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Marion Merrell Dow and its predecessor Marion Laboratories was a
U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
pharmaceutical company based in
Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City (abbreviated KC or KCMO) is the largest city in Missouri by population and area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 508,090 in 2020, making it the 36th most-populous city in the United States. It is the central ...
from 1950 until 1996. The company specialized in bringing to market drugs that had been discovered but unmarketed by other companies including Cardizem which treats arrhythmias and high blood pressure,
Carafate Sucralfate, sold under various brand names, is a medication used to treat stomach ulcers, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), radiation proctitis, and stomach inflammation and to prevent stress ulcers. Its usefulness in people infected by ...
(an
ulcer An ulcer is a discontinuity or break in a bodily membrane that impedes normal function of the affected organ. According to Robbins's pathology, "ulcer is the breach of the continuity of skin, epithelium or mucous membrane caused by sloughing o ...
treatment),
Gaviscon An antacid is a substance which neutralizes stomach acidity and is used to relieve heartburn, indigestion or an upset stomach. Some antacids have been used in the treatment of constipation and diarrhea. Marketed antacids contain salts of alumi ...
(an
antacid An antacid is a substance which neutralizes stomach acidity and is used to relieve heartburn, indigestion or an upset stomach. Some antacids have been used in the treatment of constipation and diarrhea. Marketed antacids contain salts of alumi ...
),
Seldane Terfenadine is an antihistamine formerly used for the treatment of allergic conditions. It was brought to market by Hoechst Marion Roussel (now Sanofi-Aventis) and was marketed under various brand names, including Seldane in the United States, Tr ...
(a withdrawn
antihistamine Antihistamines are drugs which treat allergic rhinitis, common cold, influenza, and other allergies. Typically, people take antihistamines as an inexpensive, generic (not patented) drug that can be bought without a prescription and provides re ...
),
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 pr ...
(anti-smoking gum) and Cepacol mouthwash.Marion Merrell Dow, Inc., International Directory of Company Histories, Vol. 9. St. James Press, 1994
(reprinted on fundinguniverse.com)
The company operating out of its headquarters at 9300 Ward Parkway was a springboard for its founder
Ewing Marion Kauffman Ewing Marion Kauffman (September 21, 1916 August 1, 1993) was an American pharmaceutical entrepreneur, philanthropist, and Major League Baseball owner. Early life and education Ewing Kauffman was born on September 21, 1916, on a farm near Gard ...
to start the
Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expans ...
baseball team.


History


Richardson-Merrell

The company traces its roots back to 1828 when William S. Merrell opened the Western Market Drug Store at Sixth Street and Western Row (now Central Avenue) in downtown
Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
. Merrell expanded into the wholesale drug business. Following his death in 1880 his sons formed the William S. Merrell Chemical Company. In the 1930s, it merged with a company started by
Lunsford Richardson Lunsford Richardson (December 29, 1854 - August 21, 1919) was an American pharmacist from Selma, North Carolina, and the founder of Vick Chemical Company (which became Richardson Vicks Inc.). Early life Lunsford was born in 1854 on a farm near ...
to become Richardson-Merrell. Richardson's most notable product was
Vicks Vicks is an American brand of over-the-counter medications owned by the American companies Procter & Gamble and Helen of Troy Limited. Vicks manufactures NyQuil and its sister medication, DayQuil as well as other medications in the “Quil” lin ...
VapoRub. In 1958, Richardson-Merrell acquired the English company Milton Antiseptic Ltd. A team at William S. Merrell Chemical Company led by Frank Palopoli synthesized
clomifene Clomifene, also known as clomiphene, is a medication used to treat infertility in women who do not ovulate, including those with polycystic ovary syndrome. Use results in a greater chance of twins. It is taken by mouth once a day, with a course ...
in 1956 (to stimulate ovulation); after its biological activity was confirmed a patent was filed and issued in November 1959. Scientists at Merrell had previously synthesized
chlorotrianisene Chlorotrianisene (CTA), also known as tri-''p''-anisylchloroethylene (TACE) and sold under the brand name Tace among others, is a nonsteroidal estrogen related to diethylstilbestrol (DES) which was previously used in the treatment of menopausal s ...
and
ethamoxytriphetol Ethamoxytriphetol (developmental code name MER-25) is a synthetic nonsteroidal antiestrogen that was studied clinically in the late 1950s and early 1960s but was never marketed. MER-25 was first reported in 1958, and was the first antiestrogen ...
.


