GSK to appeal Argentine fines on vaccine trial; AZ breaks ground on $230M Chinese factory;

@FiercePharma: The top 10 pharma layoffs of 2011. Report | Follow @FiercePharma

> GlaxoSmithKline ($GSK) plans to appeal Argentine fines over inadequate documentation and informed consent irregularities in a vaccine trial, the company said. News

> AstraZeneca ($AZN) started construction on a $230 million factory in Jiangsu, China, that's set to be the drugmaker's largest manufacturing facility when it's complete in 2013. Story

> Contract manufacturer Ben Venue extended the shutdown of its Bedford, Ohio, plant as it struggles to fix manufacturing problems identified by FDA. Article

> Stada said it had cut the size of its licensing deal with Grunenthal to cover product rights in Eastern Europe and the Middle East for $197 million, leaving Central European rights out of the arrangement. Report

> New Jersey's pharma industry shrank by 17% from 2009 to 2011, a trade group found, but the drug business remains a "primary economic driver" in the state. News

> Sinovac Biotech, a Chinese vaccines provider, said Chup Hung Mok resigned from its board; a replacement search has begun. Release

> Piper Jaffray analysts reiterated their "overweight" rating on Vertex Pharmaceuticals ($VRTX), after other investment firms upgraded the stock over the past few weeks. More

> A Teva Animal Health plant in Missouri that's been idling since FDA ordered it to clean up its act is expected to restart vaccine production this quarter. Report

Biotech News

@FierceBiotech: Countering skeptics, Alnylam claims pioneering first in RNAi cholesterol study. Article | Follow @FierceBiotech

@JohnCFierce: Biogen Idec strikes $299M deal for Isis antisense drug. Story | Follow @JohnCFierce

@RyanMFierce: Quintiles has formed a new digital unit, using websites to tap patients for trials. News | Follow @RyanMFierce

> Biotechs round up new venture cash for COPD, Alzheimer's programs. News

> Biogen Idec strikes $299M deal for Isis antisense drug. Article

> Countering skeptics, Alnylam claims pioneering first in RNAi cholesterol study. Piece

> After calling off Poniard merger, Allozyne "redistributing" staff. More

Medical Device News

> Corinthian raises $2M, sets sights on eye drug delivery device. Story

> Medtronic gets FDA OK for remote diabetes monitor. News

> Smith & Nephew to spin off biologics unit into JV. Article

> AirStrip scores regulatory win in EU. More

Drug Delivery News

> India researchers pursue nanoparticle rabies treatment. Report

> New year brings new delay for SkyePharma's Flutiform asthma inhaler. Article

> ThromboGenics gears up marketing plans for eyeball injection drug. Story

> FDA issues new guidelines for transmucosal delivery of pain drug. News

> Veloxis, Athena ink deal for pill combining 2 heart disease drugs. Item

> Alnylam, Medtronic RNAi drug-device combo wows with preclinical data. Report

Biomarker News

> Biomarker could quickly diagnose heart attack. Story

> Breast cancer gene triggers mesothelioma response. Report

> When it comes to weight loss, watch the biomarkers and not the scale. Article

> CSF biomarkers could differentiate types of dementia. News

> Brain imaging could serve as Huntington's disease biomarker. Report

> Alzheimer's disease imaging signature predicts cognitive. Item

And Finally... Patients who don't take their meds cost the U.S. healthcare system $290 billion in extra treatment, a study finds. More