Manufacturing

In 2009, the European Commission (EC) Customs Union seized 11,462,533 medicines and medical products for suspected violations of intellectual property (IP), according to the Commission's annual report on EU Customs Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights, which was published last week.

Researchers claim that a dissolving microneedle patch may be able to offer improved vaccination against influenza compared with traditional needles, and also allow people without medical training to easily and safely administer the vaccine.

Pfizer Ends Second Tanezumab Clinical Program; Catalent VP Joins USP Panel; And More.

The Society of Chemical Manufacturers and Affiliates (SOCMA) expressed "strong concern" over legislation introduced in the US Senate earlier this month regarding chemical-site security.

Merck KGaA (Darmstadt, Germany), a global pharmaceutical and chemical company, completed its acquisition of Millipore (Billerica, MA), a life-science company, last Thursday for an aggregate purchase price of roughly EUR 5.2 billion ($6.7 billion).

Teva's and Sun Pharmaceuticals' motion to overturn a verdict issued against them in April 2010 for patent infringement has been denied by a US court, leaving the companies at the mercy of pharma giants Pfizer and Nycomed, who have said they will "vigorously" pursue damage claims.

The pharmaceutical industry?s increasing interest in inhaled drugs has prompted several researchers to propose standard dissolution-testing methods for these products.

PharmTech's monthly newsletter, Equipment and Processing Report, reviews the Editor's Picks for the July 2010 edition from Gems Sensors and Controls and Telstar.

With the right technology tools, the sponsor organization and the contract manufacturer can have self-service, on-demand, and scheduled access to all manufacturing, quality, and process-development data.

The Council of Europe (CoE) is hoping its 'Medicrime' treaty can help curb the lucrative global trade in fake medicines.

Xcelience and Penn Form Joint Venture; Almac Appoints QA Director; And More.

States can reduce their Medicaid programs' healthcare expenditures by changing laws to enable generic drugs to be substituted for branded medications more easily and quickly, according to a new study conducted by CVS Caremark, a large pharmacy healthcare provider.

McNeil Consumer Healthcare, a division of Johnson & Johnson (J&J), has once again expanded the recall of certain OTC products because of a musty or moldy odor, which has been linked to trace amounts of the chemical 2,4,6 triburomoanisole (TBA).

Merck & Co. (Whitehouse Station, NJ) released details of a restructuring plan last week, which calls for phasing out operations at eight research sites and eight manufacturing sites, resulting in a 15% reduction of its global workforce.

The Council of Europe (CoE) is hoping its Medicrime treaty can help curb the lucrative global trade in fake medicines.

The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) announced earlier this week that John J. Castellani will replace Billy Tauzin as President and Chief Executive Officer.

Last week, Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA) sent letters to 16 drugmakers, including Pfizer (New York), AstraZeneca (London), and Eli Lilly (Indianapolis), asking them about their current policies regarding whistleblowers?employees who file complaints under the False Claims Act (FCA).

Eli Lilly to Acquire Alnara Pharmaceuticals; Exelixis CEO Leaves for Biogen Idec; And More.

The US government outlines its strategy against counterfeiting and intellectual-property infringement, including ways to better secure the pharmaceutical supply chain.

The authors argue that the cost of generating nitrogen via an in-house gas generator is considerably lower than the cost of using fractional distillation to generate liquid nitrogen.

Duke University researchers have found a possible alternative to lyophilization.

Nanotechnology is an important area of drug and biomedical research, and advancing nano-analysis is crucial for its further development.

To continue innovating, the biopharmaceutical sector needs support from all levels.

As generic divisions become the most-wanted acquisitions of Big Pharma, India's domestic industry may be thinning out.

The authors discuss the statistical tools used in experimental planning and strategy and how to evaluate the resulting design space and its graphical representation.

Editors' picks of pharmaceutical science and technology innovations.

Rising labor costs in China may result in increased competition for higher value services.

Is now the time for multiparticulates to shine as a controlled-release solution?

Technical Note: The authors investigated the variables important for calcium-alginate formation as well as dissolution.

Reports of overlooked controls, dropped pallets, and misplaced documents leave a chill in the air.