Astra AB
Encyclopedia
Astra AB was a former international pharmaceutical company headquartered in Södertälje
, Sweden
. Astra was formed in 1913 and merged with the British Zeneca Group in 1999 to form AstraZeneca
. Product development was focused on therapeutics for gastrointestinal
, cardiovascular
and respiratory
disorders and pain control
. At the time of the fusion, Astra was the largest Swedish pharmaceutical company. Astra also operated Astra Tech, a medical devices company, and marketed pharmaceuticals outside their primary development area, including anti-infective
agents.
In 1918, Astra was bought by dye producer AB Svensk färgämnesindustri (ASF), which had plans to create a large Swedish chemical group rivalling those in continental Europe. However, ASF was unsuccessful, and the company soon had large financial problems and was liquidated in 1920. Astra was bailed out and acquired by the Swedish government through its monopoly liquor-producing company Vin- och spritcentralen, with the intention to form a national monopoly for pharmaceutical production. These plans met with resistance, and therefore a Swedish merchant, Erik Kistner, formed a consortium which bought debt-ridden Astra back from the government for a symbolic price of one krona. The consortium included banker Jacob Wallenberg, and the Wallenberg family since continued to have a stake in the company.
Under long-serving CEO Börje Gabrielsson, who led the company until 1957, Astra showed profit from 1929 and grew continuously. In the 1930s, Astra started to conduct its own research, initially on a very small scale, rather than just manufacturing existing pharmaceutical preparations. The sulfa drug Sulfathiazole
was one of the results of these research activities. The company Tika was acquired in 1939, and the pharmaceutical factories of Paul G. Nordström in Hässleholm
(later renamed to Hässle, and operated as a division of Astra) in 1942. This established Astra as the leading Swedish pharmaceutical company.
In the 1940s, two product families were established which were to become quite important to Astra: penicillin
and anaesthetics, initially in the form of Xylocain, which was introduced on the Swedish market in 1948.
The profits from these product families funded the development of new drugs. Many of the drugs which were introduced by Astra from the 1960s originated with its Hässle division, which had been relocated from Hässleholm to Gothenburg
in 1954 in order to facilitate collaboration with Gothenburg University
and its Faculty of Medicine. Among the scientists involved in collaboration with Astra in Gothenburg was later Nobel Prize
laureate Arvid Carlsson
. In the same vein, Astra Draco was founded in Lund
, where Lund University
was located. The research at Hässle led to a number of Astra drugs against cardiovascular conditions including Aptin in 1967 and Seloken in 1975. Another highly successful and profitable Hässle product was Losec against gastroesophageal
conditions, introduced in 1988.
A drug which hadn't been developed by Astra, but that the company distributed in Sweden under its own name under the designation Neurosedyn, which was a prescription-free sedative. It was developed in Germany
by Grünenthal
under the name Contergan and was also sold under the name Thalidomide
in other countries. In late 1961 this drug was connected to a number of birth defects in Germany and was withdrawn from the German market. Three weeks later Astra's Neurosedyn was withdrawn in Sweden, after having been on the market slightly less than three years. It turned out that around one hundred Swedish children had suffered deformation from their mother's taking the supposedly safe drug during their pregnancies, as the Swedish part of the wider Thalidomide scandal affecting around 10,000 worldwide. After complicated legal turns in the 1960s, a settlement was reached in 1969, whereby Astra set aside certain compensation funds to the victim. This turn of events led to a revision of safety thinking in drug development, and to date it is still considered as the worst tragedy and scandal in the history of the Swedish pharmaceutical industry.
In 1983 Astra withdrew its neuropharmacological drug Zelmid, which had only introduced the year before, because of concerns over side effects. Zelmid was a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor
(SSRI), and although Astra was a pioneer in the SSRI area, they did not follow up with another drug using the same mechanism. Instead, it was the US pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly and Company
which later introduced the bestselling SSRI drug Prozac, which lead Astra to realise that they would probably had been able to beat Lilly to this lucrative market if they had continued their SSRI drug development. Despite losing out in the SSRI area, in the 1990s, Astra had become one of the heaviest companies on the Stockholm stock exchange
, to a large extent due to profits from Losec.
Responding to increasing development costs of new drugs and a perception that the pharmaceutical industry needed more international fusions, Astra started to look for partners. On December 9, 1998 plans for a fusion with Zeneca was announced, which would create the world's third largest pharmaceutical company. Despite some initial criticism of the plans, owners representing 96.4% of the stock voted for the fusion, which was effected in 1999.
Södertälje
Södertälje is a city and the seat of Södertälje Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden with 86,069 inhabitants in 2010.The industrial city, about south of Stockholm, is the home to truck maker Scania AB and a top 10 pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca....
