Tag Archive for 'Biotechnology'

Milestones Mitigate Risk in Biotech Deals

Milestone payments are becoming an increasingly familiar aspect of many biotech deals, as buyers try to mitigate the risks inherent with big purchases. Take Celgene’s $2.9 billion buyout of Abraxis; the biotech giant set aside $650 million in milestone payments if Abraxis’ key drug Abraxane hit certain goals. “These structures are a great way for [...]

Utah Doctor Sentenced to Three Years for Illegal Online Pharmacy

A Utah doctor is being sent to jail for his connection to an illegal online pharmacy that sold more than eight million weight-loss pills manufactured in Mexico. Dr James A Brinton was sentenced to three years in a federal penitentiary after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute phentermine and conspiracy to commit international money [...]

Pipeline to Soften Lilly Patent Losses

Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY) is looking to its pipeline to fill the gaps left by a number of high-profile drugs coming off patent. In October 2011, blockbuster Zyprexa will fall to generic competition; additionally, about three-quarters of Lilly’s current revenue comes from eight drugs that will lose patent protection between now and 2017. ”We have the challenge [...]

Specially Engineered Immune Cells Ward off AIDS

A group of scientists have demonstrated that specially engineered stem cells could be used to fights off AIDS, successfully testing the approach in mice engineered to develop immune systems similar to humans. The investigators started with the observation that a small group of people who are virtually immune to HIV have disabled CCR5 receptors on [...]

Nigeria Takes on Fake Drugs with New Technology

Nigeria is fast-tracking mobile authentication services in its fight against drug counterfeiters. Manufacturers will bear the brunt of the cost, at least initially. The costal country of 150 million is at the forefront of African anti-counterfeiting efforts, thanks largely to a rampant supply of malaria drug fakes. In mid-May, the nonprofit Pedigree Network and computer [...]

Top 10 Pharma CEO Salaries of 2009

Welcome to the annual look at the biggest CEO paychecks in the pharma industry. The major trend in 2009 was the mega-merger, which helped propel former Schering-Plough CEO Fred Hassan to the top of this year’s list. With the help of a $33 million golden handshake, Hassan bypassed perennial top dogs Bill Weldon (Johnson & Johnson) and Miles White [...]

Merck KGaA’s Pancreatic Cancer Vaccine Ready for Testing

In the quest for a cancer vaccine, Merck KGaA is again stepping into the ring. Vaximm Holding AG, the company’s joint venture with a Switzerland’s BB Biotech Ventures III, will start testing a therapeutic cancer vaccine in patients next year. The vaccine, VXM01, harnesses the body’s immune system to fight cancer by using T-cells to close off [...]

Contract Manufacturing to see Double-Digit Growth

Hold onto your hats: The global market for contract manufacturing is headed for speedy growth over the next few years. According to a new report from RNCOS, pharmaceutical contract manufacturing is poised to grow about 12 percent per year from 2010 to 2012. Cost is one of the reasons, of course.

New Spin on DNA Delivery: Enhanced Delivery Method of DNA Payloads into Cells

Chang Lu and his chemical engineering research group at Virginia Tech have discovered how to “greatly enhance” the delivery of DNA payloads into cells. The description of their work will be featured on the cover of Lab on a Chip, the premier journal for researchers in microfluidics. Lu’s ultimate goal is to apply this technique [...]

Mental Health a Growing Concern after Gulf Spill

Gulf Coast native Kindra Arnesen is so anxious about the effects of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill she is packing up her family and leaving town. “Stress? Dude my clothes are falling off me (because of weight loss). The level of stress here is tremendous. My husband has aged 10 years in two [...]