Business & Industry News Channel
New data demonstrated that antibodies induced by Novartis Vaccines investigational, four component, Meningococcal Serogroup B Vaccine (4CMenB) killed the majority of a collection of geographically and genetically diverse meningococcal serogroup B (MenB) strains. The strain coverage research findings were recently published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 
The 2010 Heinrich Wieland Prize went to Prof. Nenad Ban of the Institute of Molecular Biology & Biophysics of the ETH Zurich (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology) for his definition of the molecular structures of fatty acid synthases (FAS) in fungi and mammals, the molecular assembly lines for lipid production. Endowed with prize money of 50,000 euro, this renowned award is one of the most prestigious scientific distinctions in biochemistry and life sciences in Germany. 
Roche (SIX: RO, ROG; OTCQX: RHHBY) announced that the European Commission has approved the use of MabThera (rituximab) as a maintenance treatment for people suffering from follicular lymphoma who have responded to initial induction therapy. The approval of MabThera maintenance expands effective treatment options for people with this common type of incurable blood cancer, doubling the likelihood of them living longer without their disease worsening(1). 
Sales of the Bayer Group rose by 16.1 percent in the third quarter, to EUR 8,581 million (Q3 2009: EUR 7,392 million). Adjusted for currency and portfolio effects, business expanded by 8.4 percent. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) - before special items - improved by 10.5 percent to EUR 1,656 million (Q3 2009: EUR 1,499 million). The increase was due especially to the sharp rise in earnings at MaterialScience and also to positive currency effects. 
Merck Group third-quarter total revenues increased 25% to a record EUR 2,438 million from EUR 1,950 million in the year-ago quarter, boosted by the EUR 5.1 billion acquisition of Millipore Corporation, Billerica, Massachusetts, USA, on July 14. The acquisition accounted for 16 percentage points, positive currency effects 5.3 percentage points and organic growth 3.5 percentage points of the increase. Novartis has received a positive opinion from the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) for Lucentis® (ranibizumab) for the treatment of patients with visual impairment due to diabetic macular edema (DME), a leading cause of blindness in the working-age population in most developed countries. Net sales rose 13% (+16% cc) to USD 12.6 billion with strong contributions from all businesses. Currency movements depressed the result by 3 percentage points. Rapid growth of recently launched products across the Group generated USD 2.3 billion in sales, representing 20%* of total sales. Acquisitions contributed 6 percentage points to growth, mainly driven by Alcon, Inc. (Alcon) sales of USD 617 million.