Stephanie Sutton

An international consortium of pharmaceutical companies, academia, research organisations and other related entities have launched a new platform to help enhance drug discovery in Europe.

GlaxoSmithKline has formed a joint venture with Indian vaccines company Biological E to research and develop a six-in-one combination pediatric vaccine to help protect children in India and other developing countries from certain infectious diseases.

The European Medicines Agency has revised its guideline for the evaluation of anticancer medicinal products.

The European Fine Chemicals Group has proposed that mandatory inspections be introduced for all global API manufacturers wishing to supply the European Union market.

Dr Reddy's is planning to acquire the specialty injectable company OctoPlus for approximately EUR27.4 million ($35.7 million) in cash to strengthen its technological capabilities in drug delivery.

Takeda's US subsidiary, Takeda America Holdings, is to acquire the vaccine specialist company LigoCyte Pharmaceuticals for an upfront payment of $60 million in a move intended to bolster and expand the company’s vaccine business.

Johnson & Johnson has announced plans to open four innovation centers in California, Boston, London and China, with the aim of accelerating early innovation and facilitating collaboration and investment opportunities.

GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) is selling the majority of its 'classic brands' in Australia to Aspen Global for approximately £172 million ($271.1 million) in cash.

The UK is to invest £8 million ($12.5 million) in a new center that will be dedicated to stem-cell biology and medicine, with the aim of developing new therapeutic approaches to illnesses that currently have no effective treatments.

GlaxoSmithKline has announced that it will acquire Human Genome Sciences (HGS) for $14.25 per share in cash, or approximately $3.6 billion on an equity basis.

The European Medicines Agency has published its first set of finalized guidelines concerning good pharmacovigilance practices.

Merck Serono has revealed its final “final efficiency program†for operations in Switzerland, which includes confirmation of the closure of sites in Geneva and Coinsins and their associated job cuts.

A recent report from the UK?s All Party Pharmacy Group (APPG) has attributed shortages of prescription medicines in the country to parallel trade and is calling for urgent action.

AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim, GlaxoSmithKline, Janssen Pharmaceutica NV, Merck Serono, and Pfizer have pledged support of more than £14 million ($23 million) to a translational drug development project being run by the UK's Medical Research Council and the University of Dundee.

Merck KGaA has revealed further details about its previously announced restructuring program, including plans to eliminate approximately 580 jobs.

GlaxoSmithKline has reached an agreement to divest certain over-the-counter brands in selected territories to South Africa's Aspen Pharmacare Holdings for approximately $264.7 million.

Illumina has sent a fourth letter to shareholders urging them to reject Roche?s offer of $51 per share, which Illumina claims is opportunistic and undervaluing the company. In addition, the letter urges shareholders to vote against the candidates that Roche has nominated for election to Illumina?s board of directors. The election will take place at the board?s general meeting on Apr. 18, 2012.

An initiative in the UK will invest £75 million ($120.2 million) into translational science, with the aim of transforming biological understanding into clinical impacts that will benefit patients and the UK economy.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) has released guidance that outlines a European-wide approach for dealing with transparency and access to information included in marketing authorization applications.

A US court has denied AstraZeneca?s request for a preliminary injunction against FDA.

GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) is launching a new program that will create apprenticeships in several areas including manufacturing and R&D at the company’s United Kingdom sites.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) has launched a pilot program for submitting centralized marketing authorization applications electronically.

GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and Daiichi Sankyo have formed a joint venture that they claim will create the biggest vaccines company in Japan.

Eli Lilly plans to invest EUR 330 million ($443.2 million) at its Kinsale location in Ireland to create a new biopharmaceutical commercialization and manufacturing facility. The investment will lead to 200 new jobs, as well as an additional 300 construction roles during the building process.

The South African government is involved in talks with the Swiss biopharmaceutical company Lonza regarding a joint venture to construct the country's first plant to manufacture APIs for antiretroviral (ARV) medicines.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) has published an implementation plan for Europe?s new pharmacovigilance legislation, which comes into force in July with the aim of improving the safety and risk?benefit monitoring of drugs.

Pfizer, Sanofi, GlaxoSmithKline, and other major pharmaceutical companies have joined forces and pledged to defeat 10 neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) by 2020. The consortium comprises 13 pharmaceutical companies, the United States, United Kingdom and United Arab Emirates governments, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the World Health Organization (WHO), and several other global health entities.

The generic-drugs market is poised to experience strong growth as key blockbuster products go off patent, but companies looking to benefit from this will have to be careful about the product segments where they compete, according to a report from Frost & Sullivan.

Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) has signed an agreement to acquire the clinical-stage biotechnology company Inhibitex in a deal worth approximately $2.5 billion.

FDA has released a new draft guidance that offers recommendations to companies wishing to respond to unsolicited requests for off-label information, including requests made via social media websites.