News

Governments in the European Union are being urged to choose the most effective new medicines in deciding which products to subsidise under their publicly-funded health systems.

Ark Therapeutics Group Plc has been told by the UK National Health Service that its diagnostic test for detecting early stage peripheral autonomic neuropathy in the feet of diabetic patients has been accepted for reimbursement.

Innovation has been a widely discussed topic in Europe ever since political leaders of the European Union pledged in March 2000 to invest heavily in knowledge-based industries to create new jobs and support the region’s high standard of living. So what does spending on innovation mean for the pharmaceutical industry?

MediGene AG is spinning out its technology platform for producing monoclonal T-cell receptors in a further concentration of its business on a small group of drug candidates which are already in the clinic.

Roche has announced plans to invest CHF 215 million (€136 million) in a new diagnostics facility near Munich, Germany, in order to increase its production of immunodiagnostic tests for doctors and researchers. The Swiss multinational said that immunodiagnostics is a growing market.

Nitec Pharma AG, a Swiss specialty pharmaceutical company, said it has obtained a CHF 24 million (€15.2 million) equity investment from five institutions to finance preparations for the approval and launch of Lodotra, its treatment for rheumatoid arthritis and other inflammatory diseases as well as the development of a product for pain.

GlaxoSmithKline has acquired at least 3% of Addex Pharmaceuticals Ltd through the purchase of shares on the open market.

The European Medicines Agency has given positive opinions for three new medicinal products, thereby paving the way for the European Commission to issue marketing authorisations. The products are:

Intercell AG of Austria said that it has received €40 million from Novartis under a vaccine-development agreement signed in July 2007, bringing total payments under the deal up to €270 million.

Silence Therapeutics Plc, which is developing siRNA-based therapies and a delivery platform, reported that its half-year revenue for the period ended June 2008 fell to £124,338 from £1,268,837 a year earlier. However, it said that its turnover for the full year would be similar to the £4 million sales it generated in 2007, “thereby ensuring a healthy year-end cash balance.”