GSK plc, formerly GlaxoSmithKline plc, is a British
multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company with global headquarters in
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
, England.
Established in 2000 by a
merger of Glaxo Wellcome and SmithKline Beecham. GSK is the tenth largest pharmaceutical company and #294 on the 2022
''Fortune'' Global 500, ranked behind other pharmaceutical companies
China Resources
China Resources Holdings Company Limited (), or simply China Resources, is a Chinese state-owned conglomerate that owns a variety of businesses in Hong Kong and Mainland China. Some of its subsidiaries use the name in the form of the acronym CR ...
,
Sinopharm,
Johnson & Johnson,
Pfizer
Pfizer Inc. ( ) is an American multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology corporation headquartered on 42nd Street in Manhattan, New York City. The company was established in 1849 in New York by two German entrepreneurs, Charles Pfizer ...
,
Roche
F. Hoffmann-La Roche AG, commonly known as Roche, is a Swiss multinational healthcare company that operates worldwide under two divisions: Pharmaceuticals and Diagnostics. Its holding company, Roche Holding AG, has shares listed on the SIX ...
,
AbbVie
AbbVie is an American publicly traded biopharmaceutical company founded in 2013. It originated as a spin-off of Abbott Laboratories.
History
On October 19, 2011, Abbott Laboratories announced its plan to separate into two publicly traded compani ...
,
Novartis
Novartis AG is a Swiss-American multinational pharmaceutical corporation based in Basel, Switzerland and
Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States (global research).name="novartis.com">https://www.novartis.com/research-development/research-loc ...
,
Bayer, and
Merck.
The company has a primary listing on the
London Stock Exchange
London Stock Exchange (LSE) is a stock exchange in the City of London, England, United Kingdom. , the total market value of all companies trading on LSE was £3.9 trillion. Its current premises are situated in Paternoster Square close to St P ...
and is a constituent of the
FTSE 100 Index. , it had a market capitalisation of £70 billion, the eighth largest on the London Stock Exchange. It has a secondary listing on the
New York Stock Exchange
The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed ...
.
The company developed the first
malaria vaccine
A malaria vaccine is a vaccine that is used to prevent malaria. The only approved use of a vaccine outside the EU, as of 2022, is RTS,S, known by the brand name ''Mosquirix''. In October 2021, the WHO for the first time recommended the large-s ...
,
RTS,S
RTS,S/AS01 (trade name Mosquirix) is a recombinant protein-based malaria vaccine. In October 2021, the vaccine was endorsed by the World Health Organization (WHO) for "broad use" in children, making it the first malaria vaccine candidate, and f ...
, which it said in 2014 it would make available for five percent above cost.
[
] Legacy products developed at GSK include several listed in the
World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines
The WHO Model List of Essential Medicines (aka Essential Medicines List or EML), published by the World Health Organization (WHO), contains the medications considered to be most effective and safe to meet the most important needs in a health s ...
, such as
amoxicillin
Amoxicillin is an antibiotic medication used to treat a number of bacterial infections. These include middle ear infection, strep throat, pneumonia, skin infections, and urinary tract infections among others. It is taken by mouth, or less c ...
,
mercaptopurine
Mercaptopurine (6-MP), sold under the brand name Purinethol among others, is a medication used for cancer and autoimmune diseases. Specifically it is used to treat acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL), acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL), Crohn's dis ...
,
pyrimethamine
Pyrimethamine, sold under the brand name Daraprim among others, is a medication used with leucovorin (leucovorin is used to decrease side effects of pyrimethamine; it does not have intrinsic anti-parasitic activity) to treat the parasitic dise ...
and
zidovudine
Zidovudine (ZDV), also known as azidothymidine (AZT), is an antiretroviral medication used to prevent and treat HIV/AIDS. It is generally recommended for use in combination with other antiretrovirals. It may be used to prevent mother-to-child ...
.
In 2012, under prosecution by the
United States Department of Justice
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the United States government tasked with the enforcement of federal law and administration of justice in the United Stat ...
(DoJ) based on combined investigations of the
Department of Health and Human Services
The United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is a cabinet-level executive branch department of the U.S. federal government created to protect the health of all Americans and providing essential human services. Its motto is ...
(HHS-OIG),
FDA
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a federal agency of the Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is responsible for protecting and promoting public health through the control and supervision of food ...
and
FBI
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, t ...
, primarily concerning sales and marketing of the drugs
Avandia,
Paxil
Paroxetine, sold under the brand names Paxil and Seroxat among others, is an antidepressant of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) class. It is used to treat major depressive disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic disorder, ...
and
Wellbutrin
Bupropion, sold under the brand names Wellbutrin and Zyban among others, is an atypical antidepressant primarily used to treat major depressive disorder and to support smoking cessation. It is also popular as an add-on medication in the case ...
, GSK pleaded guilty to promotion of drugs for unapproved uses, failure to report safety data and kickbacks to physicians in the United States and agreed to pay a US$3billion (£1.9bn) settlement. It was the largest health-care fraud case to date in the US and the
largest settlement by a drug company.
[
]
History
Glaxo Wellcome
Glaxo
Joseph Nathan and Co. was founded in 1873, as a general trading company in Wellington
Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by metr ...
, New Zealand, by a Londoner, Joseph Edward Nathan. In 1904, it began producing a dried-milk baby food from excess milk produced on dairy farms near Bunnythorpe. The resulting product was first known as Defiance, then as Glaxo (from ''lacto''), and sold with the slogan "Glaxo builds bonnie babies."[David J. Ravenscraft, William F. Long]
"Paths to Creating Value in Pharmaceutical Mergers,"
in Steven N. Kaplan (ed.), ''Mergers and Productivity'', University of Chicago Press, 2000. The Glaxo Laboratories sign is still visible ''(right)'' on what is now a car repair shop on the main street of Bunnythorpe. The company's first pharmaceutical product, released in 1924, was vitamin D.[
]
Glaxo Laboratories was incorporated as a distinct subsidiary company in London in 1935. Joseph Nathan's shareholders reorganised the group's structure in 1947, making Glaxo the parent and obtained a listing on the London Stock Exchange
London Stock Exchange (LSE) is a stock exchange in the City of London, England, United Kingdom. , the total market value of all companies trading on LSE was £3.9 trillion. Its current premises are situated in Paternoster Square close to St P ...
. Glaxo acquired Allen & Hanburys
Allen and Hanburys Ltd was a British pharmaceutical manufacturer, absorbed by Glaxo Laboratories in 1958. GlaxoSmithKline, its successor company, used the Allen and Hanburys name for the specialist respiratory division until beginning to phase ...
in 1958. The Scottish pharmacologist David Jack was hired as a researcher for Allen & Hanburys a few years after Glaxo took it over; he went on to lead the company's R&D until 1987.[ After Glaxo bought Meyer Laboratories in 1978, it began to play an important role in the US market. In 1983, the American arm, Glaxo Inc., moved to Research Triangle Park (US headquarters/research) and Zebulon (US manufacturing) in North Carolina.]
Burroughs Wellcome
Burroughs Wellcome & Company was founded in 1880, in London by the American pharmacists Henry Wellcome
Sir Henry Solomon Wellcome (August 21, 1853 – July 25, 1936) was an American pharmaceutical entrepreneur. He founded the pharmaceutical company Burroughs Wellcome & Company with his colleague Silas Burroughs in 1880, which is one of the fo ...
and Silas Burroughs. The Wellcome Tropical Research Laboratories opened in 1902. In the 1920s Burroughs Wellcome established research and manufacturing facilities in Tuckahoe, New York,[1664-1964 "The Story of a Town"]
Tricentennial Committee. which served as the US headquarters until the company moved to Research Triangle Park in North Carolina in 1971. The Nobel Prize winning scientists Gertrude B. Elion and George H. Hitchings worked there and invented drugs still used many years later, such as mercaptopurine
Mercaptopurine (6-MP), sold under the brand name Purinethol among others, is a medication used for cancer and autoimmune diseases. Specifically it is used to treat acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL), acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL), Crohn's dis ...
. In 1959, the Wellcome Foundation bought Cooper, McDougall & Robertson Inc to become more active in animal health.
When Burroughs Wellcome decided to move its headquarters, the company selected Paul Rudolph to design its new building. The Elion-Hitchings Building
The Elion-Hitchings Building on Cornwallis Road in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, U.S. was an architecturally significant Brutalist building designed by Paul Rudolph and completed in 1972 as the headquarters for Burroughs Wellcome. Part o ...
"was celebrated worldwide when it was built," according to Paul Rudolph Heritage Foundation president Kelvin Dickinson. Alex Sayf Cummings of Georgia State University
Georgia State University (Georgia State, State, or GSU) is a public research university in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1913, it is one of the University System of Georgia's four research universities. It is also the largest institution of hig ...
wrote in 2016 that the "iconic building helped define the image of RTP," saying, "Love it or hate it, Rudolph's design remains an impressively audacious creative gesture and an important part of the history of both architecture and Research Triangle Park." United Therapeutics
United Therapeutics Corporation is an American publicly-traded biotechnology company listed on the NASDAQ under the symbol UTHR. It develops novel, life-extending technologies for patients in the areas of lung disease and organ manufacturing. Un ...
