Biotechnology - Genomic and Proteomics/IP Profile of Biggest for-profit companies in BGP/BGP Company Profiles - Data

Amgen

• Headquarters: Thousand Oaks, CA
• 16,900 employees (2008 Corporate report)
• History of acquisition:
  • 1994 - Synergen, Inc.
  • 2000 - Kinetix Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
  • 2002 - Immunex Corporation
  • 2004 - Tularik, Inc.
  • 2006 - Abgenix, Inc.
  • 2006 - Avidia, Inc.
  • 2007 - Ilypsa, Inc.
  • 2007 - Alantos Pharmaceuticals Holdings, Inc.
• Subsidiaries:
  • Amgen Australia Pty Ltd.;
  • Amgen N.V.; Amgen Canada Inc.;
  • Amgen Greater China Ltd.;
  • Amgen GmbH (Germany);
  • Amgen S.A. (France);
  • Amgen S.p.A. (Italy);
  • Amgen K.K. (Japan);
  • Amgen B.V. (Netherlands);
  • Amgen-Biofarmaceutica (Portugal);
  • Amgen S.A. (Spain);
  • Amgen (Europe) AG (Switzerland);
  • Kirin-Amgen, Inc. (Switzerland);
  • Amgen Limited (U.K.);
  • Amgen Sales Corporation (West Indies).
• Unlike many biotech companies, has been consistently profitable. Net profit in 2006 was US$2.9 Billion
• History: **Managed to turn itself from a drug research company into a pharmaceutical company while maintaining steady sales - extremely rare in the industry.
  • Founded in 1980. By 1986 was starting to turn a profit, but did so not through drug development but through research partnerships with established pharma firms
  • 1987, develop erythropoietin (EPO), which stimulates red blood cell creation. Sold the marketing rights to Johnson&Johnson
  • Epogen proves to hugely popular - over $250m in sales in 1991 alone
  • Between 1992 and 1996, Amgen's R&D budget goes from $182 million to $663 million
• It has ten approved drugs for 15 conditions, 23 agents are being tested earlier in the approval pipeline as of 2009
  • drugs include: Epogen, Aranesp, Enbrel, Kineret, Neulasta, Neupogen, Sensipar / Mimpara and Nplate
• As a side-result of this research, also publishes in academic journals
• Others/Notes:
  • Amgen - marketing and R&D collaborations with (Powell pp. 72): ARRIS, Envirogen, Glycomex, Guilford, Interneuron, Regeneron, and Zynaxis. these companies develop the product that Amgen later produces and markets. Perhaps there are instances of commons-like sharing here. Further investigation needed
  • Seems to be engaging in some instances of open-ended research with universities. e.g., collaboration with MIT's Whitehead institute
  • Further instances of academic collaboration here
  • The results of some scientific collaborations are being released into the commons
• It says its committed to sharing clinical testing results as soon as possible

Genentech

• Headquarters: South San Francisco
• 11,000 employees ("Genentech," Wikipedia)
• Owned by Swiss pharma company Hoffman - La Roche (Hoffman-La Rouche)
• synthetic human insulin was their first famous product, many others produced using the Boyer-Cohen rDNA process
• Papers by company employees
• Others/Notes:
  • Collaborated with Apple to create Open Source search engine for protein and DNA sequences called Apple/Genentech BLAST
  • Hoffman-La Rouche is engaging in academic collaboration to study the safety of InnoMed PredTox ("Hoffman-La Rouche," Wikipedia)
• In general, this seems to be a company that encourages its scientists to publish
  • examples of papers
  • Video of Genentech's Joe McCracken explaining incentives to publish
  • It has four-year post-doctoral program and also offers Clinical Research Fellowships
  • Supplies reagents for other research organizations' work
  • Worked with the American Academy of Ophthalmology and the American Society of Retina Specialists to develop guidelines and answer questions about Avastin
  • Has a separate board to advise the company on issues of scientific research
  • Company gives researchers 20% free time to work on projects of their own
  • VP for business development says the organization survives through science, not marketing.
  • Collaboration with UC San Diego Scientists
  • Funds undergraduate research programs through the Genentech Foundation
  • Provids infrastructure support for UCSF
  • Collaboration with Rockefeller University to look at therapeutic antibody potency

Genzyme

• Headquarter Cambridge
• 2007, US$2.89B operating income, $3.81B revenue ("Genzyme," Wikipedia)
• Cerezyme (treats Gaucher's disease) accounts for 30% of company's revenue
• Renagel, for dialysis patients
• Fabrazyme, for Fabry's disease
• Other/Notes:
  • Develops community support groups for victims of the diseases it treats, such as Fabry Community and other at Genzyme Disease Education/Research/Support Sites
  • Has established for victims of Gaucher's disease
  • All company-sponsored clinical trials registered [www.clinicaltrials.gov Clinical Trials] and at Genzyme Clinical Research
  • Partial catalog of researchers' publications
  • Give grants for science education and health-services in local communities
  • Building outreach into China. Will establish research center there by 2010.

