Pending Allergan merger stirs layoff fears among Pfizer scientists

Pfizer's ($PFE) planned $160 billion merger with Allergan ($AGN) has some researchers worried the company will embrace its counterpart's austere approach to R&D and mount major layoffs. As the Financial Times reports, Pfizer top scientist Mikael Dolsten is working to assuage those fears in his department, saying the combined company will find a "sweet spot" in R&D that will preserve Pfizer's long-held commitment to research. Allergan executives, long averse to costly R&D, have "opened their eyes" to the benefits of spending big on early-stage research, Dolsten told FT. But some Pfizer scientists, mindful of pharma M&A history, remain concerned that the company will substantially cut back its R&D budget once the merger closes this summer, according to FT. Story