Generic drugmaker enters R&D field

Generic drugmaker Upsher-Smith Laboratories is looking to expand beyond its "me-too" business into the R&D field. In a quest to bring four novel drugs to market by 2017, the U.S.-based company has inked a deal with London-based Proximagen Neuroscience. Upsher-Smith gains Proximagen's PRX1 program for the symptomatic treatment of Parkinson's disease. When all is said and done, the deal could be worth up to $232 million in milestones and royalties.

"The generic business is fairly ho-hum," Mark Evenstad, president of Upsher-Smith, told the Business Journal. "It's by definition a me-too kind of business. It's not a good personality for us."

- here's the article

Related Articles:
Sanofi chairman lambastes generic drug makers
Democrats to push for generic biotech drugs
Texas AG goes after generics makers
Op-Ed: Generics aren't always equal
Drug lobby stalls pro-generics bill