Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE:BMY) and the California Institute for Biomedical Research (Calibr) announced today they have entered into a worldwide research collaboration to develop novel small molecule anti-fibrotic therapies, and an exclusive license agreement that allows Bristol-Myers Squibb to develop, manufacture and commercialize Calibr's preclinical compounds resulting from the collaboration.

A new European consortium has been formed including GSK and three leading research institutions to help further advance development of a candidate vaccine against Ebola, which is being co-developed by GSK and the US National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Abbott (NYSE: ABT) today announced that it has acquired control of Veropharm, a leading Russian pharmaceutical manufacturer. Abbott has had a presence in Russia for nearly 40 years and, in line with its long-term commitment to growing global healthcare markets and capabilities, the company is committed to providing a reliable supply of its healthcare products to Russian patients.

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) announced today two strategic decisions to expand the company's rare disease research and development activities through the establishment of a gene therapy platform to investigate potential treatments for patients.

AstraZeneca today announced that a jury in the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts returned a verdict in favour of AstraZeneca in a Multi-District antitrust case filed by various purchaser groups challenging the previous settlement of Nexium patent litigation with Ranbaxy.

The Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation today announced nine new grants totaling more than $3.5 million to strengthen efforts in China and India in the fight against hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection by focusing on the most vulnerable, high-risk patient populations.

AstraZeneca and Amgen have announced that AMAGINE-2™, a pivotal, multi-arm Phase III trial evaluating two doses of brodalumab in more than 1,800 patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis, met its primary endpoints when compared with both Stelara® (ustekinumab) and placebo at week 12.