Archive for the 'Market News' Category
March 3rd, 2011 by admin
Medco Health Solutions Inc’s (MHS.N) quarterly profit rose 11 percent on increased mail deliveries of generic drugs, but its shares fell as the report failed to excite investors. The U.S. pharmacy benefit manager reported a fourth-quarter profit, excluding special items, that matched Wall Street’s target and it backed its 2011 forecast. Its shares fell 4.5 percent.
Continue reading ‘Medco in-line Profit Report Fails to Excite Market’
March 1st, 2011 by admin
Nearly eleven percent of mortality in young children globally is the result of Pneumococcus (Streptococcus pneumoniae). While there are many vaccines that combat this disease successfully (Prevnar being one of the most famous ones), they are quite expensive and usually target only specific strains of the virus.
Continue reading ‘New Pneumococcal Vaccine Developed’
February 9th, 2011 by admin
India’s No.2 drugmaker Dr Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd said a U.S. district court has cleared the sale of its generic version of Sanofi-Aventis’ allergy medicine Allegra D24, sending its shares up nearly 4 percent. The U.S. District Court of New Jersey lifted an injunction passed last June against the Indian drugmaker from selling a copycat version of the drug, Dr Reddy’s said in a statement.
Continue reading ‘U.S. Court Clears Generic Allegra Sale’
February 8th, 2011 by admin
NPS Pharmaceuticals says that it’s on track to file for regulatory approval of Gattex after a late-stage study involving 86 patients demonstrated promising results for reducing the need for IV feeding among a majority of patients with short bowel syndrome. NPS now plans to file in the second half of the year and the news quickly spurred a 30 percent hike in its stock price in pre-market trading.
Continue reading ‘NPS Soars on Positive Ph3 Data for Orphan SBS Drug’
January 31st, 2011 by admin
Merck Serono is teaming up with France’s Domain Therapeutics to take aim at a new target for Parkinson’s and other neurodegenerative diseases. Domain will contribute compounds developed from their chemical series in exchange for a €2 million upfront, research funding and up to €132 million ($175 million) in milestones for the first two products.
Continue reading ‘Domain Gets $178M Deal to Develop Parkinson’s Drugs’
January 27th, 2011 by admin
There are many reasons cancer patients can dread chemotherapy. It might kill their cancer, but those who go through it often wonder if the cure is just as bad as the disease. Among the uncomfortable symptoms is chemotherapy-induced vomiting. Ahmedabad, India-based Lincoln Pharmaceuticals has been granted a patent for its nasal drug delivery system (NDDS) of ondansetron hydrochloride, which prevents or arrests vomiting.
Continue reading ‘Nasal Delivery of Anti-vomiting Drug Patent Won’
January 10th, 2011 by admin
Big upfront fees are out. Milestones are in. Partnerships will stay hot. The IPO window will stay open, despite a lackluster record in 2010. And investor confidence will grow, helping public biotech companies outperform the general market.
Continue reading ‘Burrill Predicts Big Surge in Biotech Buyouts for 2011′
January 7th, 2011 by admin
Coupons work. That’s what drugmakers have discovered from the co-pay assistance they’ve been offering to shore up demand for aging branded drugs (Pfizer’s statin Lipitor), create demand for new ones (such as Amgen’s bone drug Xgeva and Novartis’ multiple sclerosis pill Gilenya), and insulate patients from big price increases (Jazz Pharmaceuticals’ narcolepsy treatment Xyrem). As the New York Times reports, sales volume for some of these treatments has doubled, and pharma companies have as much as quadrupled the sticker price for others.
Continue reading ‘Co-pay Help Boosts Drugs, Scares Payers’
December 24th, 2010 by admin
It’s quiet on my college campus now but you can be assured that, for the past couple of weeks, the stress-o-meter has registered extra high as students have been working ’round the clock to finish paper after paper after lab report after exam prep. Our library stays open 24 hours during finals and the students appreciate this, though it must get a bit intense in there.
Continue reading ‘More College Students Have Serious Mental Health Needs’
December 22nd, 2010 by admin
In a rare victory against AIDS, German scientists say that three years after a unique stem cell transplant was tried on a patient, “cure of HIV has been achieved in this” man. This is the first time anyone has been pronounced cured of the disease. But as New Scientist notes, their radical therapy strategy offers no hope for the tens of millions of people around the world with the lethal virus.
Continue reading ‘First HIV “Cure” Comes with a Very Big Catch’
