Now it’s official. Rumors about sanofi-aventis’s (Paris) desire to purchase Genzyme (Cambridge, MA) have stirred speculation for weeks. The French drugmaker laid its cards on the table on Sunday by publishing its offer letter to Henri Termeer, Genzyme’s CEO. Sanofi proposed to pay $69 in cash per Genzyme share, or a total of about $18.5 billion, to acquire the biologics manufacturer. On Friday, Genzyme shares closed at $67.62.

Termeer’s response came this morning. It can be summed up in two words: nothing doing. Read more »

Have you ever allowed yourself what you thought was ample time to drive somewhere, only to be delayed by a construction crew that was repairing the roads? Obviously, things don’t always work out as we plan them. Judging by its latest announcement about its facility ameliorations, Genzyme (Cambridge, MA) must have learned this lesson, too. Read more »

The past two weeks have seen dozens of third-party headlines speculating about sanofi aventis possibly making a move to acquire Genzyme. Officially, there has been no word with both companies remaining extremely cagey about any of the details. However, Reuters, Bloomberg and a few other sources claim to have squeezed out a few dribbles of information from “people familiar with the situation” and anonymous staff members. So let’s take a look at what may (or may not be) the current situation. Read more »

In the current economic slump, generic versions of branded drugs have become a bigger thorn in innovators’ sides than before. To safeguard their profits for just a bit longer, many companies have paid generic-drug manufacturers to delay the introduction of their products to the market. US and European authorities have called these arrangements anticompetitive, though, and events on Capitol Hill last week indicate that they might not be tolerated much longer. Read more »

The US Food and Drug Administration approved the first generic version of the anticoagulant drug enoxaprin sodium injection on last Friday, July 23. Lovenox is the drug’s brand name, and it’s manufacturer, sanofi Aventis (Paris), was not happy about FDA’s decision. Read more »

The investment community is speculating that sanofi-aventis is interested in making a US-based acquisition, according to a July 2 Bloomberg News article, with possible acquisition targets being Allergan (Irvine, CA), Biogen Idec (Cambridge, MA), or Genzyme (Cambridge, MA). In a July 4 Wall Street Journal article, sanofi-aventis would not confirm such plans, stating that it does not respond to speculation. Only time will tell if such reports are accurate as information becomes available, but as the waiting game begins, would an acquisition be a good move for sanofi aventis? Read more »

This week sanofi-aventis agreed to acquire the consumer healthcare company Chattem for $1.9 billion, maker of such products as Selsun Blue haircare products and Gold Bond medicated powders and lotions. In a press release, sanofi says the move is part of its strategy of including consumer healthcare and over-the-counter products (OTC) as part of its core growth plans. The move also reflects Big Pharma’s increased interest in building some targeted revenue streams outside of innovator prescription drugs. Read more »

Following up on last week’s post, it appears that the H1N1 flu vaccine is effective in older children, ages 10 to 17, based on preliminary results of an ongoing trial. This week, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, announced that early results of clinical studies of the vaccine “look promising.” Read more »

Reading the news sometimes gives me a disorienting sense of déjà vu. I know I wrote that last week, but it’s true again for a different reason. Today, French heavyweight sanofi aventis (Paris) announced that it was acquiring a majority stake in Shantha Biotechnics (Hyderabad, India). This new development follows a now-familiar pattern. Read more »

As my colleague Maribel Rios discussed in her blog this week, the recent outbreak of swine flu gives us pause to consider our pandemic preparedness. The events of this past week also makes us more aware of the interrelationships and complexity of global public health, giving rise to an even broader question, has the pharmaceutical industry as a whole met its responsibility in effectuating global public health? Read more »