Ashley Roberts

Baxter International announced on Sept. 29, 2014 that it will form a R&D center in Cambridge, Massachusetts for its new independent global biopharmaceutical company, Baxalta. The company expects to enhance its innovation pipeline—focused on hematology, immunology, gene therapy, and biosimilars—allowing them to improve patient care.

Cambridge was chosen for the new R&D space because of the rich biotech community present in the area. Cambridge  launched an 

 in May of 2014, along with four other cities in Massachusetts, called the Life Sciences Corridor. This initiative encourages the growth of labor forces, research universities and hospitals, R&D districts, and venture capital resources by offering mass transit connections between the five cities (Cambridge, Boston, Quincy, Somerville, and Braintree) focused on the life sciences sector.

Corporate Headquarters for the company will remain in Illinois with R&D operations remaining active in Vienna, Austria. Some individuals working in R&D positions in California and Europe will relocate to the new R&D center in Cambridge, where the company expects approximately 400 employees will be situated.

Baxalta is expected to become a separate entity in 2015, however Baxter anticipates that the first phase of the 200,000-sq-ft leased space will be open by the end of 2014.

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Baxter International announced it will form a R&D center in Cambridge, Massachusetts for its new biopharmaceutical company, Baxalta.

Baxter International Plans to Open R&D Center for Baxalta

AMAG Pharmaceuticals announced on Sept. 29, 2014 that is has entered an agreement to acquire Lumara Health for $675 million, offering an additional $350 million based on milestone achievements.

Lumara Health specializes in women’s health pharmaceuticals throughout the stages of a woman’s life, with a focus on maternal health. Within the agreement, AMAG acquires Makena (hydroxyprogesterone caproate injection), Lumara’s FDA-approved drug to reduce the risk of preterm birth in women who have already had a premature baby and are currently pregnant.

"This is a truly transformative transaction that will propel AMAG into a profitable, high-growth multi-product specialty pharmaceutical company positioned for what we expect to be continued revenue and bottom-line growth, further business diversification, and shareholder value creation,” said William Heiden, president and CEO of AMAG.

AMAG Pharmaceuticals announced the acquisition of women?s health brand, Lumara Health, for $675 million, with an additional contingency of up to $350 million.

AMAG Acquires Lumara Health for Over $1 Billion

Johnson & Johnson announced on Sept. 30, 2014 that they have reached an agreement to acquire Alios BioPharma, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company that develops therapies for viral diseases, with a specialization in viral respiratory disease therapies. The $1.75 billion acquisition of Alios includes the compound AL-8176, an oral, anti-respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) nucleoside analog currently in Phase IIa studies.

“We are excited that this acquisition will enable us to explore treatment options for a number of viral infections, including RSV, the last of the major pediatric diseases with no available preventive therapy,” said William N. Hait, MD, PhD, global head, research & development, Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson. “AL-8176 complements our existing early stage portfolio for RSV which aims to prevent and treat this disease, the leading cause of acute lower respiratory infection in children under the age of five.”

Johnson & Johnson announced the acquisition of Alios BioPharma to expand their portfolio of therapeutics for viral infections.