says at the Drug Information Association (DIA) 44th Annual Meeting 2008 in Boston, US, that there is a growing shift away from traditional patient communication techniques within clinical ....

WuXi PharmaTech and Covance Inc. have announced entering into a Memorandum of Understanding to create a 50-50 joint venture which will provide world-class preclinical contract research services in China. ....

Bayer HealthCare is expanding its commitment to hemophilia with the acquisition of Maxygen’s hemophilia program assets, including a next-generation recombinant Factor VIIa protein known as MAXY-VII. ....

Progen Pharmaceuticals Limited has announced the spin-out of its manufacturing business as the wholly owned subsidiary company, PharmaSynth Pty Ltd (PharmaSynth). The launch of PharmaSynth will allow ....

Novartis has announced details of two new long-term outcome studies in its landmark Aspire Higher clinical trial program which has expanded to involve more than 35,000 patients in 14 trials. The series ....

Genentech, Inc. announced that Avastin (bevacizumab), in combination with docetaxel chemotherapy, significantly increased the time women with metastatic breast cancer receiving first-line therapy lived ....

Singapore has launched a two-year investigator-initiated clinical trial to determine the efficacy and safety of cancer therapy drug nimotuzumab when used in combination with chemoradiation to treat locally ....

Biocon has struck an exclusive deal with Invitrogen to develop and market pharmaceutical-grade insulin.

GlaxoSmithKline's diabetes drug Avandia has sparked debate over its potential to boost the risk of heart attacks, at the annual meeting of the American Diabetes Association.

Drug maker Obecure has completed the treatment of patients in its phase II obesity trial. The company expects to present top-level results of the trial in the early fall.

Drug companies and Alzheimer's sufferers have gone to the UK's High Court to battle a decision made by medicine-cost watchdog NICE to restrict access to vital drugs on the National Health Service.

Neurogen has reported positive results for its proprietary insomnia drug, NG2-73, in two chronic insomnia clinical trials.

GPC Biotech has entered into a license agreement with Yakult Honsha for its chemotherapy drug satraplatin in Japan.

Oncolys BioPharma and Tacere Therapeutics have entered into a strategic alliance to develop hepatitis C drug TT-033.

Watson Pharmaceuticals has received final approval from the FDA on its abbreviated new drug application for bupropion hydrochloride extended-release tablets, 300mg.

US-based biopharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences has reported that a phase III clinical trial evaluating the company's once-daily anti-HIV drug Viread 300mg as a potential treatment for chronic hepatitis B virus met its primary efficacy endpoint.

Data from two new studies suggests that Johnson & Johnson's long-acting Oros methylphenidate has less abuse-related effects compared with other long- and short-term stimulant medications for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD.

IDBS have announced that the School of Pharmacy at The University of Nottingham (UK) has selected E-WorkBook to meet its data management requirements. The School of Pharmacy sought a solution that could meet three distinct requirements - adherence to good governance procedures, IP protection and visibility, and effective management of research activities. The University of Nottingham's School of Pharmacy is one of the world's highest ranking schools of pharmacy and has continued to significantly enhance the development of new medicines. The School is recognised for its forward thinking approach and has received a ranking of 'international excellence' for its research activities. E-WorkBook provides an efficient solution that will enable up to 300 researchers and managers within the School of Pharmacy to find and protect valuable IP assets, effectively manage all of the school's research activities, whilst also adhering to the highest standards of research governance. Professor Saul Tendler, Head of School, said: I am really delighted to be working with IDBS on this exciting project. The E-WorkBook will help and support the school in maintaining its position as one of the world's leading Pharmacy Schools. Neil Kipling, founder and CEO of IDBS commented: Universities are playing an increasingly important role in promoting global access to essential medicines and are a major contributor to health-related innovations. We are pleased to welcome the School of Pharmacy, University of Nottingham to our growing customer base. Following a rigorous tender process, IDBS was selected as the vendor of choice and we are very proud to be working with a leading school of pharmacy to help them become more responsive to the scientific landscape.

