Merck OY company, a subsidiary of Germany-based Merck KGaA, manufactures, markets, and distributes prescription and over-the-counter pharmaceutical medicines. Merck OY's prescription drugs fall into targeted therapeutic categories such as diabetes, cardiovascular care, and infertility, and its consumer health care segment primarily consists of nutraceutical (vitamin) products. It also makes select chemical products, including liquid crystals and life science laboratory chemicals.

Ipsen develops pharmaceutical products that target oncology, endocrinology, and neuromuscular disorders. The group additionally markets products to treat gastroenterology, cardiovascular, and cognitive disorders. Ipsen operates research-and-development (R&D) centers in Paris, Boston, Barcelona, and London, which have churned out more than 20 products to the global therapeutic market. Its R&D efforts focus on peptide engineering, protein engineering, medicinal chemistry, and advanced drug delivery. The company markets its products directly as well as through third parties, and has formed strategic development alliances with the likes of Medicis and Applied Biosystems (now part of Life Technologies Corporation).

Innovative work in genetic testing is apparently spelled Innogenetics in any language. The biopharmaceutical company creates genetic, infectious disease, cancer, and neurological tests. Innogenetics' products include tests and genotyping profiles to identify conditions such as cystic fibrosis, HIV, hepatitis C and B, Alzheimer's disease, and human papillomavirus (HPV). In addition to testing, the company provides biological manufacturing services (producing virus strains and proteins) for pharmaceutical firms and research labs. The firm's products are sold through subsidiaries and distributors in about 90 countries. Belgium's Solvay took over control of Innogenetics in 2008.

MicroIslet, Inc. is a biotechnology company engaged in the research, development and commercialization of technologies in the field of transplantation therapy for people with conditions requiring cell-based replacement treatments, with a focus on type 1, or insulin-dependent diabetes. Islet transplantation technology, licensed from Duke University, along with the Company's developments, constitutes methods for isolating, culturing, cryopreservation, and immuno-protection (microencapsulation) of islet cells. MicroIslet intends to continue its research and development efforts and to introduce products to the market.

GenVec, Inc. company was founded in 1992 and is based in Gaithersburg, Maryland. GenVec, Inc., a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, develops gene-based therapeutic drugs and vaccines in the United States. Its lead therapeutic product candidate, TNFerade biologic, is under Phase III trial for first-line treatment of inoperable, locally advanced pancreatic cancer. The company is also evaluating TNFerade biologic, wfor the treatment of various cancers, including esophageal cancer, rectal cancer, and head and neck cancer. In addition, it is developing TherAtoh, a preclinical program involving the delivery of the human atonal gene for the production of therapeutic proteins by cells in the inner ear. Further, GenVec uses its proprietary adenovector technology to develop vaccines for infectious diseases, including HIV, malaria, foot-and-mouth disease, respiratory syncytial virus, and HSV-2. It has strategic alliances and research contracts with the U.S. department of homeland security, the U.S. department of agriculture, PATH'S malaria vaccine initiative, the U.S. naval medical research center, and the Vaccine Research Center of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases of the National Institutes of Health.

Astex Therapeutics (formerly Astex Technology) is working on Pyramids, but on a much, much smaller scale than the Egyptians did. Astex Therapeutics Limited company's Pyramid is a fragment-based drug discovery platform that utilizes X-ray crystallography to develop small molecule drugs. Astex is using the Pyramid platform to develop new therapies for Alzheimer's disease, numerous types of cancers, and chronic inflammation. The company relies in part on a large group of investors for funding. Some of its main investors include Oxford Biosciences, Advent International, Apax, Bayer Schering, and Johnson & Johnson. Astex is collaborating with Novartis andJanssen Pharmaceutica on drugs for the treatment of cancer.

MediGene develops drugs that save lives or just make life easier. Spun off from the Munich Gene Center in 1994, MediGene focuses its R&D efforts on therapies that battle various forms of cancer and autoimmune conditions. It also has several drugs on the market, many of them sold through partnerships with other drug firms. The company's Eligard treatment for prostate cancer is sold in Europe by Astellas Pharma, and its Veregen ointment for genital warts is on the US market (Bradley Pharmaceuticals (now part of Nycomed US) sells the drug). In 2008 MediGene won approval from European regulatory authorities for Oracea, a treatment for rosacea; it sold European marketing rights for the drug to Galderma Laboratories.

Sovereign Pharmaceuticals was founded in 1990. Sovereign Pharmaceuticals, Ltd. company arms its customers with made-to-order OTC and prescription medications that combat gastrointestinal, respiratory, and cold symptoms. Its manufacuring plant has the capacity to make more than 3 million pints of liquid and more than 650 million tablets a year. Other capabilities include the manufacture of creams, ointments, and suspensions. In addition, the company offers custom packaging and research and development services.

Cortex Pharmaceuticals develops drugs to treat neurodegenerative and psychiatric disorders. Its research focuses on the AMPA receptor, which facilitates communication between nerve cells; the firm's Ampakine compounds may enhance this receptor's activity. Its lead drug candidate is CX717, which it is developing for a number of indications including respiratory depression (a potentially fatal side effect of some anesthetics and post-surgical painkillers), Alzheimer's disease, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and daytime sleepiness. The firm believes Ampakine drugs may also be helpful in treating a variety of other brain-related disorders, including depression, autism, and Huntington's disease.

Pluristem Therapeutics Inc. was founded in 2001 and is based in Haifa, Israel. Pluristem Therapeutics Inc., a development stage bio-therapeutics company, engages in the research, development, and production of placental-derived adherent stromal cells (ASCs). The company also involves in the commercialization of non-personalized (allogeneic) cell therapy products for the treatment of various severe degenerative, ischemic, and autoimmune disorders. It develops a pipeline of products that are derived from the human placenta, a non-controversial, non-embryonic, and adult stem cell source. These placental adherent stromal cells (ASCs) are expanded in the company’s proprietary PluriX three-dimensional bioreactor, which imitates the natural microstructure of bone marrow and does not require supplemental growth factors or other exogenous materials. The company’s principal product under Phase I clinical trial is PLX-PAD for people suffering from peripheral artery disease. Its pre-clinical products include PLX-IBD for inflammatory bowel diseases; PLX-STROKE for ischemic strokes; PLX-BMT for bone marrow transplantation; and PLX-MS for multiple sclerosis. The company was formerly known as Pluristem Life Systems Inc. and changed its name to Pluristem Therapeutics Inc. in November 2007.

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