Attaching PEG-chains to biological molecules can increase bioavailability and speed up development of protein-based therapies and biosimilars, says EMD Millipore which has inked a deal with PEGylation firm celares.
Biologics are the next challenge for multinationals looking to enter the lucrative Chinese market, but such drugs must offer value and genuine innovation, say the CEOs of Merck KGaA and Chi-Med.
Despite a $17bn bid from Merck KGaA, it’s “business as usual” at Sigma-Aldrich which has signed a distribution agreement with reagent-based microbial growth systems firm BioSilta.
Life science sector consolidation is a concern for some biomanufacturers, who say mega mergers like Merck KGaA’s $17bn acquisition of Sigma-Aldrich will limit their ability to negotiate on prices.
Merck Serono is planning to invest between €130m ($168m) and €150m ($194m) in biosimilars in 2015, depending on the outcome of ongoing Phase I studies, the company announced Thursday.
As part of an effort to meet a rising demand for biopharmaceuticals, Germany-based Merck has agreed to invest about $68m (€50m) in its Italian production site in Bari.
With in-house production and manufacturing capacity, as well as a deal with Merck Serono, India-based generics giant Dr. Reddy’s is looking to bring as many as four biosimilars to the EU market by 2019.
Merck Serono says “fast progress” in its restructure programme helped double its net savings guidance for 2012 though headcount dropped by almost 2,000 with more cuts to come.
Outsourcing-Pharma.com presents its latest round up of career moves in the pharmaceutical industry, including news from Theorem, FMC Technologies and EMD Serono.
Biosimilars should help Millipore achieve long-term growth but cancellation of an insulin contract and rising raw material costs hit second quarter results.
The biomanufacturing industry needs to adopt an integrated approach to upstream and downstream processing to boost efficiency and productivity according to EMD Millipore.
