Top of the morning to you. And a fine one it is here at the Pharmalot campus, where the official mascots are snoozing away and a breathtaking autumn landscape is visible in all directions. Moreover, a warm and shiny sun is making a welcome appearance. To celebrate, yes, we are downing a cup of stimulation — hot buttered rum is our preference today. Feel free to join us. As always, here are your tidbits. Hope your day goes well and you conquer the world. …
After months of anticipation, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration gave tentative approval to Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories to make a generic version of a groundbreaking HIV prevention medicine, a key step in widening access for dozens of low- and middle-income countries, STAT says. The company, one of the world’s largest generic drugmakers, plans to start shipping the medicine next month as part of an effort propelled, in part, by several global health organizations to ensure the drug becomes available in lower-income countries as quickly as possible. The annual cost per person will be $40, comparable to daily tablets.
Lonza, one of the largest contract drug manufacturers, agreed to buy five U.S. manufacturing sites from Merck KGaA, more than doubling its footprint in the country and expanding its capabilities to produce advanced cancer and gene therapies, Reuters tells us. The acquisition will increase Lonza’s U.S. site count to nine, while allowing Germany’s Merck to sharpen its focus on drug development. The facilities are located in Missouri, Wisconsin, Indiana, and California. Lonza has been building its U.S. contract manufacturing network through acquisitions, including Roche’s biologics plant in Vacaville, Calif., in 2024.
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Source: www.statnews.com
