The popular blood-thinner Plavix prevents heart attacks and strokes in both women and men, but the benefits differ slightly by gender, U.S. researchers said on Monday.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. and Alder Biopharmaceuticals Inc. said Tuesday they signed a collaboration deal potentially worth $1 billion, with a key focus on a rheumatoid arthritis treatment.

The popular blood-thinner Plavix prevents heart attacks and strokes in both women and men, but the benefits differ slightly by gender, U.S. researchers said on Monday.

No doubt the widespread use of solar and wind power is ideal, but it’ll be a long time before the mass adoption of those alternative energies is a reality. In the meantime, Cramer says, the US should shift its focus to natural gas.

Johnson & Johnson will eliminate about 6 percent to 7 percent of its global workforce, or some 7,000 to 8,000 positions, as the diversified healthcare company restructures and seeks cost savings, the company said Tuesday.

Biotechnology giant Amgen Inc and drug wholesaler AmerisourceBergen Corp were sued on Friday by 14 U.S. states and the District of Columbia over an alleged kickback scheme designed to boost sales of Amgen's popular anemia drug, Aranesp.

Shares of Idenix Pharmaceuticals Inc. fell Friday after the company said Novartis AG will not exercise an option to license the company's lead drug candidate, aimed at treating hepatitis C.

Sanofi-Aventis SA reported Friday a 6 percent rise in third-quarter profit and said strong sales of its vaccine against swine flu will drive earnings higher than expected for the full year.

Flamboyant lawyer John O'Quinn, who won billions in verdicts against makers of breast implants, pharmaceuticals and tobacco products, died Thursday in a traffic wreck. He was 68.

Patients taking statin drugs were almost 50 percent less likely to die from flu, researchers reported on Thursday in a study providing more evidence the cholesterol-lowering drugs help the body cope with infection.

Pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca PLC lifted its full-year earnings forecast on Thursday, banking on continued gains from its swine flu vaccine, after posting a 22 percent hike in third quarter profits.

Up to a third of children and adolescents who took common antipsychotic drugs for the first time became overweight or obese in as little as 11 weeks, raising their risk for diabetes and heart disease, U.S. researchers said on Tuesday.

Stocks advanced Thursday as investors seemed to focus more on some big-name earnings beats and a rise in leading indicators instead of a disappointing jobless report. Travelers and MMM led the Dow.

Stocks advanced Thursday as investors seemed to focus more on some big-name earnings beats and a rise in leading indicators instead of a disappointing jobless report.

Stocks slipped Thursday as investors weighed a disappointing jobless-claims report and some encouraging earnings reports.