, which bought the building in 2012, announced plans in 2020 to tear it down.
Merger
Glaxo and Wellcome merged in 1995, to form Glaxo Wellcome plc.[ Glaxo Wellcome restructured its R&D operation that year, cutting 10,000 jobs worldwide, closing its R&D facility in Beckenham, Kent, and opening a Medicines Research Centre in Stevenage, Hertfordshire. Also that year, Glaxo Wellcome acquired the California-based Affymax, a leader in the field of ]combinatorial chemistry Combinatorial chemistry comprises chemical synthetic methods that make it possible to prepare a large number (tens to thousands or even millions) of compounds in a single process. These compound libraries can be made as mixtures, sets of individua ...
.
By 1999, Glaxo Wellcome had become the world's third-largest pharmaceutical company by revenues (behind Novartis
Novartis AG is a Swiss-American multinational pharmaceutical corporation based in Basel, Switzerland and
Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States (global research).name="novartis.com">https://www.novartis.com/research-development/research-loc ...
and Merck), with a global market share of around 4 per cent. Its products included Imigran (for the treatment of migraine), salbutamol (Ventolin) (for the treatment of asthma), Zovirax (for the treatment of coldsores), and Retrovir and Epivir
Lamivudine, commonly called 3TC, is an antiretroviral medication used to prevent and treat HIV/AIDS. It is also used to treat chronic hepatitis B when other options are not possible. It is effective against both HIV-1 and HIV-2. It is typically ...
(for the treatment of AIDS). In 1999, the company was the world's largest manufacturer of drugs for the treatment of asthma and HIV/AIDS. It employed 59,000 people, including 13,400 in the UK, had 76 operating companies and 50 manufacturing facilities worldwide, and seven of its products were among the world's top 50 best-selling pharmaceuticals. The company had R&D facilities in Hertfordshire, Kent, London and Verona (Italy), and manufacturing plants in Scotland and the north of England. It had R&D centres in the US and Japan, and production facilities in the US, Europe and the Far East.
SmithKline Beecham
Beecham
In 1848, Thomas Beecham
Sir Thomas Beecham, 2nd Baronet, Order of the Companions of Honour, CH (29 April 18798 March 1961) was an English conductor and impresario best known for his association with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, London Philharmonic and the Roya ...
launched his Beecham's Pills
__NOTOC__
Beecham's Pills were a laxative first marketed about 1842 in Wigan, Lancashire. They were invented by Thomas Beecham (1820–1907), grandfather of the conductor Sir Thomas Beecham (1879–1961).
Commercial history
The pills themselves ...
laxative in England, giving birth to the Beecham Group
The Beecham Group plc was a British pharmaceutical company. It was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. Beecham, after having merged with American pharmaceutical company SmithKline Beckman to become SmithKline Beecham, merged with Glaxo We ...
. In 1859, Beecham opened its first factory in St Helens, Lancashire
Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly.
The non-metropolitan county of Lancash ...
. By the 1960s Beecham was extensively involved in pharmaceuticals and consumer products such as Macleans toothpaste, Lucozade and synthetic penicillin research.
SmithKline
John K. Smith opened his first pharmacy in Philadelphia in 1830. In 1865, Mahlon Kline joined the business, which 10 years later became Smith, Kline & Co. In 1891, it merged with French, Richard and Company, and in 1929, changed its name to Smith Kline & French Laboratories as it focused more on research. Years later it bought Norden Laboratories, a business doing research into animal health, and Recherche et Industrie Thérapeutiques
Recherche et Industrie Thérapeutiques (R.I.T.) was founded in Genval, Belgium, as a penicillin factory in 1945 by Dr Pieter De Somer, who later became the founder of the Rega Institute for Medical Research and rector of the Katholieke Universit ...
in Belgium in 1963, to focus on vaccines. The company began to expand globally, buying seven laboratories in Canada and the United States in 1969. In 1982, it bought Allergan
Allergan plc is an American, Irish-domiciled pharmaceutical company that acquires, develops, manufactures and markets brand name drugs and medical devices in the areas of medical aesthetics, eye care, central nervous system, and gastroenterology. ...
, a manufacturer of eye and skincare products.
Smith Kline & French merged with Beckman Inc. in 1982, and changed its name to ''SmithKline Beckman''. In 1988, it bought International Clinical Laboratories.
Merger
In 1989, SmithKline Beckman merged with Beecham Group to form ''SmithKline Beecham P.L.C.''. The headquarters moved from the United States to England. To expand R&D in the United States, the company bought a new research center in 1995; another opened in 1997, in England at New Frontiers Science Park, Harlow.
2000: Glaxo Wellcome and SmithKline Beecham merger
Glaxo Wellcome and SmithKline Beecham announced their intention to merge in January 2000. The merger was completed on 27 December that year, forming GlaxoSmithKline (GSK). The company's global headquarters are at GSK House, Brentford, London, officially opened in 2002, by then-Prime Minister Tony Blair
Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He previously served as Leader of th ...
. The building was erected at a cost of £300million and was home to 3,000 administrative staff.
2001–2010
GSK completed the acquisition of New Jersey-based Block Drug
Block Drug Company was a pharmaceutical company based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, that specialized in dental care products. Its most popular products included Polident denture cleanser, Poli-Grip denture adhesive, Dentu-Creme dentur ...
in 2001, for . In 2006, GSK acquired the US-based consumer healthcare company CNS Inc., whose products included Breathe Right nasal strips and FiberChoice dietary supplements, for US$566million in cash.
Chris Gent, previously CEO of Vodafone
Vodafone Group plc () is a British multinational telecommunications company. Its registered office and global headquarters are in Newbury, Berkshire, England. It predominantly operates services in Asia, Africa, Europe, and Oceania.
, Vod ...
, was appointed chairman of the board in 2005. GSK opened its first R&D centre in China in 2007, in Shanghai, initially focused on neurodegenerative diseases. Andrew Witty
Sir Andrew Philip Witty (born 22 August 1964) is a British business executive, who is the current chief executive officer (CEO) of UnitedHealth Group. He was also the CEO of GlaxoSmithKline between 2008 and 2017. He formerly held the role of cha ...
became the chief executive officer in 2008. Witty joined Glaxo in 1985, and had been president of GSK's Pharmaceuticals Europe since 2003.
In 2009, GSK acquired Stiefel Laboratories
Stiefel Laboratories is an American dermatological pharmaceutical company, with its global headquarters in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina. It makes products such as Duac and Oilatum. Stiefel was acquired by GlaxoSmithKline at a price of ...
, then the world's largest independent dermatology drug company, for . In November 2009, the FDA approved GSK's vaccine for 2009 H1N1 influenza protection, manufactured by the company's ID Biomedical Corp in Canada. Also in November 2009, GSK formed a joint venture with Pfizer
Pfizer Inc. ( ) is an American multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology corporation headquartered on 42nd Street in Manhattan, New York City. The company was established in 1849 in New York by two German entrepreneurs, Charles Pfizer ...
to create ViiV Healthcare
ViiV Healthcare ( ) is a pharmaceutical company specializing in the development of therapies for HIV infection that was created as a joint venture by Pfizer and GlaxoSmithKline in November 2009 with both companies transferring their HIV assets ...
, which specializes in HIV research. In 2010, the company acquired Laboratorios Phoenix, an Argentine pharmaceutical company, for US$253m, and the UK-based sports nutrition company Maxinutrition for £162million (US$256million).
2011–2022
In 2011, in a US$660-million deal, Prestige Brands Holdings took over 17 GSK brands with sales of US$210million, including BC Powder, Beano, Ecotrin, Fiber Choice, Goody's Powder
Goody's Powder, also called Goody's Headache Powders, is an over-the-counter aspirin/paracetamol/caffeine–based pain reliever, in single-dose powder form, which is marketed and sold by Prestige Brands. The powder delivery saves the time needed f ...
, Sominex
Sominex is the trademarked name for several over the counter sleep aids.
Two different formulations of Sominex are available, depending upon the market. Both formulations contain a significant dose of a first generation antihistamine with hypno ...
and Tagamet
Cimetidine, sold under the brand name Tagamet among others, is a histamine H2 receptor antagonist that inhibits stomach acid production. It is mainly used in the treatment of heartburn and peptic ulcers.
The development of longer-acting H2 re ...
. In 2012, the company announced that it would invest £500million in manufacturing facilities in Ulverston
Ulverston is a market town and a civil parish in the South Lakeland district of Cumbria, England. In the United Kingdom Census 2001, 2001 census the parish had a population of 11,524, increasing at the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011 census to ...
, northern England, designating it as the site for a previously announced biotech plant. In May that year it acquired CellZome, a German biotech company, for US$98million, and in June worldwide rights to alitretinoin
Alitretinoin, or 9-cis-retinoic acid, is a form of vitamin A. It is also used in medicine as an antineoplastic (anti-cancer) agent developed by Ligand Pharmaceuticals. It is a first generation retinoid. Ligand gained Food and Drug Administration ...
