WASHINGTON - The Obama administration will "vigorously support scientists" pursuing human embryonic stem cell (hESC) research, the president said Monday just before signing an executive order lifting a federal funding restriction imposed by his predecessor in 2001. (BioWorld Today)

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. is buying Canadian drugmaker ViroChem Pharma Inc., a firm specializing in hepatitis C virus (HCV) and HIV drug development, for about $377 million in a cash-and-stock deal. (BioWorld Today)

Shares of Genzyme Corp. fell 7 percent Tuesday after the Cambridge, Mass.-based firm said it received a complete response letter from the FDA for its application for Pompe disease treatment Lumizyme (alglucosidase alfa), which is the 2,000 L bioreactor scale version of the firm's Myozyme. (BioWorld Today)

WASHINGTON - As expected, President Barack Obama Monday officially announced Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius as his nominee for the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). (BioWorld Today)

There is little argument that follow-on biologics (FOBs) legislation to create an FDA approval pathway for the products will make its way through Congress this year, despite what is sure to be a political fight over the number of years of data exclusivity for innovator products.