US District Court for the District of New Jersey ruled against the validity of Bayer Schering Pharma's 531 patent for the companyâs oral contraceptive Yasmin, the result of a patent challenge by generic manufacturer Barr Laboratories. Bayer disagrees with the court's decision and will consider its legal options in this regard. The company will continue to vigorously defend its
intellectual property. 
Pfizer Inc today announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire Serenex, Inc., a privately-held biotechnology company with a Phase I clinical candidate and an extensive compound library that targets Heat Shock Protein 90 (Hsp90), an exciting target in the fight against cancer. 
Malaria is a devastating disease killing over one million people, mostly young children and pregnant women every year. There is an urgent need for new medicines to treat the disease as resistance builds to older treatments. GSK and Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV) are working in partnerships on a number of projects dedicated to finding new malaria treatments. 
Forest Laboratories Holdings, Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of Forest Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE: FRX), announced that it and Mylan Inc. (NYSE: MYL) have amended their January 2006 agreement to commercialize, develop and distribute the novel beta blocker Bystolic(TM) (nebivolol), which is currently approved in the United States for the treatment of hypertension. The Bayer Group once again considerably improved its sales and earnings in 2007, and also exceeded its performance targets. "2007 was Bayer's most successful year to date," said Management Board Chairman Werner Wenning on Thursday at the Spring Financial News Conference in Leverkusen. 
Life and Style Expert Sandra Lee's Semi-Homemade approach to cooking, which involves using 70 percent store-bought items and 30 percent homemade items in every meal, makes life easier for millions of busy Americans. Unknown to most, Lee's signature style was strongly influenced by her grandmother, who suffered from rheumatoid arthritis (RA), a chronic, progressive disease of the immune system that causes joint damage as well as chronic pain, stiffness, swelling and fatigue.