Single flu drug may be insufficient
The UK should not rely on just one antiviral drug, Roche's Tamiflu, to protect its citizens in the case of a flu outbreak as resistance may hamper control and containment of a pandemic, according to scientists at the Royal Society and the Academy of Medical Sciences, whose report, co-authored by industry personnel, criticised poor clarity in the government's decision to stockpile Tamiflu alone. The document, which was compiled over eight months, advises the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) to bring in more external scientific expertise, by way of forming a vaccination committee that included independent specialists. Separately, Roche has agreed to amend the patient leaflet for Tamiflu on the back of concern over possible psychiatric events in children taking the drug. Regulators have not yet formally identified any causal link.
Actelion buys CoTherix
Actelion has agreed to buy biopharmaceutical firm CoTherix for $420m, strengthening its position in the pulmonary hypertension market. The move sent Actelion shares soaring, as investors pushed shares up 6.4 per cent. The Swiss biotech firms expects sales of Ventavis, a pulmonary arterial hypertension drug marketed by CoTherix, to add over $100m to its product revenues. While analysts are broadly positive about the move, others have warned that Actelion could become too reliant on the pulmonary hypertension market.
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