GlaxoSmithKline and Reliant Pharmaceuticals Inc. announced that they had reached an agreement under which Reliant will be acquired by GSK for $1.65 billion (£800 million) in cash. Reliant, a privately held specialty pharmaceutical company focused on cardiovascular therapies, recorded net sales of $341 million in the nine months ending 30 September 2007, an increase of 62% over the comparable time period a year earlier.

The European Medicines Agency (EMEA) has been formally notified by Novartis Pharma AG of its decision to withdraw the application to extend the marketing authorisation to include a new indication for the medicinal product Zometa (zoledronic acid).

In the first nine months of 2007 Nycomed increased adjusted EBITDA by 29.4% to € 940.8 million compared to the same period of last year. The performance improvement is a result of strong pantoprazole sales in the US and repatriation of pantoprazole in certain markets while at the same time, spending levels were reduced.

Celgene Corporation (Nasdaq: CELG) and Pharmion Corporation (Nasdaq: PHRM) jointly announced the signing of a definitive merger agreement pursuant to which Celgene has agreed to acquire Pharmion. Under the terms of the merger agreement, Celgene will acquire all of the outstanding shares of Pharmion common stock for $72.00 per share payable in a combination of cash and shares of Celgene common stock. The transaction is expected to be slightly dilutive to earnings in 2008 and accretive in 2009 and beyond.

New clinical data for the Novartis development vaccine Menveo(TM) [2] (MenACWY-CRM) show an excellent and broad immune response in infants as young as six months of age against four common serogroups (or types) of meningococcal meningitis, a potentially fatal bacterial disease involving inflammation of membranes around the brain and spinal cord.

Pfizer Inc (NYSE: PFE) announced today it has entered into an agreement to acquire Coley Pharmaceutical Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: COLY), a publicly-held biopharmaceutical company specializing in vaccine adjuvant technology and a new class of immunomodulatory drug candidates designed to fight cancers, allergy and asthma disorders, and autoimmune diseases.

Abbott (NYSE: ABT) is supporting Operation Smile's global initiative to help bring smiles to kids with facial deformities by providing treatment to an estimated 5,000 children in need of surgeries. The initiative, which is part of Operation Smile's 25th anniversary celebration - World Journey of Smiles - takes place this month and consists of 40 medical missions across 25 countries. Abbott has donated 1,700 bottles of its anesthesia product, valued at almost $500,000, for the surgeries.