The Day In Review: Novartis Corporation May Add To Vaccine Franchise

December 19, 2005 -- Novartis may add to the vaccine business it recently acquired from Chiron by making a bid for Berna Biotech of Switzerland; Pfizer won a patent lawsuit over Lipitor, rebuffing Ranbaxy that was seeking to market a generic version; Sangamo reported laboratory success in protecting T-cells from invasion by the HIV virus; Pharmacyclics said its lung cancer drug failed a pivotal Phase III trial; Basilea will retain global rights to its fungal treatment because Roche will not exercise its option on the drug; Tripos will downsize its Discovery Research business after a 4-year contract with Pfizer expired; Palantin will recall its NeutroSpec diagnostic imaging kits because of safety concerns. Biotech took a hit with the Centient Biotech 200™ moving 59 points lower to 3898.97, a drop of 1.50%. More details...

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