Thalidomide

One of Richardson-Merrell's best-known incidents revolved around its efforts to introduce
thalidomide Thalidomide, sold under the brand names Contergan and Thalomid among others, is a medication used to treat a number of cancers (including multiple myeloma), graft-versus-host disease, and a number of skin conditions including complications of ...
into the US market in the 1950s and 1960s under the brand name "Kevadon". The drug was already highly popular in Europe as a
sedative A sedative or tranquilliser is a substance that induces sedation by reducing irritability or excitement. They are CNS depressants and interact with brain activity causing its deceleration. Various kinds of sedatives can be distinguished, but t ...
and
antiemetic An antiemetic is a drug that is effective against vomiting and nausea. Antiemetics are typically used to treat motion sickness and the side effects of opioid analgesics, general anaesthetics, and chemotherapy directed against cancer. They may ...
for elderly patients. Although neither tested nor approved for use during pregnancy, its effectiveness and absence of significant side-effects led many physicians to prescribe it to pregnant women. Richardson-Merrell submitted their new drug application (NDA) to the
U.S. Food and Drug Administration 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 s ...
on September 8, 1960. During the application process, Richardson-Merrell asked the FDA for quick approval of the drug, and distributed 2.5 million tablets of thalidomide to 1,200 American doctors with the understanding that the drug was under investigation, a preemptive marketing strategy that was permissible at the time under existing regulations. Nearly 20,000 patients received the drug. Reviewing
pharmacologist Pharmacology is a branch of medicine, biology and pharmaceutical sciences concerned with drug or medication action, where a drug may be defined as any artificial, natural, or endogenous (from within the body) molecule which exerts a biochemica ...
Frances Oldham Kelsey Frances Kathleen Kelsey ( Oldham; July 24, 1914 – August 7, 2015) was a Canadian-American pharmacologist and physician. As a reviewer for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), she refused to authorize thalidomide for market because sh ...
, who had joined the FDA just a month before the application's arrival, repeatedly denied the company's requests for permission to market the drug, citing an insufficient number of controlled studies to establish risks. When studies revealed that 10,000 children worldwide had been born with severe birth defects from the drug, Merrell withdrew its application and recalled the remaining unconsumed tablets from doctors offices around the country. Ultimately, 17 children in the United States were born with defects. For correctly denying the application despite the pressure from Richardson-Merrell, Kelsey eventually received the President's Award for Distinguished Federal Civilian Service at a 1962 ceremony with President
John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination i ...
.


Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals

Dow Chemical The Dow Chemical Company, officially Dow Inc., is an American multinational chemical corporation headquartered in Midland, Michigan, United States. The company is among the three largest chemical producers in the world. Dow manufactures plastics ...
acquired controlling interest of the Merrell pharmaceutical division of Richardson-Merrell company in 1980 and it became Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals. The former Richardson-Merrell became Richardson-Vicks, Inc. In 1985, Richardson-Vicks was acquired by
Procter & Gamble The Procter & Gamble Company (P&G) is an American multinational consumer goods corporation headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, founded in 1837 by William Procter and James Gamble. It specializes in a wide range of personal health/consumer hea ...
.


