> Slammed by weak sales last quarter, Novartis announced that it will lay off 1,260 in the U.S. and rearrange its management. Report
> Pfizer wasn't the only casualty in today's announcement that Exubera was being dropped after disappointing sales. Nektar, which garnered a 15 percent sales royalty on the drug, say its shares plunge on the news. Nektar gets the rights back. Report
> Isis Pharmaceuticals has added a new diabetes drug targeting the sodium dependent glucose transporter type 2 (SGLT2) to its development pipeline. Release
> An Indian state is planning a new biotech research center. Report
> Microban international is expanding with 45 new jobs. Report
> In yet another blow to the embattled diabetes drug Avandia, the Department of Veterans Affairs is severely restricting its use. Until now, the VA accounted for about 8 percent of Avandia sales. Report
> Amgen is playing hardball to protect its anemia drugs as Roche prepares to launch a competing product, Mircera, next month. Report
> In a sort of good news/bad news move, the FDA is allowing Merck to expand marketing of the diabetes drug Januvia--but it's also expanding the warnings on Januvia's label. Report
> Acclaimed Australian stem cell scientist Alan Trounson, who was recently appointed to head up California's $3 billion stem cell institute, has been questioned in an investigation related to "anomalies" in interim results presented for an aborted $1 million lung regeneration research project. Report
And Finally... One new study out of the UK says that swearing in the office is a great way to build teams and blow off steam. Report