> The Saskatchewan government awarded its first contract for a generic version of Pfizer's Norvasc blood pressure med--to Pfizer's GenMed division. Report
> Gedeon Richter, Hungary's biggest drugmaker, is seeking to form partnerships to market or develop medicines as the company looks to add products, Chief Executive Officer Erik Bogsch said. Report
> Progenics Pharmaceuticals said it reached a deal with Wyeth to regain worldwide rights to Relistor, a medicine used to treat constipation caused by opioid pain drugs. Report
> A Sanofi-Aventis unit sued Indian rival Sun Pharmaceutical Industries, seeking to stop a generic copy of the Allegra allergy medication. Report
> Ranbaxy Laboratories eight Indian healthcare companies had their share-price estimates raised by Goldman, Sachs & Co., which cited declining risk from U.S. regulators and the industry's "stable" outlook. Report
> Hungary's drug producers will likely have to pay more into the country's drug subsidy budget in 2009 than earlier expected, the National Health Insurance Fund, OEP, said. Report
> The addition of a ready-to-fill syringe line at Schott Pharmaceutical Packaging plant in South Lebanon, Penn., will bring up to 120 jobs over the next several years, the company announced. Report
Biotech News
> Shares of Ziopharm Oncology zoomed up 37 percent this morning after the developer released promising mid-stage data on its cancer drug Zymafos. Article
> Phytopharm demonstrates promise of Parkinson's drug. Report
> A start-up biotech that counts a Nobel laureate among its founders has settled in Jupiter, FL with $8 million in venture cash in the bank. Landing the fledgling biotech company is a win for Florida economic development officials, who have been anxious to built a new cluster around the research institutions which have moved to the state. Report
> Acorda Therapeutics faces a long-awaited FDA advisory panel review today of its MS drug Fampridine, and Nasdaq stopped trading in the company's shares until the experts have voted on its fate. News
Manufacturing News
> Although noncompliance with good manufacturing practices led to the contamination of heparin injections from late 2007 to early 2008, an inability to cope with supply chain complexities is to blame for the time required to track the problem and issue a recall. Report
> the more than 10,000 traders in the streets and markets of portions of Africa, sold counterfeit drugs to 85 percent of the population, says Laurent Assogbathe, head of the state health protection agency, in Benin, West Africa. ArticleTracking troubles stalled recall
> Open-pore ion-exchange chromatography capsules in a re-usable format have been unveiled by Pall Life Sciences. The Mustang Q XT capsules can be used for high-flow-rate contaminant removal and the removal of large molecules. Report
> An opioid drug for cancer pain has been made available in the U.S. through a controlled distribution program called FOCUS, for Full Ongoing Commitment to User Safety. FOCUS is an FDA-mandated Risk Evaluation and Management Strategy (REMS) program. Article
> SAFC Pharma, under the Sigma-Aldrich (SIAL) umbrella, has added 8,000 square feet to its 44,000-square-foot Carlsbad, CA, site for two viral product manufacturing suites, to be outfitted with disposables. Item
Special Report: The top 15 Women in Pharma. Start slideshow ⇒
And Finally... GlaxoSmithKline opened a global IT center in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia, to support its operations worldwide. Report