Sandoz announced that it has begun a phase II clinical trial in patients for biosimilar rituximab (Roche's Rituxan® / Mabthera®), a leading monoclonal antibody indicated in conditions including non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and rheumatoid arthritis.

GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and ChemoCentryx, Inc. announced that the first patient with Crohn's disease has initiated treatment in the initial pivotal induction study comparing Traficet-EN, now designated GSK1605786 ('786), to placebo.

The U.S. Innovation Center of Bayer HealthCare's pharmaceutical division has started its operations in San Francisco's Mission Bay life sciences hub. At the same time the company announced a master agreement for research collaborations with the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF).

The American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) and its educational arm - the American College of Endocrinology (ACE) - in partnership with Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE: BMY) and AstraZeneca (NYSE: AZN), announced a new public health initiative for people with type 2 diabetes mellitus called The Type 2 Talk:

Genzyme Corp. (NASDAQ: GENZ) reported that preliminary fourth-quarter revenue grew 23 percent to $1.15 billion from $938 million in the fourth quarter of 2009. For the year, revenue was $4.1 billion compared with $4.0 billion in 2009.

Shire plc (LSE: SHP, NASDAQ: SHPGY), the global specialty biopharmaceutical company, announced results from a study of Vyvanse® (lisdexamfetamine dimesylate), assessing its effect in a model for Excessive Daytime Sleepiness (EDS).

Abbott (NYSE: ABT) has received CE Mark approval for the world's first drug eluting bioresorbable vascular scaffold (BVS) for the treatment of coronary artery disease. Abbott's BVS device restores blood flow by opening a clogged vessel and providing support to the vessel until the device dissolves within approximately two years,