News

GSK responds to China allegations

Country
United Kingdom

GlaxoSmithKline Plc said that it is cooperating fully with the Chinese authorities to investigate allegations of fraudulent behaviour and ethical misconduct by certain individuals in the company, and third-party agencies and will take action required by the outcome of the investigation.

BTG guides on current year revenue

Country
United Kingdom

BTG Plc expects revenue in the financial year that began on 1 April to be in the range of £235 million to £245 million, excluding the impact of recent acquisitions. In the most recent financial year revenue was £233.7 million.

Simon Lowth to leave AstraZeneca

Country
United Kingdom

Simon Lowth, the AstraZeneca Plc chief financial officer and interim chief executive until 1 October 2012, is leaving the company at the end of October this year to become CFO of the BG Group Plc, the gas exploration and production company.

Ipsen acquires Syntaxin of the UK

Country
France

The French specialty pharmaceutical company Ipsen SA has reached an agreement to acquire Syntaxin Ltd of the UK in a deal potentially valued at €158 million, while simultaneously announcing an agreement in neurology with Harvard Medical School.

FDA approves BI’s Gilotrif for lung cancer

Country
United States

The US Food and Drug Administration has approved Boehringer Ingelheim’s Gilotrif (afatinib) for patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer whose tumours express specific epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) gene mutations.

RNA viral vector used to generate iPS cells

Country
United States

Using an RNA viral vector, researchers from the University of California, San Francisco have created induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) from blood cells which they say can be easily differentiated into haematopoietic stem and progenitor cells.

Synthetic transcription factors used to create iPS cells

Country
United Kingdom

Scientists from the UK and China have created induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells from adult cells using synthetic transcription factors created in the laboratory. They claim the method is safer and more accurate than other means of creating iPSCs.

Roche stops aleglitazar study

Country
Switzerland

Roche has stopped a Phase 3 trial of aleglitazar for patients with Type 2 diabetes who are at risk of cardiovascular disease because of adverse events and a lack of efficacy. This follows a review by an independent data and safety monitoring board.

AstraZeneca elaborates its oncology plans

Country
United Kingdom

AstraZeneca Plc’s previously-announced plans to build its oncology portfolio has taken shape with the announcement of three projects: a review of technology to monitor tumour activity and work on therapies for prostate and pancreatic cancers.

Immunocore secures licensing deal with GSK

Country
United Kingdom

Privately-held Immunocore Ltd of the UK has secured its second major licensing deal in less than a month, this time with GlaxoSmithKline Plc to discover bi-specific biological drugs against multipl