@FiercePharma: Short-term praise and long-term questions for Shire from the FT. News | Follow @FiercePharma
> Purdue Pharma exercised its option to U.S. rights for the newly approved sleep drug Intermezzo, giving developer Transcept Pharmaceuticals the chance at $90 million in milestone payments. News
> Protesters gathered at the Mumbai office of Swiss drugmaker Novartis ($NVS) to demonstrate against the company's legal challenge to a provision in the country's patent law. Item
> Lupin won FDA approval for its generic version of the acne-fighting antibiotic Solodyn, made by U.S.-based Medicis Pharmaceutical ($MRX). Story
> UBS downgraded Ranbaxy Laboratories to "neutral" from "buy" and cut its target price, citing the Indian generics maker's lack of explanation for its profit-sharing deal with Teva Pharmaceutical Industries ($TEVA). Article
> AstraZeneca ($AZN) bought back 809,923 more shares under its ongoing stock repurchasing plan. Story
> Actavis bought the Dutch packaging company PharmaPack International for an undisclosed amount, partly to cut lead times on distributing tablets acquired from third-party manufacturers. Report
Biotech News
@FierceBiotech: Idera wins FDA green light for Phase II psoriasis drug test. News | Follow@FierceBiotech
@RyanMFierce: Here's Novartis' PR on data it will present at SABCS and ASH. Release | Follow@RyanMFierce
@MaureenFierce: Of the 88 medicines and vaccines in development for HIV/AIDS, 49 are antivirals and 27 are vaccines. Release | Follow @MaureenFierce
@MarkHFierce: Interesting. First South Africa, and now Obama sets a new goal for fighting AIDS globally. Here's the Reuters story. Article | Follow @MarkHFierce
> Idera wins FDA green light for Phase II psoriasis drug test. Report
> J&J, BMS join forces in race to develop interferon-free hep C combo. Story
> Amgen, others fall short in replicating study results. News
> Pfizer's Emini targets pneumonia market with Prevnar 13. Item
And Finally... Lower levels of antioxidants in men might explain their threefold-higher risk of a certain type of skin cancer. News