Abbott (NYSE: ABT) has received merger control clearance from the European Commission for its acquisition of Advanced Medical Optics (AMO) through a cash tender offer for the outstanding shares of common stock of AMO. The European Commission approved the transaction without conditions.

Merck KGaA announced that the European Medicines Agency (EMEA) has recommended to the European Commission the suspension of the marketing authorization for Raptiva® (efalizumab). Raptiva is currently approved for the treatment of adult patients with moderate to severe chronic plaque psoriasis who have failed to respond to, or who have a contraindication to, or are intolerant to certain other systemic therapies.

GlaxoSmithKline has announced initiation and dosing of the first patient of the Phase III clinical trial programme to evaluate the efficacy, safety and tolerability of the investigational GLP-1 (Glucagon-like peptide 1) agonist Syncria® (albiglutide) in men and women with type 2 diabetes. The Phase III programme will include more than 4,000 patients.

Amgen Inc. (Nasdaq: AMGN) announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted Amgen's submission and filed a Biologics License Application (BLA) for denosumab, an investigational RANK Ligand inhibitor. The indications for which Amgen is seeking FDA approval are treatment and prevention of postmenopausal osteoporosis (PMO) in women and treatment and prevention of bone loss in patients undergoing hormone ablation therapy for either prostate or breast cancer.

The Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation has announced funding of more than $1.17 million, focused on hepatitis C prevention and education and the mitigation of the disease in China, India, and Taiwan. The funding is part of Delivering Hope, an umbrella program for Bristol-Myers Squibb's (NYSE: BMY) efforts in the areas of hepatitis awareness, prevention and care. Organizations receiving funding are:

New data presented today showed that, for the first time, doctors can predict which hepatitis B patients treated with Pegasys (peginterferon alfa-2a) have the highest chance to achieve a positive treatment outcome-and even a clinical cure(1,2). The study results represent an important step forward, as some patients will now be able to feel confident during their Pegasys treatment about the likelihood of beating the disease.

Sanofi-aventis (Paris Bourse: EURONEXT: SAN; and New York: NYSE: SNY) announced that the ATHENA trial was published in the New England Journal of Medicine. The trial showed that Multaq® (dronedarone), in addition to standard therapy, significantly reduced the risk of first cardiovascular hospitalization or death by 24 percent (31.9% vs. 39.4%, p<0.001) in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF)/atrial flutter (AFL) or a recent history of these conditions.