BioPharm International-05-01-2006

BioPharm International

Final Word: Creative Solutions Can Ensure Pandemic Flu Preparedness

May 01, 2006

Columns and Departments

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Certain areas of the vaccine market appear to be in vogue again, revitalized by blockbusters such as Prevnar, the pneumococcal pneumonia vaccine that reaped $1.5 billion in sales last year, and the human papilloma virus vaccines, which are projected to reach $4 billion per year.

Letters to the Editor

May 01, 2006

Columns and Departments

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After reading Brian O'Connell's column in the February 2006 issue of BioPharm International, entitled, "Will Venture Capital Firms Turn Their Backs on Stem-Cell Research?" one would like to comment. The press is too fascinated by Dr. Hwang's scientific misconduct, which was discovered, and sanctions imposed.

From the Editor in Chief: Engineering Oneself Out of a Job

May 01, 2006

Columns and Departments

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Alexander Fleming's original process for making penicillin was a low-volume, and presumably, labor-intensive affair. Today, it is a highly optimized, low-budget operation that is carried out only overseas. In other words, says Wei-Shou Hu, PhD, of the University of Minnesota, we engineered ourselves out of a job. Could we do the same with mammalian cell culture? Hu posed this question during a presentation at the BIO conference in April.

Regulatory Beat: FDA Encourages Innovation in Biotech Manufacturing and Product Development

May 01, 2006

Columns and Departments

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The Food and Drug Administration recently unveiled its long-awaited Critical Path Opportunities List, which maps out a number of "scientific projects" for improving the testing and production of biotech therapies. In its March report, FDA recognizes that problems in the characterization, testing, and quality management of medical products can delay clinical trials and even completely block drug development.