(Toctino), an eczema
Dermatitis is inflammation of the skin, typically characterized by itchiness, redness and a rash. In cases of short duration, there may be small blisters, while in long-term cases the skin may become thickened. The area of skin involved can ...
drug, for US$302million. In 2013, GSK acquired Human Genome Sciences
Human Genome Sciences (HGS) was a biopharmaceutical corporation founded in 1992 by Craig Venter, Alan Walton and Wally Steinberg. It uses the human DNA sequence to develop protein and antibody drugs. It had drugs under development to treat suc ...
(HGS) for US$3billion; the companies had collaborated on developing the lupus drug Belimumab
Belimumab, sold under the brand name Benlysta, is a human monoclonal antibody that inhibits B-cell activating factor (BAFF), also known as B-lymphocyte stimulator (BLyS). It is approved in the United States, Canada, and the European Union to treat ...
(Benlysta), albiglutide
Albiglutide (trade names Eperzan in Europe and Tanzeum in the US) is a glucagon-like peptide-1 agonist (GLP-1 agonist) drug marketed by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) for treatment of type 2 diabetes.
As of 2017 it is unclear if it affects a person's risk ...
for type 2 diabetes
Type 2 diabetes, formerly known as adult-onset diabetes, is a form of diabetes mellitus that is characterized by high blood sugar, insulin resistance, and relative lack of insulin. Common symptoms include increased thirst, frequent urinatio ...
, and darapladib for atherosclerosis
Atherosclerosis is a pattern of the disease arteriosclerosis in which the wall of the artery develops abnormalities, called lesions. These lesions may lead to narrowing due to the buildup of atheromatous plaque. At onset there are usually no s ...
,[Matthew Herper]
"Three Lessons From GlaxoSmithKline's Purchase Of Human Genome Sciences"
''Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...
'', 16 July 2012. and in September, sold its beverage division to Suntory. This included the brands Lucozade
Lucozade is a British brand of soft drink manufactured and marketed by the Japanese company Suntory. Created as "Glucozade" in the UK in 1927 by a Newcastle pharmacist, William Walker Hunter (trading as W. Owen & Son), it was acquired by the B ...
and Ribena
Ribena ( ) is a brand of blackcurrant-based soft drink (both uncarbonated and carbonated), and fruit drink concentrate designed to be mixed with water. It is available in bottles, cans and multi-packs. Originally of British origin, it was prod ...
; however, the deal did not include Horlicks
Horlicks is a sweet malted milk hot drink powder developed by founders James and William Horlick. It was first sold as "Horlick's Infant and Invalids Food", soon adding "aged and travellers" to their label. In the early 20th century, it was s ...
.[Angela Monagha]
"Ribena and Lucozade sold to Japanese drinks giant"
''The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', 9 September 2013
In March 2014, GSK paid US$1billion to raise its stake in its Indian pharmaceutical unit, GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals, to 75 percent as part of a move to focus on emerging markets. In April 2014, Novartis and Glaxo agreed on more than US$20billion in deals, with Novartis selling its vaccine business to GSK and buying GSK's cancer business. In February 2015, GSK announced that it would acquire GlycoVaxyn, a Swiss pharmaceutical company, for US$190million, and in June that year that it would sell two meningitis drugs to Pfizer
Pfizer Inc. ( ) is an American multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology corporation headquartered on 42nd Street in Manhattan, New York City. The company was established in 1849 in New York by two German entrepreneurs, Charles Pfizer ...
, Nimenrix and Mencevax for around US$130million.
Philip Hampton
Sir Philip Roy Hampton (born 5 October 1953) is a British businessman. He was the first chairman of UK Financial Investments Limited in 2008 and chairman of government-owned The Royal Bank of Scotland Group between 2009 and 2015. He has also ch ...
, at that time chair of the Royal Bank of Scotland, became GSK chairman in September 2015.
On 31 March 2017, Emma Walmsley
Dame Emma Natasha Walmsley (born June 1969) is the chief executive officer (CEO) of GlaxoSmithKline. She succeeded Sir Andrew Witty, who retired in March 2017. Before GSK, she worked for L'Oréal for 17 years, and was a non-executive director ...
became CEO. She is the first female CEO of the company.
In December 2017, Reuters reported that Glaxo had increased its stake in its Saudi Arabian unit to 75% (from 49%) taking over control from its Saudi partner Banaja KSA Holding Company.
With respect to rare disease
A rare disease is any disease that affects a small percentage of the population. In some parts of the world, an orphan disease is a rare disease whose rarity means there is a lack of a market large enough to gain support and resources for discov ...
s, the company divested its portfolio of gene therapy
Gene therapy is a medical field which focuses on the genetic modification of cells to produce a therapeutic effect or the treatment of disease by repairing or reconstructing defective genetic material. The first attempt at modifying human DN ...
drugs to Orchard Therapeutics in April 2018. In November 2018, Reuters
Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters Corporation. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world.
The agency was esta ...
reported that Unilever
Unilever plc is a British multinational consumer goods company with headquarters in London, England. Unilever products include food, condiments, bottled water, baby food, soft drink, ice cream, instant coffee, cleaning agents, energy dri ...
was in prime position to acquire GSK's interest in its Indian unit, GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare Ltd, in a sale that could generate around US$4billion for the company. Nestlé
Nestlé S.A. (; ; ) is a Swiss multinational food and drink processing conglomerate corporation headquartered in Vevey, Vaud, Switzerland. It is the largest publicly held food company in the world, measured by revenue and other metrics, since ...
and Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pemberton in Atlant ...
have also been reported to be interested in the business unit as they look to strengthen their presence in India.[ On 3 December 2018, GSK announced that Unilever would acquire the Indian-listed GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare business for US$3.8billion (£2.98billion). Unilever will pay the majority of the deal in cash, with the remaining being paid in shares in its Indian operation, Hindustan Unilever Limited. Upon completion, GSK will then own around 5.7% of Hindustan Unilever Limited, selling those shares in a number of tranches. The same day, the company also announced it would acquire oncology specialist, ]Tesaro
Tesaro Inc. is a pharmaceutical company based in Waltham, Massachusetts. They focus on drug development for cancer.
History
Tesaro was founded in 2010. The company's first commercial product, Varubi, was approved by the FDA in October 2015. A ...
, for US$5.1billion. The deal will give GSK control of ovarian cancer treatment, Zejula - a member of the class of poly ADP ribose polymerase
Poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) is a family of proteins involved in a number of cellular processes such as DNA repair, genomic stability, and programmed cell death.
Members of PARP family
The PARP family comprises 17 members (10 putative) ...
(PARP) inhibitors.
In October 2019, GSK agreed to sell its rabies
Rabies is a viral disease that causes encephalitis in humans and other mammals. Early symptoms can include fever and tingling at the site of exposure. These symptoms are followed by one or more of the following symptoms: nausea, vomiting, ...
vaccine, RabAvert, and its tick-borne encephalitis
Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) is a viral infectious disease involving the central nervous system. The disease most often manifests as meningitis, encephalitis or meningoencephalitis. Myelitis and spinal paralysis also occurs. In about one thir ...
vaccine, Encepur
Tick-borne encephalitis vaccine is a vaccine used to prevent tick-borne encephalitis (TBE). The disease is most common in Central and Eastern Europe, and Northern Asia. More than 87% of people who receive the vaccine develop immunity. It is not ...
, to Bavarian Nordic for US$1.06billion (€955million).
In July 2020, GSK acquired a 10% stake in German biotech company CureVac.
GSK–Novartis consumer healthcare buy-out
In March 2018, GSK announced that it has reached an agreement with Novartis
Novartis AG is a Swiss-American multinational pharmaceutical corporation based in Basel, Switzerland and
Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States (global research).name="novartis.com">https://www.novartis.com/research-development/research-loc ...
to acquire Novartis's 36.5% stake in their Consumer Healthcare Joint Venture for US$13billion (£9.2billion).
GSK–Pfizer joint venture
In December 2018, GSK announced that it, along with Pfizer
Pfizer Inc. ( ) is an American multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology corporation headquartered on 42nd Street in Manhattan, New York City. The company was established in 1849 in New York by two German entrepreneurs, Charles Pfizer ...
, had reached an agreement to merge and combine their consumer healthcare divisions into a single entity. The combined entity would have sales of around £9.8billion ($12.7billion), with GSK maintaining a 68% controlling stake in the joint venture. Pfizer would own the remaining 32% shareholding. The deal builds on an earlier 2018 deal where GSK bought out Novartis' stake in the GSK-Novartis consumer healthcare joint business.
Subsequent split
The culmination of the Consumer Healthcare string of deals will result in GSK splitting into two separate companies, via a demerger and subsequent listing of the joint venture. This will create two publicly traded companies, one focusing on pharmaceuticals and research & development, the other on consumer healthcare. On 22 February 2022, GSK announced that the spin-off consumer healthcare company will be called Haleon
Haleon plc is a British multinational consumer healthcare company with headquarters in Weybridge, England. It is the largest consumer healthcare business in the world, with brands including Sensodyne toothpaste, Panadol and Advil painkillers and ...
