As summer approaches, the European pharmaceutical industry is preparing for a well-deserved break. However, some will leave the arena on a higher note than others. While big pharma is embracing the globalization of the industry and suffering under extreme pressure to improve performance, the biopharmaceutical sector retires with a smile and reasons to celebrate.

The US Pharmacopeia (USP) posted revised monographs for heparin sodium and heparin calcium on its website.

Biomedical researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center and nanotechnology scientists at UT Dallas are collaborating on a study that seeks to selectively kill cancer cells using monoclonal antibodies to coat carbon nanotubes that heat up when exposed to near-infrared (NIR) light.

Also, Stiefel Laboratories will acquire Barrier Therapeutics, Danube Pharmaceuticals appoints Brian Levy COO, more...

Bayer and its subsidiary Icon Genetics (Halle, Germany) have developed a production process to produce therapeutic proteins from tobacco plants.

The US Food and Drug Administration will have a $2.1 billion budget next year if the fiscal year 2009 bill markup by the US House of Representatives' Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee passes through Congress.

A review of an event that gathered in Cork (Ireland) the crème-de-la-crème in the world of excipient technology.

Also, Patheon to expand Puerto Rico facility, Creabilis Therapeutics appoints Tony Wilson CEO, more...

With most deadlines missed for reviewing each abbreviated new drug application (ANDA) it receives, the US Food and Drug Administration is likely to take advice from the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) on how to speed up its process.

The US Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency will collaborate in efforts that would allow drug companies to submit results of seven new drug-safety tests.

Senator Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), member of the Senate Health, Education and Labor Pensions (HELP) Committee, is requesting additional information from the US Food and Drug Administration and the pharmaceutical industry, concerning the regulation and practice of outsourcing.

To choose the appropriate conveying system, a pharmaceutical manufacturer needs a thorough knowledge of the benefits and limitations of each conveyor type. The following overview compares several types of systems.

PharmTech's monthly newsletter, Equipment & Processing Report, reviews the Editor's Picks for the June 2008 edition: Esco Technologies and Hawk Measurement

Manufacturers have stopped seeing disposable containment as an ad hoc solution, and the technology increasingly incorporates thoughtful design and engineering. The future promises to bring more changes and new applications for disposable containment technology.

The number of clinical-trial investigators overstepping their bounds has grown in the past few years. And, says Congress, the US Food and Drug Administration is taking too long to wrap up unresolved cases.

The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA), the European Union regulatory body overseeing the implementation of the REACH (Registration, Evaluation, and Restriction of Chemicals) regulation, began full operations on June 1.

In an assessment report about medicinal products containing heparin, the European Medicines Agency (EMEA)'s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) said it could not draw firm conclusions about the level of risk associated with unfractionated heparins (UFH) contaminated with oversulfated chondroitin sulfate (OSCS). Nevertheless, CHMP recommended that contaminated lots be withdrawn completely.

Also, Shire voluntarily recalls ADHD patch Daytrana

The steering committee of the International Conference on Harmonization and its expert working groups adopted Quality Guideline Q10 "Quality Systems" last week at a meeting in Portland, Oregon.

Also, Pall plans expansion in South America, Anthony Clarke joins Alexza Pharmaceuticals, more...

The US Food and Drug Administration issued a new guidance Monday on indexing structured product labeling. The Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research and the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research will begin indexing structured product labeling in the product labeling for human drug and biologic products.

The transatlantic cooperation of the European Commission, the European Medicines Agency, and the US Food and Drug Administration was recognized at the Second Meeting of the Transatlantic Economic Council, held mid May in Brussels. The TEC is tasked with overseeing and accelerating government-to-government cooperation to advance economic integration between the United States and the European Union.

The California Senate passed SB 1096 on May 29, voting to amend the state?s Confidentiality of Medical Information Act to allow pharmacies to provide third parties with patient information for the purpose of mailing prescription refill reminders and drug information directly to patients.

The US Food and Drug Administration advised patients, caregivers, and healthcare professionals to switch to hydrofluoroalkane-propelled albuterol inhalers now because chlorofluorocarbon-propelled inhalers will not be available in the US after Dec. 31, 2008.

The Synthetic Organic Chemical Manufacturers Association is evaluating proposed legislation, The Climate Security Act of 2008 (S. 3036), which directs the Environmental Protection Agency to establish a program for decreasing greenhouse emissions.

The global and US biotechnology industries performed well in 2007 as each recorded higher revenues and inched toward aggregate profitability.

As part of a larger effort to address drug counterfeiting, the European Commission is seeking to tighten manufacturing and related supply-chain requirements for active pharmaceutical ingredients.

Customers complaining lead to some serious explaining.