Novartis likely to make Serono bid ‘within ten days’

Swiss drug giant Novartis still wants to buy up biotech firm Serono, according to a German newspaper.

Sources close to the latter company told the Sonntags Zeitung that Novartis would first complete its due diligence assessment of the firm, and that a bid could be made as early as in the next ten days.

The newspaper said that the purchase of Sorono would boost Novartis’ biotech generic division, taking advantage of worldwide annual growth of 15 per cent in the sector and adding several biotech generics to the firm’s roster.

In addition to generics, Sorono has developed popular infertility treatments, metabolism and growth drugs for patients suffering from growth problems or issues related to HIV and treatments for psoriasis.

It announced on Monday that it had completed the second phase III trial into its recombinant human growth hormone for patients with HIV-associated adipose redistribution syndrome (HARS), but did not indicate the efficacy of the drug.

Sorono plans to submit the research to the US Food and Drug Administration during the first six months of the year.

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