Sanofi shares slide on Acomplia delay

Sanofi-Aventis shares slid as analysts and investors assessed the damage inflicted by the FDA's approvable letter for the diet drug Acomplia (rimonabant). Sanofi had been oozing confidence over its prospects for a second quarter launch, but now the FDA has outlined additional work before the obesity drug can be approved for marketing. Right now, there's no public review of exactly what the FDA is looking for, though some in the analysts' community are looking toward a meeting on Friday with company executives to shed more light on the matter. The FDA rejected Sanofi's request to gain approval for Acomplia as a therapy for smoking cessation. That was always considered a fairly minor indication for the drug, but the twin blows has evidently inflicted some significant damage to the credibility of the French company's research wing.

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