IDBS have announced that the School of Pharmacy at The University of Nottingham (UK) has selected E-WorkBook to meet its data management requirements. The School of Pharmacy sought a solution that could meet three distinct requirements - adherence to good governance procedures, IP protection and visibility, and effective management of research activities. The University of Nottingham's School of Pharmacy is one of the world's highest ranking schools of pharmacy and has continued to significantly enhance the development of new medicines. The School is recognised for its forward thinking approach and has received a ranking of international excellence for its research activities. E-WorkBook provides an efficient solution that will enable up to 300 researchers and managers within the School of Pharmacy to find and protect valuable IP assets, effectively manage all of the School's research activities, whilst also adhering to the highest standards of research governance. Professor Saul Tendler, Head of School, said I am really delighted to be working with IDBS on this exciting project. The E-WorkBook will help and support the School in maintaining its position as one of the world's leading Pharmacy Schools. Neil Kipling, founder and CEO of IDBS commented, Universities are playing an increasingly important role in promoting global access to essential medicines and are a major contributor to health-related innovations. We are pleased to welcome the School of Pharmacy, University of Nottingham to our growing customer base. Following a rigorous tender process, IDBS was selected as the vendor of choice and we are very proud to be working with a leading school of pharmacy to help them become more responsive to the scientific landscape.

INC Research, a therapeutically-focused contract research organization (CRO) with a process for delivering reliable results, today announced that David Subich, MD has been named the senior director, Clinical Operations for Metabolic and Endocrine diseases. Based in Raleigh, he will be overseeing existing related trials currently being conducted and developing comprehensive services for this growing therapeutic area. Dr. Subich has 23 years of experience as an attending physician specialising in internal medicine with a focus on metabolic and endocrine diseases. His rich background includes starting his own practice group, North Central Ohio Clinic, serving as a hospitalist, and a role as medical director covering several area nursing homes. Since 1991, Dr. Subich was the principal investigator on more than 50 clinical trials, where he was responsible for staff and study oversight, patient exams and Good Clinical Practices (GCP) at the research site. He also served as an associate professor for clinical rotations for The Ohio State University School of Medicine where he was recognized for his teaching excellence. He has frequently presented on scientific and educational panels on a range of treatment, practice and clinical issues related to metabolic and endocrine diseases. Dr. Subich was trained at The Cleveland Clinic Foundation after an internship at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. He received his medical degree from The Medical College of Ohio. Dr. Subich has a unique combination of research experience and hands-on medical practice in a variety of environments. He has witnessed the rise of metabolic diseases as a physician and understands the benefits of developing safe and effective drugs to treat patients, said John Potthoff, COO of INC Research. Our trusted process methodology gives us the framework to efficiently expand into new therapeutic areas as drug development trends emerge. We are thrilled Dr. Subich has joined our team to establish our Metabolic and Endocrine division. Diabetes and obesity are among the more prevalent metabolic disorders, and we are seeing those greatly increase on a global basis, said Dr. Subich. I am excited to leverage the knowledge inside of INC Research to build a world-class team to address the unmet clinical needs for pharmaceutical and biotech companies, exploring current and future targets for metabolic and endocrine diseases.

BIOQUELL's 'proactive' hydrogen peroxide vapour (HPV) decontamination service has been chosen to be one of only six technologies to be placed in seven NHS showcase hospitals. The HCAI technology innovation programme is a new initiative set up by the DoH to develop, promote and press forward new technologies into our hospitals that have the potential to make a real difference in the battle against HCAI's. BIOQUELL's experience in providing high level decontamination equipment and services has been rewarded with a DoH led contract that will see the patented Clarus(R) technology used as a proactive service within seven designated showcase hospitals over a four month trial period. Matthew Parks, head of room bio-decontamination services at the Hampshire based company commented, "We are confident that the proactive service will prove to be a great success, just as they have been in similar deployments throughout the UK, Europe and America. We look forward to reviewing and promoting the results, with a goal to be working alongside all British hospitals in the near future". BIOQUELL's unique decontamination technology is supported by robust scientific data and is the only technology of its kind to be awarded category One status by the DoH's expert rapid review panel. An article published online in July of this year (Boyce et al - Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology 2008, in press.) proved a reduction in the acquisition of C. difficile infections whilst being operated within a busy healthcare setting. Benefits of BIOQUELL's HPV technology include: Safe to use with all sensitive electrical and electronic equipment An active distribution of penetrates into difficult to reach areas ensuring uniform bio-decontamination Proven biological efficacy against a wide range of nosocomial pathogens including methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), Clostridium difficile, vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) and Acinetobacter baumannii The process is rapid ensuring minimum disruption to any room, ward or facility. For example, a single side room can be decontaminated in less than two hours, an entire ward can be decontaminated in 12 hours. All adjacent areas can operate as normal during the procedure

In its continuous effort to strengthen ties with institutions devoted to research in translational medicine, HealthTwiSt has moved its offices to the prestigious biotech research campus, Berlin-Buch. Located in the northeast corner of Berlin, the campus combines basic research in molecular biology and genetics with clinical research so that the latest medical discoveries can be brought to the bedside as quickly as possible. As Dr. Busjahn stated; 'Being located in the very same building as the Experimental and Clinical Research Center clearly improves our ability to serve our customers and deliver clinical data and samples most sufficiently'. Among the most prominent new neighbours are the Max Delbrück Center for molecular medicine (MDC), the Leibniz-Institute for molecular pharmacology (FMP) and the Charité University Medicine Berlin. Beside those research institutions, around 30 biotech enterprises with more than 500 employees are situated on the Berlin-Buch Campus. The expertise and services they offer range from the development of bio-diagnostics and vectors for gene therapy to peptide synthesis, protein analysis, cell and tissue grafts, bioinformatics and genetics.

