Another one on the hunt...

Yesterday I mentioned the news that GSK is on the prowl for new acquisition targets. Well today it seems that Pifizer is also on the prowl, but the pharma giant is looking for partners to manufacture biosimilars: the biologics equivalent of generic medications. This looks like a smart move for Pfizer as they move rapidly towards the patent cliff in a couple years where they will lose several big time patents, namely Lipitor. It also is a bit of a shift away from the novel drug development that Pfizer has been pushing. Interestingly, though, it's not that Pfizer has not developed or is not developing proprietary bioligics because there are several interesting compounds in the company's pipeline that will certainly bring in cash if/when they are approved. Either way you look at it, be rest assured that since Pfizer has thrown its hat in the ring, they will work to be a major player in the biosimilar market for years to come.

See what Bloomberg has to say here

But if you're really worried about who has the highest patent cliff, you can read this report from Yahoo Finance

Don't tell Roche, but some people think that Tamiflu isn't all that it's cracked up to be. Fierce Pharma summarized an article in the British Medical Journal that questions the true effectiveness of Tamiflu in preventing some of the lethal secondary illness that can arise from an influenza infection. The journal was careful to note that Tamiflu does lessen the intensity and duration of a flu infection if taken shortly after symptom onset. The article did a review and meta-analysis of 20 trials utilizing Tamiflu to generate its conclusions. If you're skeptical, as I am, you can read the journal article here to judge for yourself...


Speaking of the flu...remember BioCryst and Peramivir? Last we heard, it was approved for emergency use authorization for severe hospital influenza cases here in the US. Now the company and it's overseas partner, Shinogi, have gotten priority review of the drug for approval in Japan (which apparently is between 2 and 6 months...not too shabby). This is a big deal for BioCryst because it's the first submitted marketing application for Peramivir in any country. With all the strong positive data surrounding the drug, it's sure to be one of several approvals to follow in the next 6 months to 1 year. If you are thinking of buying BioCryst, be sure to make up your mind soon before it's too late...

Read more here at Seeking Alpha