@FiercePharma: ICYMI: Is once-skeptical J&J coming around on pharma's breakup craze? More | Follow @FiercePharma
@CarlyHFierce: Merck CEO Frazier credits Keytruda success to slim-down strategy. Article | Follow @CarlyHFierce
> Eli Lilly ($LLY) inked two separate deals with Merck ($MRK) and Bristol-Myers Squibb ($BMY) to test its approved and experimental cancer treatments in combination with Merck's Keytruda and BMS's Opdivo. Story
> Portola Pharmaceuticals ($PTLA) launched a Phase IV study aimed at FDA approval for its adexanet alfa Factor Xa inhibitor antidote. More
> The FDA created a new department, the Office of Pharmaceutical Quality, to monitor drug quality control at pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities. Story
> U.S. regulators are taking a hard look at extended-release drugs from companies such as Teva Pharmaceutical Industries ($TEVA) and Wockhardt ($WPL). More
> China's Guangzhou Baiyunshan Pharmaceutical's shares surged in Hong Kong trading after the company announced plans to raise as much as 10 billion yuan ($1.6 billion) by selling shares to investors. Article
> The FDA banned a batch of Eli Lilly's Cialis pills from an plant in Australia after regulators found that they contained the active ingredient for Pfizer's ($PFE) rival erectile dysfunction drug Viagra. Story
Medical Device News
@FierceMedDev: Roche snatches up majority share in Foundation Medicine for $1B plus milestones. Report from FierceDiagnostics | Follow @FierceMedDev
@StacyALawrence: ICYMI yesterday: JP Morgan: With $1.5B spent and a new president, NantHealth works to rationalize patient care. Article | Follow @StacyALawrence
> Biodesix bags $12M in Series E financing for blood-based lung cancer Dx. Story
> Roundup: Device companies announce new financing during JP Morgan confab
> Sleep apnea player Inspire Medical targets reimbursement to bolster launch. Article
Biotech News
@FierceBiotech: $ALNY and $ISIS strengthen RNAi alliance, agree to swap IP. FierceDrugDelivery article | Follow @FierceBiotech
@JohnCFierce: Last night I had to hug a wall to allow a stampede of biotech execs to surround the NY Times' Pollack. Dangerous work here at #JPM15. | Follow @JohnCFierce
> FDA steps in after a patient on Antares' 'low-T' drug breaks out in hives. Story
> Roche inks a $750M antibiotics deal as it re-embraces the field. Article
Biotech Research News
> Investigators electrify antibiotic R&D field with claims of a breakthrough. News
> Team takes a new approach to taming neuroinflammation. Article
> Amgen teams with MD Anderson on new BiTE programs for MDS. Story
> Scientists uncover new target for triple-negative breast cancer. Article
> Scripps researchers find a better way to make a nicotine vaccine. Report
Pharma Manufacturing News
> FDA upgrades Fresenius sterile plant once cited for insect infestation. Story
> AmerisourceBergen moving into vet drug distribution with $2.5B deal for MWI. News
> Group wants FDA to include Indian regulators on plant visits. More
> FDA stops import of Lilly's Cialis from Australia but Lilly says it doesn't make it there. Story
> AMRI buys more manufacturing capacity with deal for two Aptuit facilities. Article
And Finally… Aetna is planning to boost the incomes of its lowest-paid workers by as much as a third to attract promising candidates and reduce job turnover. Story (sub. req.)