LONDON (Reuters) – Denmark’s Lundbeck got a fresh boost for its experimental antidepressant Brintellix on Monday when a clinical trial showed benefits over another medicine called agomelatine that some doctors use when cheap generic pills fail.

Lundbeck and its Japanese partner Takeda submitted Brintellix, also known as vortioxetine, for regulatory approval in the United States and Europe at the end of last year.

LONDON, April 7 (Reuters) – Around 390 million people are
infected each year with dengue fever – the world’s
fastest-spreading tropical disease – more than triple the
current estimate by the World Health Organization, experts said
on Sunday.

The new finding, based on several years of analysis,
underscores the growing burden of the mosquito-borne viral
disease, which is also called “breakbone fever” because of the
severe pain it can cause.

LONDON (Reuters) – AstraZeneca’s experimental rheumatoid arthritis pill fostamatinib met only one of two goals in a late-stage clinical trial, leaving the future of one of the group’s few advanced pipeline products uncertain.

Fostamatinib is a potential competitor to injectable drugs like AbbVie’s Humira and a new pill from Pfizer called Xeljanz in a $20 billion-plus market. Disappointing results from earlier tests, however, mean investor hopes for the medicine are low.

LONDON, April 4 (Reuters) – Experts from around the world
are in daily talks about the threat posed by a deadly new strain
of bird flu in China, including discussions on if and when to
start making a vaccine.

Any decision to mass-produce vaccines against H7N9 flu will
not be taken lightly, since it will mean sacrificing production
of seasonal shots. And scientists warn it will take months to
get any finished bird flu vaccine to the market.

LONDON (Reuters) – AstraZeneca (AZN.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) boosted its early-stage pipeline of experimental heart drugs on Wednesday by buying privately held U.S. biotechnology company AlphaCore Pharma, which is developing a new type of cholesterol medicine.

The deal shows AstraZeneca’s new Chief Executive Pascal Soriot taking on more scientific risks by betting on a new and still unproven approach to cardiovascular medicine.

NEW YORK/LONDON (Reuters) – At least three of the world’s top drugmakers are bidding for Brazil’s Ache Laboratorios Farmaceuticos in an auction that may value the group at more than $5 billion, people familiar with the matter said.

Pfizer Inc, Novartis AG and Abbott Laboratories are all weighing second-round bids to acquire the company, which boasts a strong position in Brazil’s fast-growing pharmaceuticals market, the people said.