.[
In January 2022, the company announced that they had received three unsolicited offers from ]Unilever
Unilever plc is a British multinational consumer goods company with headquarters in London, England. Unilever products include food, condiments, bottled water, baby food, soft drink, ice cream, instant coffee, cleaning agents, energy dri ...
to acquire the Consumer Healthcare business unit, with the final proposal valuing the business unit at £50 billion (£41.7 billion in cash, plus £8.3 billion in Unilever shares).
Subsequently, GSK declined all outside offers/attempts to acquire its consumer healthcare business and moved forward with its plan to complete the demerger from the main biopharmaceutical business.
Recent developments
In April 2022, the business announced it would acquire Sierra Oncology Inc for $1.9 billion ($55 per share). In May 2022, GSK announced it would acquire Affinivax and its phase II 24-valent pneumococcal
''Streptococcus pneumoniae'', or pneumococcus, is a Gram-positive, spherical bacteria, alpha-hemolytic (under aerobic conditions) or beta-hemolytic (under anaerobic conditions), aerotolerant anaerobic member of the genus Streptococcus. They are ...
vaccine candidate for up to $3.3 billion, strengthening its vaccine business.
On 16 May 2022, the company changed its name from GlaxoSmithKline to GSK.
Acquisition-history diagram
* GSK
** GlaxoSmithKline
*** SmithKline Beecham Plc (Renamed 1989)
**** SmithKline Beckman (Renamed 1982)
***** SmithKline-RIT (Renamed 1968)
****** Smith, Kline & French
Smith, Kline & French (SKF) was an American pharmaceutical company.
History
In 1830, John K. Smith opened a drugstore in Philadelphia, and his younger brother, George, joined him in 1841 to form John K Smith & Co. In 1865, Mahlon Kline joined '' ...
(Reorganized 1929 into Smith Kline and French Laboratories)
******* French, Richards and Company (Acquired 1891)
******* Smith, Kline and Company
****** Recherche et Industrie Thérapeutiques
Recherche et Industrie Thérapeutiques (R.I.T.) was founded in Genval, Belgium, as a penicillin factory in 1945 by Dr Pieter De Somer, who later became the founder of the Rega Institute for Medical Research and rector of the Katholieke Universit ...
(Acquired 1968)
***** Beckman Instruments, Inc. (Merged 1982, Sold 1989)
****** Specialized Instruments Corp. (Acquired 1954)
****** Offner Electronics (Acquired 1961)
***** International Clinical Laboratories (Acquired 1989)
***** Reckitt & Colman (Acquired 1999)
**** Beecham Group
The Beecham Group plc was a British pharmaceutical company. It was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. Beecham, after having merged with American pharmaceutical company SmithKline Beckman to become SmithKline Beecham, merged with Glaxo We ...
Plc (Merged 1989)
***** Beecham Group Ltd
****** S. E. Massengill Company (Acquired 1971)
****** C.L. Bencard (Acquired 1953)
****** County Chemicals
***** Norcliff Thayer (Acquired 1986)
*** Glaxo Wellcome
**** Glaxo (Merged 1995)
***** Joseph Nathan & Co
***** Allen & Hanburys
Allen and Hanburys Ltd was a British pharmaceutical manufacturer, absorbed by Glaxo Laboratories in 1958. GlaxoSmithKline, its successor company, used the Allen and Hanburys name for the specialist respiratory division until beginning to phase ...
(Founded 1715, acquired 1958)
***** Meyer Laboratories (Merged 1978)
***** Affymax (Acquired 1995)
**** Wellcome Foundation (Renamed 1924, merged 1995)
***** Burroughs Wellcome & Company (Founded 1880)
***** McDougall & Robertson Inc (Acquired 1959)
** Block Drug
Block Drug Company was a pharmaceutical company based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, that specialized in dental care products. Its most popular products included Polident denture cleanser, Poli-Grip denture adhesive, Dentu-Creme dentur ...
(Acquired 2001)
** CNS Inc. (Acquired 2006)
** Stiefel Laboratories
Stiefel Laboratories is an American dermatological pharmaceutical company, with its global headquarters in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina. It makes products such as Duac and Oilatum. Stiefel was acquired by GlaxoSmithKline at a price of ...
(Acquired 2009)
** Laboratorios Phoenix (Acquired 2010)
** Maxinutrition (Acquired 2010)
** CellZome (Acquired 2011)
** Human Genome Sciences
Human Genome Sciences (HGS) was a biopharmaceutical corporation founded in 1992 by Craig Venter, Alan Walton and Wally Steinberg. It uses the human DNA sequence to develop protein and antibody drugs. It had drugs under development to treat suc ...
(Acquired 2013)
** GlycoVaxyn (Acquired 2015)
** Tesaro
Tesaro Inc. is a pharmaceutical company based in Waltham, Massachusetts. They focus on drug development for cancer.
History
Tesaro was founded in 2010. The company's first commercial product, Varubi, was approved by the FDA in October 2015. A ...
(Acquired 2019)
** Sitari Pharmaceuticals (Acquired 2019)
** Sierra Oncology (Acquired 2022)
** Affinivax (Acquired 2022)
Research areas and products
Pharmaceuticals
GSK manufactures products for major disease areas such as asthma, cancer, infections, diabetes and mental health. Medicines historically discovered or developed at GSK and its legacy companies and now sold as generics include amoxicillin
Amoxicillin is an antibiotic medication used to treat a number of bacterial infections. These include middle ear infection, strep throat, pneumonia, skin infections, and urinary tract infections among others. It is taken by mouth, or less c ...
and amoxicillin-clavulanate, ticarcillin-clavulanate, mupirocin
Mupirocin, sold under the brand name Bactroban among others, is a topical antibiotic useful against superficial skin infections such as impetigo or folliculitis. It may also be used to get rid of methicillin-resistant ''S. aureus'' (MRSA) wh ...
, and ceftazidime
Ceftazidime, sold under the brand name Fortaz among others, is a third-generation cephalosporin antibiotic useful for the treatment of a number of bacterial infections. Specifically it is used for joint infections, meningitis, pneumonia, sepsis, ...
for bacterial infections, zidovudine
Zidovudine (ZDV), also known as azidothymidine (AZT), is an antiretroviral medication used to prevent and treat HIV/AIDS. It is generally recommended for use in combination with other antiretrovirals. It may be used to prevent mother-to-child ...
for HIV infection
Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual ma ...
, valacyclovir for herpes virus infections, albendazole
Albendazole (also known as albendazolum) is a broad-spectrum anthelmintic and antiprotozoal agent of the benzimidazole type. It is used for the treatment of a variety of intestinal parasite infections, including ascariasis, pinworm infection, ho ...
for parasitic infections, sumatriptan for migraine, lamotrigine for epilepsy, bupropion and paroxetine
Paroxetine, sold under the brand names Paxil and Seroxat among others, is an antidepressant of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) class. It is used to treat major depressive disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic disorder ...
for major depressive disorder
Major depressive disorder (MDD), also known as clinical depression, is a mental disorder characterized by at least two weeks of pervasive low mood, low self-esteem, and loss of interest or pleasure in normally enjoyable activities. Intro ...
, cimetidine and ranitidine
Ranitidine, sold under the brand name Zantac among others, is a medication used to decrease stomach acid production. It is commonly used in treatment of peptic ulcer disease, gastroesophageal reflux disease, and Zollinger–Ellison syndrome ...
for gastroesophageal reflux disorder, mercaptopurine
Mercaptopurine (6-MP), sold under the brand name Purinethol among others, is a medication used for cancer and autoimmune diseases. Specifically it is used to treat acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL), acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL), Crohn's dis ...
and thioguanine
Tioguanine, also known as thioguanine or 6-thioguanine (6-TG) is a medication used to treat acute myeloid leukemia (AML), acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL), and chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). Long-term use is not recommended. It is given by mouth. ...
for the treatment of leukemia, allopurinol
Allopurinol is a medication used to decrease high blood uric acid levels. It is specifically used to prevent gout, prevent specific types of kidney stones and for the high uric acid levels that can occur with chemotherapy. It is taken by mouth ...
for gout
Gout ( ) is a form of inflammatory arthritis characterized by recurrent attacks of a red, tender, hot and swollen joint, caused by deposition of monosodium urate monohydrate crystals. Pain typically comes on rapidly, reaching maximal intens ...
, pyrimethamine
Pyrimethamine, sold under the brand name Daraprim among others, is a medication used with leucovorin (leucovorin is used to decrease side effects of pyrimethamine; it does not have intrinsic anti-parasitic activity) to treat the parasitic dise ...
for malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause jaundice, seizures, coma, or death. S ...
, and the antibacterial trimethoprim
Trimethoprim (TMP) is an antibiotic used mainly in the treatment of bladder infections. Other uses include for middle ear infections and travelers' diarrhea. With sulfamethoxazole or dapsone it may be used for ''Pneumocystis'' pneumonia in peo ...
.
