Articles By Marcus Johnson
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Sinovac Biotech Receives Grant To Build HFMD Vaccine Production Facility
5/12/2014
Chinese vaccine producer Sinovac Biotech announced last week that the company has received a $9.6 million grant from the Chinese government to develop a vaccine production facility. $3.2 million will be provided to Sinovac this year, with the rest of the funds being made available after certain benchmarks are met. The facility will focus on manufacturing enterovirus EV71 vaccines for hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD). The facility will have a yearly capacity of 20 million EV71 doses, and the vaccine will be commercialized in China. The project was supported by the Dedicated Funds for Strategic New Emerging Industry Development initiative.
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Britain’s NHS Shifts Stance On Prostate Cancer Drug
5/12/2014
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) in Britain has changed its stance on the advanced prostate cancer drug enzalutamide. The drug has been proven to extend the life of advanced prostate cancer patients anywhere from 5 to 18 months and will now be available to thousands of men suffering from advanced prostate cancer.
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Boston Therapeutics Enters Into Manufacturing Agreement With Patheon
5/12/2014
Boston Therapeutics has entered into an agreement with Patheon to manufacture pharmaceutical grade BTI-320 tablets. BTI-320, the leading drug candidate for Boston Therapeutics, is a compound designed to reduce the elevation of blood glucose after meals. BTI-320 works by blocking the action of carbohydrate-hydrolyzing enzymes that break down complex carbohydrates into simple sugars and limit the availability of glucose for absorption into the bloodstream.
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Actinium Partners With IBA Molecular To Manufacture Iomab TM-B
5/12/2014
Biopharmaceutical company Actinium has announced that is partnering with IBA Molecular North America in order to ensure current good manufacturing practice (cGMP) of its leading drug candidate Iomab-B. Actinium has stated that IBA Molecular will be able to scale up the production of Iomab-B under cGMPs, as well as further develop and test the quality of the drug product. This manufacturing development is leading up to the start of the pivotal phase III trial.
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Merck Could Have 6 New Drugs Approved By FDA This Year
5/9/2014
During a briefing on Merck’s business this week, company executives announced that Merck & Co could get as many as 6 new drugs approved by the FDA this year. The company has already had two drugs approved earlier this year—quick dissolving immunotherapy tablets used to treat seasonal allergies. In addition, the company will be applying for regulatory approval of two other drugs.
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AstraZeneca Seeking Partner To Develop Experimental Alzheimer's Drug
5/9/2014
Pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca is looking to enter into a partnership to develop its new experimental Alzheimer’s drug, AZD3293. Briggs Morrison, the global head of medicines development at AstraZeneca, said that the company was currently talking with other pharmaceutical firms with more experience researching and developing Alzheimer’s drugs.
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New Cooler Development In India Could Benefit Country’s Cold Chain
5/6/2014
A new cooler recently developed in India could become an important player in the Indian cold chain, the Times Of India says. Ashutosh Biltharia, a graduate of the National Institute of Design (NID), has created a new, portable vaccine cooler to be used for “last mile connectivity in the cold chain.” Industry experts believe that the cooler has the potential to challenge other modern equipment being used for delivering vaccines in India. The product is expected to be patented soon. Biltharia’s research has found that 6,300 vaccine carriers are being used in Ahmedabad alone.
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New Cold Storage Facility Established In Fiji
5/6/2014
A new cold storage facility for holding vaccines has been established in the Fiji city of Nadi. The facility is based at Yee’s Cold Storage and will hold drugs for 12 pacific island countries, including the Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Niue, Nauru, Republic of Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu. Vaccines for Fiji are stored at Fiji Pharmaceutical Services in Suva.
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Indian Drug Exporters Ask For Halt Of Primary Packaging Barcode Regulations
5/5/2014
Exporters in India are asking for the government to stop the implementation of its barcode packaging regulations. The barcode packaging regulations are set to take effect on July 1st, 2014, and a significant number of drug exporters have been lobbying the government for more time.
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Taro Pharmaceuticals Partners With Ontario To Double Production Capability At Brampton Facility
5/5/2014
Taro Pharmaceuticals, which primarily manufactures and supplies prescription and over-the-counter topical medicines, is partnering with Ontario in order to double the production capability at its Brampton facility. The investment in new manufacturing and research and development equipment is expected to allow greater production, as well as create up to 140 new jobs at the facility. The expansion project will cost $247 million, with Ontario supplying $7 million. Expanding the Brampton facility will reduce other costs as well, such as supply chain and transportation charges, Area Development Online says.