Showing the efficacy of its HTS screening systems and successful collaboration with Academia, Bioalvo managed to file its first IP on products eight months after having the technology platform up and running. Bioavlo filed two PCT patent applications covering the therapeutic use of a compound identified using its proprietary drug screening technology, already protected by two earlier filed PCT applications. Relevant data regarding toxicity, efficacy and physiological behaviour (like ability to cross the blood brain barrier - BBB), that were key information for the IP filing, were obtained under the aegis of a successful collaboration with Professor Miguel Castanho's team at UL. The PCTs were filed covering therapeutic use for indications such as pain and CNS diseases. Bioalvo acquired full commercial and IP rights regarding the products to UL, who will receive royalties on Bioalvo's net revenues regarding the product sales. The relevance of the existing data already attracted the attention of key international players in the fields of pain and CNS. Helena Vieira, Bioalvo's CEO said, "We are very happy we've been able to show that industry and academia can work quite well together in Portugal and that is the way to value the good science we have within our universities. Filing our first IP around products give us a great feeling of accomplishment since this is a relevant landmark in the planned roadmap for the company development. These are the first of many that will follow, technology is up and running successfully as we have reassured with this IP filing, so it is only a question of time and resources." Luis Amado, Bioalvo's CBDO mentioned, "Having products with relevant data as in this case is a great asset to foster partnerships and licensing deals, not only on product front but also for the use of technology that can see its value considerably increased by those." Professor Miguel Castanho declared, "this is an important step in technology transfer and industry-academia partnerships in Portugal. It is certainly an encouraging event to cross the old boundaries that still separate the two sectors. It is also inspiring to have the perspective that our academic work may one day revert in direct favour of suffering patients. Without a strong and committed industrial partner like Bioalvo this goal would be elusive. About Bioalvo S.A. Bioalvo is the first Portuguese biotech company working on early stages of drug discovery. Bioalvo designs and develops innovative drug development programmes that generate potent and efficient drugs aimed at central nervous system and neurodegenerative disorders. Through its proprietary innovative platforms Bioalvo can accelerate and increase the efficiency of drug discovery through HTS and generate true and potent drug candidates for its pipeline and of its partners that will ultimately lead to treatments and cures for human diseases with dramatic social impacts such as amyloidosis, Huntington's, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's or cancer. The company operates an alliance-based R&D business model and relies on partnerships to fill its pipeline and bring its products to the market. Bioalvo is fully committed in building value by developing a diverse pipeline of products to address un-met healthcare needs.

IDBS is today proud to announce Neil Kipling, founder and CEO, has been awarded an honorary doctorate (DUniv) from the University of Surrey. Since being founded by Neil Kipling in 1989, IDBS has grown to become one of the world's leading providers of data management software to the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. The company has been trading for almost 20 years in a highly competitive marketplace and boasts an enviable customer base that includes 18 of the top 20 global pharmaceutical companies. Neil believes that a number of key factors have contributed to the companies continuous success story - including IDBS' location on The Surrey Research Park, his personal association with the local community and University, as well as the company's partnership approach and ability to support a diverse customer base. Dr. Malcolm Parry, director of The Surrey Research Park, who proposed Neil for this award, commented: Neil's career reflects his versatility as an outstanding entrepreneur who has continued to contribute to building the knowledge-based economy not just regionally, but internationally. He added: IDBS has remained profitable and has continued to report excellent sales and revenue growth. The Surrey Research Park provides an innovative environment upon which IDBS has built its success. All of us at The Surrey Research Park and at the University would like to congratulate him on his doctorate, as well as for his many other successes, and the triumphs still to come. Neil Kipling, founder and CEO, commented: This is a great honour, not just for me, but for the whole team here at IDBS. Seeing the company evolve to what it is today inspires me to achieve ever greater levels of success for IDBS. As a company, we have already achieved so many good things, but there is still so much still to come!