U.S. Supreme Court cases

In the U.S., Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals was a named party in at least two major
United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...
cases: * ''Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals Inc.'' v. ''Thompson'', 478 U.S. 804 (1986), involving original jurisdiction * ''Daubert'' v. ''Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals'' 509 U.S. 579 (1993), applied the rules governing
expert testimony An expert witness, particularly in common law countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, and the United States, is a person whose opinion by virtue of education, training, certification, skills or experience, is accepted by the judge as ...
established by the
Federal Rules of Evidence First adopted in 1975, the Federal Rules of Evidence codify the evidence law that applies in United States federal courts. In addition, many states in the United States have either adopted the Federal Rules of Evidence, with or without local v ...
to the admission of scientific evidence at trials conducted in federal courts


Marion Merrell Dow

In 1989 Dow Chemical acquired 67 percent interest of Marion Laboratories, which was renamed Marion Merrell Dow. Among the products Merrell Dow brought that would be shortly marketed were
Seldane Terfenadine is an antihistamine formerly used for the treatment of allergic conditions. It was brought to market by Hoechst Marion Roussel (now Sanofi-Aventis) and was marketed under various brand names, including Seldane in the United States, Tr ...
, Lorelco, Nicorette and Cepacol. The merger was considered a good fit because of Marion Laboratories strong sales force and Merrell Dow's strong research and development capabilities. At the time Marion Laboratories was outperforming all other drug company stocks by 2½ times. Marion had the highest sales and the highest profit per employee of any company traded on the New York Stock Exchange. Dow's initial offer was $38 a share in cash, or $2.2 billion, for the 39 percent of Marion's 150 million shares with an option to raise the stake to 67 percent by 1992. The offer made 300 of Marion's employees millionaires. The deal created the fifth largest drug company in the United States in terms of sales. Although controlled by Dow the new company continued to trade on Marion Laboratories' old
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 c ...
ticker symbol A ticker symbol or stock symbol is an abbreviation used to uniquely identify publicly traded shares of a particular stock on a particular stock market. In short, ticker symbols are arrangements of symbols or characters (generally Latin letters ...
"MKC."


Marion Laboratories

Ewing Kauffman Ewing Marion Kauffman (September 21, 1916 August 1, 1993) was an American pharmaceutical entrepreneur, philanthropist, and Major League Baseball owner. Early life and education Ewing Kauffman was born on September 21, 1916, on a farm near Gard ...
, a former pharmaceutical salesman in
Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City (abbreviated KC or KCMO) is the largest city in Missouri by population and area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 508,090 in 2020, making it the 36th most-populous city in the United States. It is the central ...
started the company in 1950 in the basement of his Kansas City home by selling calcium supplements made from crushed
oyster Oyster is the common name for a number of different families of salt-water bivalve molluscs that live in marine or brackish habitats. In some species, the valves are highly calcified, and many are somewhat irregular in shape. Many, but not al ...
shells which he made in his home and starting with $5,000 in capital. Kauffman later said he used his middle name for the company to avoid the impression that it was a one-person operation. As the company expanded, Kauffman offered employees
share options In finance, an option is a contract which conveys to its owner, the ''holder'', the right, but not the obligation, to buy or sell a specific quantity of an underlying asset or instrument at a specified strike price on or before a specified date ...
and
profit sharing Profit sharing is various incentive plans introduced by businesses that provide direct or indirect payments to employees that depend on company's profitability in addition to employees' regular salary and bonuses. In publicly traded companies thes ...
. Rather than researching products, the company adopted a policy of buying existing products and reformulating them for market. In 1964 it formally incorporated as Marion Laboratories, Inc. In the 1980s it marketed Silvadene (a burn cream),
Ditropan Oxybutynin, sold as under the brand names Ditropan among others, is a medication used to treat overactive bladder. It works similar to tolterodine, Darifenacin, and Solifenacin. While used for bed wetting in children, evidence to support this u ...
(treatment for
bladder The urinary bladder, or simply bladder, is a hollow organ in humans and other vertebrates that stores urine from the kidneys before disposal by urination. In humans the bladder is a distensible organ that sits on the pelvic floor. Urine enters ...
spasms), Nitro-Bid (
chest pain Chest pain is pain or discomfort in the chest, typically the front of the chest. It may be described as sharp, dull, pressure, heaviness or squeezing. Associated symptoms may include pain in the shoulder, arm, upper abdomen, or jaw, along with n ...
treatment), ARD and Bac-T-Screen (helped identify bacteria), Culturette (used to identify Group A
streptococci ''Streptococcus'' is a genus of gram-positive ' (plural ) or spherical bacteria that belongs to the family Streptococcaceae, within the order Lactobacillales (lactic acid bacteria), in the phylum Bacillota. Cell division in streptococci occurs ...
) and ToxiLab, a drug detection system used to detect
drug abuse Substance abuse, also known as drug abuse, is the use of a drug in amounts or by methods which are harmful to the individual or others. It is a form of substance-related disorder. Differing definitions of drug abuse are used in public health, ...
. In 1989, Marion Laboratories had a gross revenue of $930 million; it was acquired by Dow Chemical and took the name Marion Merrell Dow. By 1994 it had nearly 10,000 employees.


