Branded

PHILADELPHIA — GlaxoSmithKline expects to close the deal on the divestiture of several over-the-counter brands that were identified in April, the company stated Tuesday as part of its second-quarter earnings results.

"The divestment of noncore OTC assets in the [United States] and Europe will further aid our strategy to accelerate growth and increase the focus of our Consumer Healthcare business," GSK stated. "We are making progress to divest these products by late 2011, subject to realizing appropriate value for shareholders."

PARIS — The president and CEO of Sanofi's U.S. operations is stepping into a newly created role at the drug maker.

Greg Irace will become SVP global services, leading the global information systems function and will be responsible for shared support functions across all Sanofi businesses in North America. He also will play a key role in the development of a global strategy for shared services. Irace will report to Jérôme Contamine, Sanofi EVP and CFO.

INDIANAPOLIS — Drug makers Eli Lilly, Amylin Pharmaceuticals and Alkermes are giving their long-acting form of an injected drug for Type 2 diabetes another try at the Food and Drug Administration.

INDIANAPOLIS — Eli Lilly has launched its physician payment registry, a website that enables visitors to search payments to individual U.S.-based physicians and the institutions or research organizations that receive payments on behalf of a physician.

The drug maker said that its website, which is in line with its corporate integrity agreement with the U.S. government, aims to show how the company works with U.S. physicians and compensates them for their services and how these collaborations benefit patient care.

OSAKA, Japan — Japanese drug maker Takeda Pharmaceutical is reapplying for approval of two drugs to treat Type 2 diabetes after the Food and Drug Administration turned down its last applications, the company said.

Takeda announced that it resubmitted its applications for alogliptin and a drug that combines alogliptin with pioglitazone, the active ingredient in Actos, which the FDA approved in 1999.

The FDA will review the applications over the next six months, the drug maker said.

HAYWARD, Calif. — The branded drugs division of Impax Labs has finished enrolling patients in a late-stage trial of a drug for Parkinson’s disease.

Impax Pharmaceuticals said Tuesday that it had enrolled patients in ASCEND-PD, a phase-3 trial of IPX066 that will compare the drug with carbidopa-levodopa and entacapone in patients with advanced Parkinson’s. IPX066 is an extended-release formulation of carbidopa-levodopa in capsule form.

PARSIPPANY, N.J. — The Food and Drug Administration has approved a new means of administration for a drug made by Daiichi Sankyo, the drug maker said Monday.

Daiichi Sankyo announced the FDA approval of Welchol (colesevelam hydrochloride) for oral suspension to be mixed with fruit juice or diet soft drinks. The drug, used to improve blood-sugar control and cholesterol levels in patients with Type 2 diabetes and high cholesterol, received approval in 2009 for mixing with water.

NEW YORK — Bristol-Myers Squibb will acquire San Diego-based Amira Pharmaceuticals for $325 million, the two companies said Friday.

Amira develops pharmaceutical drugs for treating inflammatory and fibrotic diseases, and the deal includes milestone payments of up to $150 million on top of the upfront purchase price. Amira’s drugs include AM152, an investigational treatment for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, currently in early-stage clinical trials and set to enter mid-stage trials.