Among these, albendazole, amoxicillin, amoxicillin-clavulanate, allopurinol, mercaptopurine, mupirocin, pyrimethamine, ranitidine, thioguanine, trimethoprim, and zidovudine are on the World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines
The WHO Model List of Essential Medicines (aka Essential Medicines List or EML), published by the World Health Organization (WHO), contains the medications considered to be most effective and safe to meet the most important needs in a health s ...
.
Malaria vaccine
In 2014, GSK applied for regulatory approval for the first malaria vaccine
A malaria vaccine is a vaccine that is used to prevent malaria. The only approved use of a vaccine outside the EU, as of 2022, is RTS,S, known by the brand name ''Mosquirix''. In October 2021, the WHO for the first time recommended the large-s ...
. Malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause jaundice, seizures, coma, or death. S ...
is responsible for over 650,000 deaths annually, mainly in Africa. Known as RTS,S
RTS,S/AS01 (trade name Mosquirix) is a recombinant protein-based malaria vaccine. In October 2021, the vaccine was endorsed by the World Health Organization (WHO) for "broad use" in children, making it the first malaria vaccine candidate, and f ...
, the vaccine was developed as a joint project with the PATH
A path is a route for physical travel – see Trail.
Path or PATH may also refer to:
Physical paths of different types
* Bicycle path
* Bridle path, used by people on horseback
* Course (navigation), the intended path of a vehicle
* Desire p ...
vaccines initiative and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), a merging of the William H. Gates Foundation and the Gates Learning Foundation, is an American private foundation founded by Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates. Based in Seattle, Washington, it was ...
. The company has committed to making the vaccine available in developing countries for five percent above the cost of production.[
, RTS,S, which uses GSK's proprietary AS01 adjuvant, was being examined in a Phase 3 trial in eight African countries. PATH reported that " the 12-month period following vaccination, RTS,S conferred approximately 50% protection from clinical Plasmodium falciparum disease in children aged 5-17 months, and approximately 30% protection in children aged 6-12 weeks when administered in conjunction with Expanded Program for Immunization (EPI) vaccines." In 2014, Glaxo said it had spent more than US$350million and expected to spend an additional US$260million before seeking regulatory approval.
]
Consumer healthcare
GSK's consumer healthcare division, which earned £5.2billion in 2013, sells oral healthcare, including Aquafresh, Macleans
''Maclean's'', founded in 1905, is a Canadian news magazine reporting on Canadian issues such as politics, pop culture, and current events. Its founder, publisher John Bayne Maclean, established the magazine to provide a uniquely Canadian persp ...
and Sensodyne
Sensodyne is a brand name of toothpaste and mouthwash targeted at people with sensitive teeth. Sensodyne is owned by Haleon and is marketed under the name Shumitect in Japan.
Effectiveness
Sensodyne toothpastes work in different ways dependin ...
toothpastes. GSK also previously owned the Lucozade
Lucozade is a British brand of soft drink manufactured and marketed by the Japanese company Suntory. Created as "Glucozade" in the UK in 1927 by a Newcastle pharmacist, William Walker Hunter (trading as W. Owen & Son), it was acquired by the B ...
and Ribena
Ribena ( ) is a brand of blackcurrant-based soft drink (both uncarbonated and carbonated), and fruit drink concentrate designed to be mixed with water. It is available in bottles, cans and multi-packs. Originally of British origin, it was prod ...
brands of soft drinks, but they were sold in 2013, to Suntory for £1.35bn.[ Other products include ]Abreva
1-Docosanol, also known as behenyl alcohol, is a saturated fatty alcohol containing 22 carbon atoms, used traditionally as an emollient, emulsifier, and thickener in cosmetics.
In July 2000, docosanol was approved for medical use in the United ...
to treat cold sores; Night Nurse, a cold remedy; Breathe Right nasal strip
A nasal strip, external nasal dilator strip or nasal dilator strip is a type of adhesive bandage with embedded plastic ribs or splints that is applied across the bridge of the nose and sides of the nostrils, to assist in keeping the airway open. ...
s; and Nicoderm
Nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) is a medically approved way to treat people with tobacco use disorder by taking nicotine through means other than tobacco. It is used to help with quitting smoking or stopping chewing tobacco. It increases the ...
and Nicorette
Nicorette is the brand name of a number of products for nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) that contain nicotine polacrilex. Developed in the late 1970s in Sweden by in the form of a chewing gum, Nicorette was the first nicotine replacement p ...
nicotine replacements. In March 2014, it recalled Alli, an over-the-counter weight-loss drug, in the United States and Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...
because of possible tampering, following customer complaints.
Facilities
, GSK had offices in over 115 countries and employed over 99,000 people, 12,500 in R&D. The company's single largest market is the United States. Its US headquarters are in The Navy Yard
The Philadelphia Naval Shipyard was an important naval shipyard of the United States for almost two centuries.
Philadelphia's original navy yard, begun in 1776 on Front Street and Federal Street in what is now the Pennsport section of the ci ...
, Philadelphia, and Research Triangle Park, North Carolina; its consumer-products division is in Moon Township, Pennsylvania
Moon Township is a township along the Ohio River in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. Moon is a part of the Greater Pittsburgh metropolitan area and is located northwest of Pittsburgh. The population was 27,261 at the 2020 census.
History ...
.["About us: what we do"]
GlaxoSmithKline, accessed 16 November 2013
COVID-19 vaccine
In July 2020, the UK government signed up for 60 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine developed by GSK and Sanofi
Sanofi S.A. is a French multinational pharmaceutical and healthcare company headquartered in Paris, France. Originally, the corporation was established in 1973 and merged with Synthélabo in 1999 to form Sanofi-Synthélabo. In 2004, Sanofi-Syn ...
. It uses a recombinant protein
Recombinant DNA (rDNA) molecules are DNA molecules formed by laboratory methods of genetic recombination (such as molecular cloning) that bring together genetic material from multiple sources, creating DNA sequence, sequences that would not othe ...
-based technology from Sanofi and GSK's pandemic technology. The companies claimed to be able to produce one billion doses, subject to successful trials and regulatory approval, during the first half of 2021. The company also agreed to a $2.1 billion deal with the United States to produce 100 million doses of the vaccine.
Venture arms
SR One was established in 1985, by SmithKline Beecham to invest in new biotechnology companies and continued operating after GSK was formed; by 2003, GSK had formed another subsidiary, GSK Ventures, to out-license or start new companies around drug candidates that it did not intend to develop further. , SR One tended to invest only if the company aligned with GSK's business.[
In September 2019, GSK announced it would acquire Sitari Pharmaceuticals and its ]transglutaminase
Transglutaminases are enzymes that in nature primarily catalyze the formation of an isopeptide bond between γ- carboxamide groups ( -(C=O)NH2 ) of glutamine residue side chains and the ε-amino groups ( -NH2 ) of lysine residue side ...
2 small molecule program for the treatment of celiac disease
Coeliac disease (British English) or celiac disease (American English) is a long-term autoimmune disorder, primarily affecting the small intestine, where individuals develop intolerance to gluten, present in foods such as wheat, rye and barle ...
.
Recognition, philanthropy and social responsibility
Scientific recognition
Four GlaxoSmithKline scientists have been recognized by the Nobel Committee for their contributions to basic medical science and/or therapeutics development.
* Henry Dale, a former student of Paul Ehrlich
Paul Ehrlich (; 14 March 1854 – 20 August 1915) was a Nobel Prize-winning German physician and scientist who worked in the fields of hematology, immunology, and antimicrobial chemotherapy. Among his foremost achievements were finding a cure ...
, received the 1936 Nobel Prize in Medicine
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine is awarded yearly by the Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institute for outstanding discoveries in physiology or medicine. The Nobel Prize is not a single prize, but five separate prizes that, according ...
for his work on the chemical transmission of neural impulses. Dale served as a pharmacologist and then as Director of the Wellcome Physiological Research Laboratories from 1904 to 1914, and later served as Trustee and chairman of the board of the Wellcome Trust
The Wellcome Trust is a charitable foundation focused on health research based in London, in the United Kingdom. It was established in 1936 with legacies from the pharmaceutical magnate Henry Wellcome (founder of one of the predecessors of Glaxo ...
.
* John Vane of Wellcome Research Laboratories shared the 1982 Nobel Prize for Medicine for his work on prostaglandin biology and the discovery of prostacyclin
Prostacyclin (also called prostaglandin I2 or PGI2) is a prostaglandin member of the eicosanoid family of lipid molecules. It inhibits platelet activation and is also an effective vasodilator.
When used as a drug, it is also known as epoprosten ...
. Vane served as group research and development director for The Wellcome Foundation from 1973 to 1985.
* Gertrude B. Elion and George Hitchings
George Herbert Hitchings (April 18, 1905 – February 27, 1998) was an American medical doctor who shared the 1988 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with Sir James Black and Gertrude Elion "for their discoveries of important principles for d ...
, both of the Wellcome Research Laboratories, shared the 1988 Nobel Prize in Medicine with Sir James W. Black, formerly of Smith Kline & French and the Wellcome Foundation, ""for their discoveries of important principles for drug treatment"." Elion and Hitchings were responsible for the discovery of a plethora of important drugs, including mercaptopurine and thioguanine for the treatment of leukemia, the immunosuppressant azothioprine, allopurinol for gout, pyrimethamine for malaria, the antibacterial trimethoprim, acyclovir for herpes virus infection, and nelarabine for cancer treatment.