Hoechst Marion Roussel

In 1995
Hoechst AG Hoechst AG () was a German chemicals then life-sciences company that became Aventis Deutschland after its merger with France's Rhône-Poulenc S.A. in 1999. With the new company's 2004 merger with Sanofi-Synthélabo, it became a subsidiary of the ...
of Germany announced plans to buy Dow's increased 71 percent share for $25.75 a share or $7.1 Billion. Hoechst also bought the other outstanding shares. The deal created the world's second largest drug manufacturer at the time (behind
Glaxo Wellcome GSK plc, formerly GlaxoSmithKline plc, is a British multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company with global headquarters in London, England. Established in 2000 by a merger of Glaxo Wellcome and SmithKline Beecham. GSK is the ten ...
and ahead of
Merck & Company Merck & Co., Inc. is an American multinational pharmaceutical company headquartered in Rahway, New Jersey, and is named for Merck Group, founded in Germany in 1668, of whom it was once the American arm. The company does business as Merck Sharp ...
). Hoechst's new pharmaceutical company became
Hoechst Marion Roussel Hoechst AG () was a German chemicals then life-sciences company that became Aventis Deutschland after its merger with France's Rhône-Poulenc S.A. in 1999. With the new company's 2004 merger with Sanofi-Synthélabo, it became a subsidiary of the ...
and kept its North American headquarters in Kansas City.


Sanofi

Hoechst in turn later became part of the pharmaceutical and lab
assay An assay is an investigative (analytic) procedure in laboratory medicine, mining, pharmacology, environmental biology and molecular biology for qualitatively assessing or quantitatively measuring the presence, amount, or functional activity of a ...
testing company
Aventis 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 ...
in 1999,Arturo Bris and Christos Cabolis,
Corporate Governance Convergence Through Cross-Border Mergers The Case of Aventis
Chapter 4 i

Eds Greg N. Gregoriou, Luc Renneboog. Academic Press, 26 July 2007
and subsequently a part of the multinational pharmaceutical company
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 ...
. Sanofi has sold off the original Marion Labs Kansas City plant at 10236 Marion Park Drive with
Cerner Corporation Cerner Corporation is an American supplier of health information technology (HIT) services, devices, and hardware. As of February 2018, its products were in use at more than 27,000 facilities around the world. The company had more than 29,000 emp ...
buying the offices in 2006. In August 2009 the company announced its plans to close the remaining facility altogether.


References

{{Authority control Dow Chemical Company Chemical companies of the United States Defunct companies based in Missouri Sanofi Companies based in Kansas City, Missouri American companies established in 1950 Pharmaceutical companies established in 1950 Pharmaceutical companies disestablished in 1996 1950 establishments in Missouri 1996 disestablishments in Missouri