Shortly after touting its growth-through-acquisition strategy, drugmaker Actavis announced Monday that it has acquired British drugmaker Auden Mckenzie for $459 million, adding 175 new generic and branded drugs to its portfolio and will make Actavis the top seller of generic drugs in the UK. The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2015.

Sanofi and Regeneron may have the first of a new class of cholesterol-lowering treatments on pharmacy shelves, besting Amgen, Bloomberg reported Monday. Regeneron/Sanofi stated that FDA has until July 24 to make a decision on its PCSK9 inhibitor alirocumab while Amgen expects to hear on its medicine, evolocumab, by August 27. Both drugs drastically cut bad cholesterol levels in trials and could be promising treatments for patients who cannot tolerate statins or require further lowering of their LDL-c levels.

Shortly after touting its growth-through-acquisition strategy, Actavis announced Monday that it has acquired British drugmaker Auden Mckenzie for $459 million, Reuters reported Monday. Gilead’s German head of operations, Carsten Nowotsch, told the news service that discounts from its list price have been determined but would not disclose their amount. Nowotsch noted, “Thirty-five percent of people with statutory health insurance are already profiting from the discount agreements.”

ICYMI: NPS Pharmaceuticals scored an approval for its hormone treatment Natpara (parathyroid hormone), which is approved for use in treating hypocalcemia or low blood calcium levels, the FDA announced Friday. Shire announced a deal to acquire NPS earlier this month for $5.2 billion.


Two of GSK’s new asthma and COPD treatments, Arnuity and Incruse, are now available, the drugmaker announced Monday. Both inhaled medicines will use the British drugmaker’s newest inhaler, Ellipta. Arnuity is the first asthma treatment to make use of the new inhaler. Incruse marks the drugmaker’s first anticholinergic monotherapy, which is used to “smooth airways and improve airflow” according to a media release. Incruse is approved for use in COPD, emphysema and chronic bronchitis.