We are proud to present you our new ultra high purity nitrogen gas generator for Gas Chromatography systems. The NG10L-HP is designed to deliver high volume, high pressure, clean, dry, Nitrogen at a flow rate of 10l/min for the use with multiple Laboratory Analytical Instruments as a source of carrier gas. This system utilizes carbon molecular sieve technology to selectively remove oxygen, moisture and other gases to leave clean, dry, phthalate free, ultra high purity nitrogen. Due to the simplicity of the design and the small number of moving parts the Nitrogen Generator will have a long and trouble free life. The Generator only needs to be connected to a clean dry source of compressed air and therefore the installation is straightforward and maintenance minimal. Peak Scientific Instruments is an international company focussed on producing and supporting high quality Gas Generators for the analytical instrument market. Our gas generators provide a safe and economical alternative to combustible bottled gas and cylinders and offer a constant purity resulting in accurate analysis.

Guildford, UK - ID Business Solutions Ltd (IDBS), a provider of drug discovery data management solutions, is proud to be awarded the 2008 Frost & Sullivan European Bioinformatics Service Differentiation Innovation Award. Analysts from Frost & Sullivan perform extensive market research in order to determine potential award recipients. Their research indicated that 'IDBS provides real value to the life sciences industry through its consulting services.' By enabling the companies in the life sciences market to integrate research and business data, IDBS is helping organisations to make intelligent business decisions in a market that is characterised by budgetary restrictions and strong competition. IDBS' willingness to partner with pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies to achieve scientific and business excellence, and the contribution of its highly skilled staff who possess extensive scientific and IT expertise, were identified as two key differentiators that have helped IDBS achieve an average of 15% growth per year in a highly competitive and fragmented market. "IDBS, with its innovative range of product services, has demonstrated a strong understanding of the bioinformatics market, notes Frost & Sullivan analyst E. Sujith. With a highly service-oriented model, IDBS displays its commitment to give real value to its customers. Beyond its superiority in various product solutions, the range of services catering to the life sciences industry makes IDBS a worthy recipient of this award." Neil Kipling, founder and CEO of IDBS, commented: "We at IDBS are very honoured to be given this prestigious award. We would also like to take this opportunity to thank all our customers for their continued support and loyalty."

As part of ASINEX's suite of ADMET screens, ASINEX is able to provide affordable, efficient non-GLP tests for Liver S9 stability (human, rat), stability in hepatocytes (human, rat), plasma protein binding (rat) and plasma stability (rat).The tests are carried out at ASINEX's laboratory in Moscow where turnaround time is typically from 4-10 days depending on the test. ASINEX is able to provide special offers for first time users. ASINEX's Bioscreening dept. was founded in 2001 and provides a range of services including custom screening (against panel of kinases, GPCRs or proteases) and other ADMET tests including physiochemical properties, in-vitro absorption, cytotoxicity, proliferation and apoptosis, drug transport assay, and PK in vivo.

Endo Pharmaceuticals has revealed it is evaluating a notice from Anesiva advising of the filing of a new drug application for its Zingo topical powder product for the treatment of pain.

Pfizer has a won a case upholding its US patent covering the active ingredient in Norvasc, its best selling medicine for treating hypertension.

Generic drug company Actavis Group has acquired the Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient division of Sanmar Specialty Chemicals based in India in an attempt to reduce its manufacturing costs.

GlaxoSmithKline has said it is to pay a settlement of $35 million to Watson Pharmaceuticals, ending patent litigation related to the antidepressant Wellbutrin XL.

Barr Laboratories has confirmed that Celgene Corporation has filed a suit to prevent it from proceeding with the commercialization of its generic version of Celgene's Thalomid capsules.

Pfizer has said that the European Patent Office has issued an opinion supporting the company's calcium salt patent covering Lipitor.

Bristol-Myers Squibb has said that its third quarter earnings have fallen as key drugs in its pipeline are facing increasingly strong generic competition.

A US district court has granted the request of Johnson & Johnson, for a preliminary injunction against Mylan Laboratories, prohibiting the generic drug manufacturer from launching a copycat version of the drug Topomax.

A deal has been reached by Barr Pharmaceuticals to acquire 92% of shares in Croatia drug maker Pliva, making it the third largest generic drug manufacturer in the industry.

The world's biggest retailer, Wal-Mart Stores, has announced that it is to expand a program offering $4 prescriptions for some generic drugs to 14 more states throughout the US.

ICU Medical, a manufacturer of medical connectors, custom medical products and critical care devices, has entered into a five-year agreement with Premier, an operator of healthcare purchasing networks.

Ethicon Endo-Surgery, a Johnson & Johnson company, has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire SurgRx, a privately held developer of the advanced bipolar tissue sealing system used in the EnSeal family of devices.

