News

Lilly halts development of Alzheimer’s drug

Country
United States

Eli Lilly and Company said it is stopping development of semagacestat for Alzheimer’s disease after preliminary data from two Phase 3 studies showed the compound did not slow disease progression and was associated with an increased risk of skin cancer.

Lundbeck increases profit by 30% in Q2

Country
Denmark

H. Lundbeck A/S said its profit before interest and tax (EBIT) increased by 30% to DKK 936 million (€125.6 million) in the 2010 second quarter on revenue of DKK 3.8 billion, up by 6.8%. It expects revenue of DKK 14.3 to 14.8 billion for the year.

Pronova’s revenue and profit drop in Q2

Country
Norway

Pronova BioPharma ASA, the Norwegian producer of omega-3 derived prescription products, posted a 2.6% decline in revenue in the second 2010 quarter to NOK 443.6 million (€55.9 million) and a 59% drop in net profit to NOK 51.7 million.

New approaches to Alzheimer’s disease

Country
Germany

Two new approaches for treating Alzheimer’s disease have recently been disclosed. In separate announcements, a privately-owned company in Canada and researchers  in Germany have put forward different approaches for disease-modifying therapies.

Algeta advances its radiopharmaceutical

Country
Norway

Algeta ASA is increasing manufacturing capacity for its lead product, a radiopharmaceutical, as recruitment continues in a pivotal Phase 3 trial of the product in patients with bone metastases arising from hormone-refractory prostate cancer.

Evotec reports first-half operating profit, appoints new CFO

Country
Germany

Evotec AG has reported a small operating profit for the 2010 first half – the first in its 17-year history. The profit, amounting to €0.3 million compared with a year-earlier loss of €29.1 million, comes a little more than a year into a major restructuring programme.

4SC gives clinical update

Country
Germany

4SC AG expects to report data for its lead investigational compound, vidofludimus, in separate Phase 2 studies in inflammatory bowel disease and rheumatoid arthritis by the end of 2010. On 30 June, the German company had cash of €26.5 million.