Gilead Sciences

• Headquarters: Foster City, California
• 3,400 hundred employees as of 2009
• Growth based in large part on acquisition of other companies
• Products for HIV/AIDS, respiratory and heart conditions, and liver disease
• Over a dozen drugs in the development pipeline, Phase I or later
• Acquisition history:
  • 1990 reaches agreement with Glaxo to research and develop "antisense" -- genetic code blockers
  • Goes public in 1992
  • 1996 - first commercial product, Vistide, treats cytomegalovirus
  • 1999 - acquires NeXstar Pharmaceuticals
  • 2003 acquires Triangle Pharmaceuticals
  • 2006, FDA approves Atripla for HIV-victims
  • 2006 acquires Corus Pharma, Inc.
  • 2006 acquires Myogen, Inc.
  • 2006 acquires Raylo Chemicals, a pharma producer - is Gilead Sciences trying to become a pharma company?
• Other/Notes:
  • Gilead seems to have created an HIV/AIDS Clinical Cooperation Grant
  • publishes the results of clinical trials
  • Collaboration with UCSF on HIV targets
  • Project to bring HIV/AIDS drugs to third-world
• Foundation for bringing health care to under-served communities

Biogen Idec

• Headquarters: Kendall Scquare, Cambridge
• from Wikipedia: commercial affiliates in "Germany, France, Spain/Portugal, UK/Ireland, the Benelux, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, and Austria"
• Research centers in San Diego and Research Triangle Park, N.C.
• Treatments for Multiple Sclerosis, Crohn's disease, and a treatment for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma which is co-marketed with Genentech
• Most revenue derived from Avonex, it's MS treatment
• 2003, Biogen and IDEC merge
• Others/Notes:
  • Gives [1] educational grants to med schools
  • Sponsors "Citi Biotech Day"
  • Has US$100million venture capital fund to encourage Biotech research
  • Cooperated with Genentech to research and produce lymphoma treatment
  • Has the Biogen Idec Innovation Incubator (bi3), and has a history of buying start-ups ventures
  • Provides Student labs for high school students in Cambridge and San Diego

Cephalon

Who

• 3,000 employees

What

• Leading product - Provigil, to treat sleep disorder
• Focus on Neurodegenerative diseases
• has acquired the following firms: CIMA Labs, Anesta, and Laboratoire Lafon

Where

• Frazer, PA

News

• Founded in 1987, CEO Frank Baldino, Jr., Ph.D
• Failure of neurodegenerative treatment in 1992 - discovered that the drug kept mice awake, turned it into Provigil in 1999 (Cephalon, "Our Story")
• 2008, sales of US$1.943 billion
• 2008 - Treanda - treatment for non-hodgkin's lymphoma - approved and launched
• Stock has posted double-digit earnings this year (Bennett "It's Wake-Up Time for a Drug Maker's Shares")
• 2009 - seeks approval for Nuvigil to treat Jet Lag (Kennedy, "Cephalon To Apply For FDA Approval For Nuvigil For Jet Lag")
• 2009 - studies suggest Nuvigil could also be used to treat Bipolar Depression (Medical News Today, "Cephalon Announces Positive Results From A Phase Two Study Of NUVIGIL In Bipolar Depression")
• 2009 - (unsubstantiated) gossip that Eli Lilly might consider purchasing Cephalon (Feuerstein, "What's on Lilly's Prescription Pad?") Further rumors of take-over: (Steven, "2 Potential Pharma M&A Targets: Cephalon and Genzyme")
• 2009 - bid to take over Australian biotech firm. Interest in its treatments for inflammatory diseases and cancer (Domain-B, "Cephalon opens bid for Aussie bio-technology firm Arana")

Commons-Based, Peer-Production, and Open Access News

• Interesting: Three areas for establishing collaborative studies (Cephalon, "Research Partnerships"):
  • Pre-clinical studies - has simple online form for obtaining Cephalon products for pre-clinical studies. Response within a month.
  • Cephalon-sponsored studies - can apply to work as an investigator in a Cephalon study
  • Investigator Sponsored Studies (ISS) - investigator herself designs the trial, gets the regulatory approval, interprets and communicates the results. It appears that you just submit a proposal, and if approved, Cephalon will fund the study (Cephalon, "Going Further in Research")
• Also seems very open to potential business partnerships. All you have to do is send an email (Cephalon, "Business Collaboration")
• Negative test results are being used to further general research on Parkinson's disease (Cephalon, "Our Science")
• Corporate giving for health advocacy, science education, and community building in locations where Cephalon has offices (Cephalon, "Corporate Giving")
• 2006 - collaboration with Ambit Biosciences to research kinase inhibitors (B-Net, "Ambit Biosciences Announces Discovery and Development Collaboration with Cephalon, Inc. Focused on Kinase Inhibitors")
• Alzheimer's disease research collaboration with Scherring-Plough
• Collaboration with Abbott Laboratories to produce and develop Gabitril, an anti-epilepsy drug (PR Newswire, "Abbott Laboratories and Cephalon Sign Collaboration Agreement for Gabitril(R) (Tiagabine Hydrochloride) in the United States")

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