News

In the company’s first quarterly-results announcement since it returned to public ownership in May, Quintiles Transnational reported operating income down by 5.9% year on year for the three months ended 30 June 2013, on service revenues that were virtually flat against last year’s quarter.

Roche has inked a deal with the Medicines Patent Pool to improve access to Valcyte, the Swiss major’s drug to treat cytomegalovirus.

Sanofi has begun a major late-stage trial on a vaccine against Clostridium difficile infections.

GlaxoSmithKline is going to have to wait a while yet before it gets the thumbs-up from the US Food and Drug Administration for its investigational diabetes drug albiglutide.

Ahead of a panel review, staff at the US Food and Drug Administration has backed Bayer’s riociguat for two forms of pulmonary hypertension but at a lower dose than the German group is looking for.

The Wellcome Trust has sold its stake in the payday lender Wonga, noting that the decision was taken “several months” before the recent furore concerning the controversial firm and the Church of England.

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries has posted a $452 million net loss for the second quarter, hit by charges connected to the $1.6 billion compensation it needs to pay Pfizer and Takeda for patent infringement of Protonix (pantoprazole).

The myeloma community has been encouraged by a new study of Celgene Corp’s Revlimid which shows its effectiveness in patients whose disease has not yet progressed.

Authorities in India have revoked a patent on GlaxoSmithKline’s breast cancer drug Tykerb,in the latest blow to big pharma in terms of intellectual property.

Sanofi’s figures have taken a hammering as a result of generic competition, problems at its Brazilian operations and “commercial underperformance in certain business areas”.

Patients in Wales are to get access to AstraZeneca’s antibiotic Zinforo on the National Health Service for serious skin infections.

Actelion is looking to acquire Ceptaris, a privately-held US company in a deal that could be worth $250 million.

Amgen has linked up with Teijin Pharma to develop treatments for autoimmune diseases.

AstraZeneca has posted a 4% decline in second-quarter revenues at constant exchange rates,to $6.23 billion and core operating profit fell 10% to $2.06 billion, hit by patent expiries.

US-based clinical research organisation (CRO) INC Research has established business operations in Japan along with two new offices in Osaka and Tokyo.