PerkinElmer has reported total revenue of $528.6 million for the second quarter of 2008, an increase of 21%, compared to the second quarter of 2007.

Boston Scientific has reported a net income of $98 million, or $0.07 per share for the second quarter of 2008, compared to $115 million, or $0.08 per share for the corresponding period of 2007.

Advanced Bionics has agreed to settle an administrative complaint arising from a disagreement with the FDA.

Roche has proposed to acquire the outstanding publicly held interest in Genentech for $89 per share in cash, or a total payment of approximately $43.7 billion to equity holders of Genentech other than Roche.

Omnicell has introduced its medical grade wireless supply mobile cart that allows clinicians to access specialty supplies quickly, securely and efficiently from any location at any time.

Sound Pharmaceuticals has received a R&D contract award from the Office of Naval Research for approximately $1.6 million to optimize its lead drug candidate for hearing regeneration.

US based biomedical company Biophan Technologies has named Margaret Russell as the new CFO of the company.

BioMarker Strategies, a cancer diagnostics and medical device company, has appointed Karen Olson as its new CEO.

Nutrition Business Journal (NBJ) today announced the release of its 2008 Raw Material and Ingredient Supply Report; a new 440-page research report with new data on the 2007 market for ingredient and raw material in supplements, functional foods, personal care and other specialty applications.

Following a positive announcement by ConsumerLab.com, GOED announces its success in testing and improving quality of omega-3 products for the industry.

National Enzyme Company is seeking an experienced technical writer to assist in writing articles about enzymes and other topics in the dietary supplement industry.

More than 3,600 natural and organic products retailers, buyers, industry leaders, trend spotters, and media will meet in Toronto for Expo East, September 11-14, 2008.

Penton Media today announced its Natural Products Expo West/Supply Expo was named to the 2008 list of the 50 fastest-growing trade and consumer shows in North America by Tradeshow Week magazine.

Integrated Marketing Group (IMG) has announced the launch of a new media campaign for LIFE SPAN labs, manufacturer of men's sexual health supplement, 112 Degrees. This tongue-in-cheek print, outdoor, online, television and radio advertising campaign supporting the 112 Degrees product will run in select key markets and targets the male baby boomer demographic via retro verbiage such as "sexual revolution," "summer of love" and "mojo."

Fenchem has announced that it has enhanced its ginkgo biloba extract testing to guarantee high purity of the product.

ConsumerLab.com announced today that testing of fifty omega-3 fish oil supplements, foods or beverages (including two marketed for pets) found all to have safe levels of mercury, lead and PCBs.

The result of a one year long working partnership between Chr. Hansen and a major Mexican customer has been launched on the Mexican market: A naturally colored peach juice containing phytonutrients (Chr. Hansen’s Vegex NC2 beta carotenes.)

Trends expert Dr. Elizabeth Sloan will reveal new market data on what people are doing instead of dieting as they become more concerned about reducing body fat and maintaining muscle mass. Dr. Sloan’s trends analysis will address the new market potential for Tonalin® CLA which recently achieved FDA GRAS status for foods and beverages.

The MINOS-EURONET project has combined novel methods with traditional ones to help organisations from New Member States (NMS) to gain a higher visibility within European research in Micro Nano Technologies ....

Local officials of Thanh Thuy district, Phu Tho province hosted a review conference marking the completion of a landmark clinical trial on typhoid vaccine in infants on July 1, 2008. Over 15 local communes ....

Daiichi Sankyo Company, Limited, and Eli Lilly and Company said that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has extended the review period for the prasugrel new drug application (NDA) based on supplemental ....

NanoGuardian said the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued approval to its client to use NanoGuardian's cutting edge NanoEncryption technology as an on-dosage, brand protection technology. NanoGuardian's ....

As companies expand globally, outsource business operations and add new IT systems, they become more vulnerable to fraud, according to a report from Kroll, the world’s leading risk consulting company. ....

Drug counterfeiting, over the years, has grown in scale and capabilities. Emerging economies like India have eventually evolved as the hub of counterfeit drug manufacturing. Speaking at the prestigious ....

AstraZeneca said it has submitted a supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for approval of a new indication for Symbicort (budesonide/formoterol fumarate ....

The Ministry of Health and The Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) have put forward two programmes to further boost the pool of clinician scientists and translational researchers in Singapore. ....

The June 2008 issue of the Journal of Pharmaceutical Innovation (JPI) is publishing the first scientific papers outlining the progress made on the International Society for Pharmaceutical Engineering’s ....

BioAlliance Pharma SA a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the treatment of opportunistic infections in cancer and HIV, has announced that it has acquired the European commercial rights to ondansetron ....