ROTATEQ® (Rotavirus Vaccine, Live, Oral, Pentavalent) Awarded Prix Galien USA 2010 Top Honor
WHITEHOUSE STATION, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- ROTATEQ® (Rotavirus Vaccine, Live, Oral, Pentavalent), Merck's vaccine for rotavirus gastroenteritis in infants and children, received the Prix Galien USA 2010 Award for Best Biotechnology Product, Merck announced today.
"We are honored that Merck's long-term commitment to the discovery and development of new, innovative ways to prevent and treat disease is being acknowledged with this prestigious award," said Dr. Peter S. Kim, president of Merck Research Laboratories. "We congratulate the teams whose hard work and dedication contributed to ROTATEQ."
The Prix Galien recognizes the pharmaceutical industry's outstanding achievement in the development of new medicines. An internationally recognized award, the Prix Galien was founded in France in 1969 by French pharmacist, Roland Mehl, and the 2007 ceremony was the Prix Galien's inaugural event in the United States. The Prix Galien, often considered the industry's equivalent of the Nobel Prize, is the highest accolade for pharmaceutical research and development.
The award was presented at a ceremony in New York City on Sept. 28, and follows previous Prix Galien top honors awarded to Merck in 2008 for ISENTRESS® (raltegravir) for best pharmaceutical agent.
This news release includes "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements may include, but are not limited to, statements about the benefits of the merger between Merck and Schering-Plough, including future financial and operating results, the combined company's plans, objectives, expectations and intentions and other statements that are not historical facts. Such statements are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of Merck's management and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements.
The following factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements: the possibility that the expected synergies from the merger of Merck and Schering-Plough will not be realized, or will not be realized within the expected time period; the impact of pharmaceutical industry regulation and health care legislation; the risk that the businesses will not be integrated successfully; disruption from the merger making it more difficult to maintain business and operational relationships; Merck's ability to accurately predict future market conditions; dependence on the effectiveness of Merck's patents and other protections for innovative products; the risk of new and changing regulation and health policies in the U.S. and internationally and the exposure to litigation and/or regulatory actions.
Merck undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Additional factors that could cause results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements can be found in Merck's 2009 Annual Report on Form 10-K and the company's other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) available at the SEC's Internet site (www.sec.gov).
ROTATEQ® is a registered trademark of Merck & Co. Inc., Whitehouse Station, N.J., USA.
ISENTRESS® is a registered trademark of Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc.
KEYWORDS: United States North America New Jersey
INDUSTRY KEYWORDS: Health Biotechnology Pharmaceutical