Philanthropy and social responsibility
Since 2010, GlaxoSmithKline has several times ranked first among pharmaceutical companies on the Global Access to Medicines Index, which is funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), a merging of the William H. Gates Foundation and the Gates Learning Foundation, is an American private foundation founded by Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates. Based in Seattle, Washington, it was ...
. In 2014, the Human Rights Campaign, an LGBT
' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity.
The LGBT term ...
-rights advocacy group gave GSK a score of 100 percent in its Corporate Equality Index.
GSK has been active, with the World Health Organization
The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of ...
(WHO), in the Global Alliance to Eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis (GAELF). Around 120million people globally are believed to be infected with lymphatic filariasis. In 2012, the company endorsed the London Declaration on Neglected Tropical Diseases
The London Declaration on Neglected Tropical Diseases was a collaborative disease eradication programme launched on 30 January 2012 in London. It was inspired by the World Health Organization roadmap to eradicate or prevent transmission for negl ...
; it agreed to donate 400million albendazole
Albendazole (also known as albendazolum) is a broad-spectrum anthelmintic and antiprotozoal agent of the benzimidazole type. It is used for the treatment of a variety of intestinal parasite infections, including ascariasis, pinworm infection, ho ...
tablets to the WHO each year to fight soil-transmitted helminthiasis
Soil-transmitted helminthiasis is a type of helminth infection (helminthiasis) caused by different species of roundworms. It is caused specifically by those worms which are transmitted through soil contaminated with faecal matter and are therefor ...
and to provide 600million albendazole tablets every year for lymphatic filariasis until the disease is eradicated.[
] , over 5billion treatments had been delivered, and 18 of 73 countries in which the disease is considered endemic had progressed to the surveillance stage.
In 2009, the company said it would cut drug prices by 25 percent in 50 of the poorest nations, release intellectual property rights for substances and processes relevant to neglected disease into a patent pool
In patent law, a patent pool is a consortium of at least two companies agreeing to cross-license patents relating to a particular technology. The creation of a patent pool can save patentees and licensees time and money, and, in case of blocking ...
to encourage new drug development, and invest 20 percent of profits from the least-developed countries in medical infrastructure for those countries. Médecins Sans Frontières
(MSF; pronounced ), also known as Doctors Without Borders, is a humanitarian medical non-governmental organisation (NGO) or charity of French origin known for its projects in conflict zones and in countries affected by endemic diseases. ...
welcomed the decision, but criticized GSK for failing to include HIV patents in its patent pool and for not including middle-income countries in the initiative.
In 2013, GSK licensed its HIV portfolio to the Medicines Patent Pool for use in children, and agreed to negotiate a license for dolutegravir
Dolutegravir (DTG), sold under the brand name Tivicay, is an antiretroviral medication used, together with other medication, to treat HIV/AIDS. It may also be used, as part of post exposure prophylaxis, to prevent HIV infection following potentia ...
, an integrase inhibitor Integrase inhibitors (INIs) are a class of antiretroviral drug designed to block the action of integrase, a viral enzyme that inserts the viral genome into the DNA of the host cell. Since integration is a vital step in retroviral replication, bloc ...
then in clinical development. In 2014, this license was extended to include dolutegravir and adults with HIV. The licenses include countries in which 93 percent of adults and 99 percent of children with HIV live. Also in 2013 GSK joined AllTrials, a British campaign to ensure that all clinical trials are registered and the results reported. The company said it would make its past clinical-trial reports available and future ones within a year of the studies' end.
Controversies
1973 Antitrust case over griseofulvin
In the 1960s Glaxo Group Ltd. (Glaxo) and Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI) each owned patents covering various aspects of the antifungal drug griseofulvin
Griseofulvin is an antifungal medication used to treat a number of types of dermatophytoses (ringworm). This includes fungal infections of the nails and scalp, as well as the skin when antifungal creams have not worked. It is taken by mouth.
C ...
.[''United States v. Glaxo Group Ltd''.]
410 U.S. 52 (1973). They created a patent pool
In patent law, a patent pool is a consortium of at least two companies agreeing to cross-license patents relating to a particular technology. The creation of a patent pool can save patentees and licensees time and money, and, in case of blocking ...
by cross-licensing A cross-licensing agreement is a contract between two or more parties where each party grants rights to their intellectual property to the other parties.
Patent law
In patent law, a cross-licensing agreement is an agreement according to which two ...
their patents, subject to express licensing restrictions that the chemical from which the "finished" form of the drug (tablets and capsules) was made must not be resold in bulk form, and they licensed other drug companies to sell the drug in finished form and subject to similar restrictions. The effect and intent of the bulk-sale restriction was to keep the drug chemical out of the hands of small companies that might act as price-cutters, and the effect was to maintain stable, uniform prices.
The United States brought an antitrust suit against the two companies—''United States v. Glaxo Group Ltd.
''United States v. Glaxo Group Ltd.'', 410 U.S. 52 (1973), is a 1973 decision of the United States Supreme Court in which the Court held that (1) when a patent is directly involved in an antitrust violation, the Government may challenge the valid ...
''—charging them with violation of the Sherman Act and also seeking to have the patents declared invalid. The trial court found that the defendants had engaged in several unlawful conspiracies, but dismissed the part of the suit seeking invalidation of patents and refused to grant as relief mandatory sales of the bulk drug chemical and compulsory licensing of the patents. The government appealed to the Supreme Court, which reversed, in ''United States v. Glaxo Group Ltd.
''United States v. Glaxo Group Ltd.'', 410 U.S. 52 (1973), is a 1973 decision of the United States Supreme Court in which the Court held that (1) when a patent is directly involved in an antitrust violation, the Government may challenge the valid ...
'', 410 U.S. 52 (1973).
2000s Ribena
There were concerns in the 2000s about the sugar and vitamin content of Ribena
Ribena ( ) is a brand of blackcurrant-based soft drink (both uncarbonated and carbonated), and fruit drink concentrate designed to be mixed with water. It is available in bottles, cans and multi-packs. Originally of British origin, it was prod ...
, a blackcurrant-based syrup
In cooking, a syrup (less commonly sirup; from ar, شراب; , beverage, wine and la, sirupus) is a condiment that is a thick, viscous liquid consisting primarily of a solution of sugar in water, containing a large amount of dissolved sugars ...
and soft drink owned by GSK until 2013. Produced in England by H.W. Carter & Co from the 1930s, the company's unbranded syrup was distributed to children as a source of vitamin C
Vitamin C (also known as ascorbic acid and ascorbate) is a water-soluble vitamin found in citrus and other fruits and vegetables, also sold as a dietary supplement and as a topical 'serum' ingredient to treat melasma (dark pigment spots) ...
during World War II, which gave the drink a reputation as good for health. Beecham bought H. W. Carter in 1955.
In 2001, the British Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) required GSK to withdraw its claim that Ribena Toothkind, a lower-sugar variety, did not encourage tooth decay. A company poster showed bottles of Toothkind in place of the bristles on a toothbrush. The ASA's ruling was upheld by the High Court. In 2007, GSK was fined US$217,000 in New Zealand over its claim that ready-to-drink Ribena contained high levels of vitamin C, after it was found to contain no detectable vitamin C. In 2013, GSK sold Ribena and another drink, Lucozade
Lucozade is a British brand of soft drink manufactured and marketed by the Japanese company Suntory. Created as "Glucozade" in the UK in 1927 by a Newcastle pharmacist, William Walker Hunter (trading as W. Owen & Son), it was acquired by the B ...
, to the Japanese multinational Suntory for £1.35billion.
SB Pharmco Puerto Rico
In 2010, the US Department of Justice announced that GSK would pay a US$150million criminal fine and forfeiture, and a civil settlement of US$600million under the False Claims Act. The fines stemmed from production of improperly made and adulterated drugs from 2001 to 2005, at GSK's subsidiary, SB Pharmco Puerto Rico Inc., in Cidra, Puerto Rico, which at the time produced US$5.5 billion of products each year. The drugs involved were Kytril, an antiemetic; Bactroban, used to treat skin infections; Paxil, the anti-depressant; and Avandamet, a diabetes drug. GSK closed the factory in 2009.
The case began in 2002, when GSK sent experts to fix problems cited by the FDA. The lead inspector recommended recalls of defective products, but they were not authorised; she was fired in 2003, and filed a whistleblower lawsuit. In 2005, federal marshals seized US$2billion worth of products, the largest such seizure in history. In the 2010 settlement SB Pharmco pleaded guilty to criminal charges, and agreed to pay US$150 million in a criminal fine and forfeiture, at that time the largest such payment ever by a manufacturer of adulterated drugs, and US$600 million in civil penalties to settle the civil lawsuit.[
]
2010 Pandemrix connected with narcolepsy
The Pandemrix
Pandemrix is an influenza vaccine for influenza pandemics, such as the 2009 flu pandemic. The vaccine was developed by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and patented in September 2006.
The vaccine was one of the H1N1 vaccines approved for use by the Europe ...
influenza vaccine was developed by GlaxoSmithKlinefIn in 2006. It was used by Finland and Sweden in the H1N1 mass vaccination of the population against the 2009 swine flu pandemic
The 2009 swine flu pandemic, caused by the H1N1 influenza virus and declared by the World Health Organization (WHO) from June 2009 to August 2010, is the third recent flu pandemic involving the H1N1 virus (the first being the 1918–1920 Sp ...
. In August 2010, The Swedish Medical Products Agency (MPA) and The Finnish National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) launched investigations regarding the development of narcolepsy
Narcolepsy is a long-term neurological disorder that involves a decreased ability to regulate sleep–wake cycles. Symptoms often include periods of excessive daytime sleepiness and brief involuntary sleep episodes. About 70% of those affect ...
as a possible side effect to Pandemrix flu vaccination in children, and found a 6.6-fold increased risk among children and youths, resulting in 3.6 additional cases of narcolepsy per 100,000 vaccinated subjects.
In February 2011, The Finnish National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) concluded that there is a clear connection between the Pandemrix vaccination campaign of 2009 and 2010 and the narcolepsy epidemic in Finland. A total of 152 cases of narcolepsy were found in Finland during 2009–2010, and ninety percent of them had received the Pandemrix vaccination. Sweden however observed very few influenza cases totally in 2009 and especially 2010 as compared to most other years. In 2015 it was reported that the British Department of Health
A health department or health ministry is a part of government which focuses on issues related to the general health of the citizenry. Subnational entities, such as states, counties and cities, often also operate a health department of their ow ...
was paying for Sodium oxybate
Sodium oxybate, sold under the brand name Xyrem among others, is a medication used to treat two symptoms of narcolepsy: sudden muscle weakness and excessive daytime sleepiness. It is used sometimes in France and Italy as an anesthetic given i ...
medication for 80 patients who are taking legal action over problems linked to the use of the swine flu vaccine, at a cost to the government of £12,000 per patient per year.
2012 criminal and civil settlement
Overview
In July 2012, GSK pleaded guilty in the United States to criminal charges, and agreed to pay US$3billion, in what was the largest settlement until then between the Justice Department and a drug company. The US$3billion included a criminal fine of US$956,814,400 and forfeiture of US$43,185,600. The remaining US$2billion covered a civil settlement with the government under the False Claims Act
The False Claims Act (FCA), also called the "Lincoln Law", is an American federal law that imposes liability on persons and companies (typically federal contractors) who defraud governmental programs. It is the federal government's primary litigat ...
. The investigation was launched largely on the basis of information from four whistleblowers who filed qui tam
In common law, a writ of ''qui tam'' is a writ through which private individuals who assist a prosecution can receive for themselves all or part of the damages or financial penalties recovered by the government as a result of the prosecution. Its ...
(whistleblower) lawsuits against the company under the False Claims Act.["GlaxoSmithKline to Plead Guilty and Pay $3 Billion to Resolve Fraud Allegations and Failure to Report Safety Data"](_blank)
United States Department of Justice, 2 July 2012.
Katie Thomas and Michael S. Schmidt
''The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'', 2 July 2012.
Simon Neville
"GlaxoSmithKline fined $3bn after bribing doctors to increase drugs sales"
''The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', 3 July 2012.
The charges stemmed from GSK's promotion of the anti-depressants Paxil (paroxetine
Paroxetine, sold under the brand names Paxil and Seroxat among others, is an antidepressant of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) class. It is used to treat major depressive disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic disorder ...
) and Wellbutrin ( bupropion) for unapproved uses from 1998 to 2003, specifically as suitable for patients under the age of 18, and from its failure to report safety data about Avandia (rosiglitazone
Rosiglitazone (trade name Avandia) is an antidiabetic drug in the thiazolidinedione class. It works as an insulin sensitizer, by binding to the PPAR in fat cells and making the cells more responsive to insulin. It is marketed by the pharmaceutica ...
), both in violation of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. Other drugs promoted for unapproved uses were two inhalers, Advair ( fluticasone/salmeterol) and Flovent ( fluticasone propionate), as well as Zofran (ondansetron
Ondansetron, sold under the brand name Zofran among others, is a medication used to prevent nausea and vomiting caused by cancer chemotherapy, radiation therapy, or surgery. It is also effective for treating gastroenteritis. It can be given by ...
), Imitrex ( sumatriptan), Lotronex (alosetron
Alosetron, sold under the brand name Lotronex among others, is a 5-HT3 antagonist used for the management of severe diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) in females only.
It was patented in 1987 and approved for medical use in 2 ...
) and Valtrex ( valaciclovir).[
The settlement also covered reporting false best prices and underpaying rebates owed under the Medicaid Drug Rebate Program, and kickbacks to physicians to prescribe GSK's drugs. There were all-expenses-paid spa treatments and hunting trips for doctors and their spouses, speakers' fees at conferences, and payment for articles ghostwritten by the company and placed by physicians in medical journals.][ The company set up a ghostwriting programme called CASPPER, initially to produce articles about Paxil but which was extended to cover Avandia.
As part of the settlement GSK signed a five-year ]corporate integrity agreement A corporate integrity agreement (CIA) is a document outlining the obligations that a company involved in health care in the United States makes with a federal government agency or a state government as part of a civil settlement. On the federal lev ...
with the Department of Health and Human Services
The United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is a cabinet-level executive branch department of the U.S. federal government created to protect the health of all Americans and providing essential human services. Its motto is ...
, which obliged the company to make major changes in the way it did business, including changing its compensation programmes for its sales force and executives, and to implement and maintain transparency in its research practices and publication policies.[ It announced in 2013, that it would no longer pay doctors to promote its drugs or attend medical conferences, and that its sales staff would no longer have prescription targets.]["GSK to stop paying doctors in major marketing overhaul"]
, Thomson/Reuters, 17 December 2013.
Rosiglitazone (Avandia)
The 2012 settlement included a criminal fine of US$242,612,800 for failing to report safety data to the FDA about Avandia (rosiglitazone
Rosiglitazone (trade name Avandia) is an antidiabetic drug in the thiazolidinedione class. It works as an insulin sensitizer, by binding to the PPAR in fat cells and making the cells more responsive to insulin. It is marketed by the pharmaceutica ...
), a diabetes
Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ...
drug approved in 1999, and a civil settlement of US$657million for making false claims about it. The Justice Department said GSK had promoted rosiglitazone to physicians with misleading information, including that it conferred cardiovascular benefits despite an FDA-mandated label warning of cardiovascular risks.[
In 1999, John Buse, a diabetes specialist, told medical conferences that rosiglitazone might carry an increased risk of cardiovascular problems. GSK threatened to sue him, called his university head of department, and persuaded him to sign a retraction. GSK raised questions internally about the drug's safety in 2000, and in 2002, the company ghostwrote an article in '' Circulation'' describing a GSK funded clinical trial that suggested rosiglitazone might have a beneficial effect on cardiovascular risk. From 2001, reports began to link the ]thiazolidinedione
The thiazolidinediones , abbreviated as TZD, also known as glitazones after the prototypical drug ciglitazone, are a class of heterocyclic compounds consisting of a five-membered C3NS ring. The term usually refers to a family of drugs used i ...
s (the class of drugs to which rosiglitazone belongs) to heart failure. In April that year, GSK began a six-year, open-label
An open-label trial, or open trial, is a type of clinical trial in which information is not withheld from trial participants. In particular, both the researchers and participants know which treatment is being administered. This contrasts with a do ...
, randomized trial, known as RECORD, to examine rosiglitazone and cardiovascular events.[
] Two GSK meta-analyses
A meta-analysis is a statistical analysis that combines the results of multiple scientific studies. Meta-analyses can be performed when there are multiple scientific studies addressing the same question, with each individual study reporting m ...
in 2005, and 2006, showed an increased risk of cardiovascular problems with rosiglitazone; the information was passed to the FDA and posted on the company website, but not otherwise published. By December 2006, rosiglitazone had become the top-selling diabetes drug, with annual sales of US$3.3billion.[ see table 1 for timeline.]
In June 2007, ''The New England Journal of Medicine
''The New England Journal of Medicine'' (''NEJM'') is a weekly medical journal published by the Massachusetts Medical Society. It is among the most prestigious peer-reviewed medical journals as well as the oldest continuously published one.
Hi ...
'' published a meta-analysis that associated the drug with an increased risk of heart attack
A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which ma ...
. GSK had reportedly tried to persuade one of the authors, Steven Nissen
Steven E. Nissen (born 1948) is an American cardiologist, researcher and patient advocate. He was chairman of cardiovascular medicine at the Cleveland Clinic, in Cleveland, Ohio.Steven Nissen MD, physician profil Cleveland Clinic, retrieved 2/201 ...
, not to publish it, after receiving an advance copy from one of the journal's peer reviewers, a GSK consultant. In July 2007, FDA scientists suggested that rosiglitazone had caused 83,000 excess heart attacks between 1999 and 2007.[ David Graham]
"Assessment of the cardiovascular risks and health benefits of rosiglitazone"
Office of Surveillance and Epidemiology, Food and Drug Administration, 30 July 2007. The FDA placed restrictions on the drug, including adding a boxed warning, but did not withdraw it. (In 2013, the FDA rejected that the drug had caused excess heart attacks.)[ A ]Senate Finance Committee
The United States Senate Committee on Finance (or, less formally, Senate Finance Committee) is a standing committee of the United States Senate. The Committee concerns itself with matters relating to taxation and other revenue measures general ...
inquiry concluded in 2010, that GSK had sought to intimidate scientists who had concerns about rosiglitazone.["Staff report on GlaxoSmithKline and the diabetes drug Avandia"](_blank)
Committee on Finance, United States Senate, January 2010
"Grassley, Baucus Release Committee Report on Avandia"
The United States Senate Committee on Finance, 20 February 2010.
Andrew Clark
"Glaxo's handling of Avandia concerns damned by US Senate committee"
''The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', 22 February 2010. In February that year the company tried to halt publication of an editorial about the controversy by Nissen in the ''European Heart Journal''.
The results of GSK's RECORD trial were published in June 2009. It confirmed an association between rosiglitazone and an increased risk of heart failure and fractures, but not of heart attack, and concluded that it "does not increase the risk of overall cardiovascular morbidity or mortality compared with standard glucose-lowering drugs."[ Steven Nissan and Kathy Wolkski argued that the study's low event rates reduced its statistical power. In September 2009, rosiglitazone was suspended in Europe. The results of the RECORD study were confirmed in 2013, by the Duke Clinical Research Institute, in an independent review required by the FDA. In November that year the FDA lifted the restrictions it had placed on the drug. The boxed warning about heart attack was removed; the warning about heart failure remained in place.]
Avandia. Prescribing information"
Food and Drug Administration.
Paroxetine (Paxil/Seroxat)
GSK was fined for promoting Paxil/Seroxat (paroxetine
Paroxetine, sold under the brand names Paxil and Seroxat among others, is an antidepressant of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) class. It is used to treat major depressive disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic disorder ...
) for treating depression in the under-18s, although the drug had not been approved for pediatric use.[
Paxil had US$4.97billion worldwide sales in 2003.][ The company conducted nine clinical trials between 1994, and 2002, none of which showed that Paxil helped children with depression. From 1998, to 2003, it promoted the drug for the under-18s, paying physicians to go on all-expenses paid trips, five-star hotels and spas.][ From 2004, Paxil's label, along with those of similar drugs, included an FDA-mandated boxed warning that it might increase the risk of suicidal ideation and behaviour in patients under 18.][
An internal SmithKline Beecham document said in 1998, about withheld data from two GSK studies: "It would be commercially unacceptable to include a statement that ediatricefficacy had not been demonstrated, as this would undermine the profile of paroxetine."] The company ghostwrote an article, published in 2001, in the ''Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry'', that misreported the results of one of its clinical trials, Study 329.[ The article concluded that Paxil was "generally well tolerated and effective for major depression in adolescents." The suppression of the research findings is the subject of the 2008 book '']Side Effects
In medicine, a side effect is an effect, whether therapeutic or adverse, that is secondary to the one intended; although the term is predominantly employed to describe adverse effects, it can also apply to beneficial, but unintended, consequence ...
'' by Alison Bass.
For 10 years GSK marketed Paxil as non-habit forming. In 2001, 35 patients filed a class-action suit alleging they had had withdrawal symptoms, and in 2002, a Los Angeles court issued an injunction preventing GSK from advertising that the drug was not habit forming. The court withdrew the injunction after the FDA objected that the court had no jurisdiction over drug marketing that the FDA had approved. In 2003, a World Health Organization committee reported that Paxil was among the top 30 drugs, and top three antidepressants, for which dependence had been reported.["WHO Expert Committee on Drug Dependence"]
Thirty-third Report, World Health Organization, 2003, pp. 20, 25.
Bupropion (Wellbutrin)
The company was also fined for promoting Wellbutrin ( bupropion) – approved at the time for major depressive disorder
Major depressive disorder (MDD), also known as clinical depression, is a mental disorder characterized by at least two weeks of pervasive low mood, low self-esteem, and loss of interest or pleasure in normally enjoyable activities. Intro ...
and also sold as a smoking-cessation aid, Zyban – for weight loss and the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by excessive amounts of inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity that are pervasive, impairing in multiple contexts, and otherwise age-inap ...
, sexual dysfunction and substance addiction. GSK paid doctors to promote these off-label uses, and set up supposedly independent advisory boards and Continuing Medical Education programmes.[
]
China
In 2013, Chinese authorities announced that, since 2007, GSK had funnelled HK$3.8billion in kickbacks to GSK managers, doctors, hospitals and others who prescribed their drugs, using over 700 travel agencies and consulting firms. Chinese authorities arrested four GSK executives as part of a four-month investigation into claims that doctors were bribed with cash and sexual favours. In 2014, a Chinese court found the company guilty of bribery and imposed a fine of US$490million. Mark Reilly, the British head of GSK's Chinese operations, received a three-year suspended prison sentence after a one-day trial held in secret. Reilly was reportedly deported from China and dismissed by the company.
Market manipulation in the UK
In February 2016, the company was fined over £37million in the UK by the Competition and Markets Authority
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is the competition regulator in United Kingdom. It is a non-ministerial government department in the United Kingdom, responsible for strengthening business competition and preventing and reducing anti-com ...
for paying Generics UK, Alpharma and Norton Healthcare more than £50m between 2001, and 2004, to keep generic varieties of paroxetine
Paroxetine, sold under the brand names Paxil and Seroxat among others, is an antidepressant of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) class. It is used to treat major depressive disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic disorder ...
out of the UK market. The generics companies were fined a further £8million. At the end of 2003, when generics became available in the UK, the price of paroxetine dropped by 70 percent.
Miscellaneous
Italian police sought bribery charges in May 2004, against 4,400 doctors and 273 GSK employees. GSK and its predecessor were accused of having spent £152m on physicians, pharmacists and others, giving them cameras, computers, holidays and cash. Doctors were alleged to have received cash based on the number of patients they treated with a cancer drug, topotecan (Hycamtin). The following month prosecutors in Munich accused 70–100 doctors of having accepted bribes from SmithKline Beecham between 1997, and 1999. The inquiry was opened over allegations that the company had given over 4,000 hospital doctors money and free trips. All charges were dismissed by the Verona court in January 2009.
In 2006, in the United States GSK settled the largest tax dispute in IRS history, agreeing to pay US$3.1 billion. At issue were Zantac and other products sold in 1989–2005. The case revolved around intracompany transfer pricing
In taxation and accounting, transfer pricing refers to the rules and methods for pricing transactions within and between enterprises under common ownership or control. Because of the potential for cross-border controlled transactions to distort ...
—determining the share of profit attributable to the US subsidiaries of GSK and subject to tax by the IRS.
The UK's Serious Fraud Office (SFO) opened a criminal inquiry in 2014 into GSK's sales practices, using powers granted by the Bribery Act 2010
The Bribery Act 2010 (c.23) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that covers the criminal law relating to bribery. Introduced to Parliament in the Queen's Speech in 2009 after several decades of reports and draft bills, the Act recei ...
. The SFO said it was collaborating with Chinese authorities to investigate bringing charges in the UK related to GSK's activities in China, Europe and the Middle East. Also , the US Department of Justice was investigating GSK with reference to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
In October 2020, GSK told some staff that while at work they should disable the contact tracing function of the NHS test-and-trace app which monitors the spread of COVID-19. GSK explained the reason for this was due to social distancing measures in place at their sites rendering the technology unnecessary.
See also
* List of toothpaste brands
Toothpaste is a gel dentifrice used in conjunction with a toothbrush to help clean and maintain the aesthetics and health of teeth. Toothpaste is used to promote oral hygiene; it functions as an abrasive agent that helps to remove dental plaque ...
* Galvani Bioelectronics
* Index of oral health and dental articles
Dental pertains to the teeth, including dentistry. Topics related to the dentistry, the human mouth and teeth include:
__NOTOC__
A
:Abfraction •
Abrasion •
:Academy of General Dentistry •
:Acinic ...
* Recherche et Industrie Thérapeutiques
Recherche et Industrie Thérapeutiques (R.I.T.) was founded in Genval, Belgium, as a penicillin factory in 1945 by Dr Pieter De Somer, who later became the founder of the Rega Institute for Medical Research and rector of the Katholieke Universit ...
(R.I.T.)
Notes
References
External links
*
*
*
{{authority control, state=expanded
2000 establishments in the United Kingdom
Biotechnology companies established in 2000
Biotechnology companies of the United Kingdom
British companies established in 2000
Companies based in the London Borough of Hounslow
Companies listed on the London Stock Exchange
Companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange
COVID-19 vaccine producers
Dual-listed companies
Life sciences industry
Medical controversies
Multinational companies headquartered in England
Orphan drug companies
Pharmaceutical companies established in 2000
Pharmaceutical companies of England
Vaccine producers