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. Astra was formed in 1913 and merged with the British Zeneca Group in 1999 to form AstraZeneca
AstraZeneca
AstraZeneca plc is a global pharmaceutical and biologics company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's seventh-largest pharmaceutical company measured by revenues and has operations in over 100 countries...
. Product development was focused on therapeutics for gastrointestinal
Gastroenterology
Gastroenterology is the branch of medicine whereby the digestive system and its disorders are studied. The name is a combination of three Ancient Greek words gaster , enteron , and logos...
, cardiovascular
Cardiology
Cardiology is a medical specialty dealing with disorders of the heart . The field includes diagnosis and treatment of congenital heart defects, coronary artery disease, heart failure, valvular heart disease and electrophysiology...
and respiratory
Pulmonology
In medicine, pulmonology is the specialty that deals with diseases of the respiratory tract and respiratory disease. It is called chest medicine and respiratory medicine in some countries and areas...
disorders and pain control
Anesthesia
Anesthesia, or anaesthesia , traditionally meant the condition of having sensation blocked or temporarily taken away...
. At the time of the fusion, Astra was the largest Swedish pharmaceutical company. Astra also operated Astra Tech, a medical devices company, and marketed pharmaceuticals outside their primary development area, including anti-infective
Infectious disease
Infectious diseases, also known as communicable diseases, contagious diseases or transmissible diseases comprise clinically evident illness resulting from the infection, presence and growth of pathogenic biological agents in an individual host organism...
agents.
History
The issue of domestic industrial production of pharmaceuticals in Sweden, as opposed to manual preparations by pharmacists had been discussed among Swedish pharmacists since mid-1890s. At this time, German and Swiss pharmaceutical companies dominated the Swedish market. For a long time, this never led to more than discussions, but in 1913 Astra was founded in Södertälje, and plans to produce some 40 pharmaceutical preparations were already drawn up. Pharmacist Knut Sjöberg became the first CEO of the company.In 1918, Astra was bought by dye producer AB Svensk färgämnesindustri (ASF), which had plans to create a large Swedish chemical group rivalling those in continental Europe. However, ASF was unsuccessful, and the company soon had large financial problems and was liquidated in 1920. Astra was bailed out and acquired by the Swedish government through its monopoly liquor-producing company Vin- och spritcentralen, with the intention to form a national monopoly for pharmaceutical production. These plans met with resistance, and therefore a Swedish merchant, Erik Kistner, formed a consortium which bought debt-ridden Astra back from the government for a symbolic price of one krona. The consortium included banker Jacob Wallenberg, and the Wallenberg family since continued to have a stake in the company.
Under long-serving CEO Börje Gabrielsson, who led the company until 1957, Astra showed profit from 1929 and grew continuously. In the 1930s, Astra started to conduct its own research, initially on a very small scale, rather than just manufacturing existing pharmaceutical preparations. The sulfa drug Sulfathiazole
Sulfathiazole
Sulfathiazole is an organosulfur compound that has been used as a short-acting sulfa drug. It once was a common oral and topical antimicrobial until less toxic alternatives were discovered. It is still occasionally used, sometimes in combination with sulfabenzamide and sulfacetamide, and in...
was one of the results of these research activities. The company Tika was acquired in 1939, and the pharmaceutical factories of Paul G. Nordström in Hässleholm
Hässleholm
Hässleholm is a locality and the seat of Hässleholm Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 17,730 inhabitants in 2005.-Overview:Hässleholm was gradually developed from 1860 in connection with the construction of the main Stockholm to Malmö railway line. There was no settlement on the spot before...
(later renamed to Hässle, and operated as a division of Astra) in 1942. This established Astra as the leading Swedish pharmaceutical company.
In the 1940s, two product families were established which were to become quite important to Astra: penicillin
Penicillin
Penicillin is a group of antibiotics derived from Penicillium fungi. They include penicillin G, procaine penicillin, benzathine penicillin, and penicillin V....
and anaesthetics, initially in the form of Xylocain, which was introduced on the Swedish market in 1948.
The profits from these product families funded the development of new drugs. Many of the drugs which were introduced by Astra from the 1960s originated with its Hässle division, which had been relocated from Hässleholm to Gothenburg
Gothenburg
Gothenburg is the second-largest city in Sweden and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated on the west coast of Sweden, the city proper has a population of 519,399, with 549,839 in the urban area and total of 937,015 inhabitants in the metropolitan area...
in 1954 in order to facilitate collaboration with Gothenburg University
Gothenburg University
The University of Gothenburg is a university in Sweden's second largest city, Gothenburg.- Character :The University of Gothenburg is the third-oldest Swedish university, and with 24,900 full-time students it is also among the largest universities in the Nordic countries...
and its Faculty of Medicine. Among the scientists involved in collaboration with Astra in Gothenburg was later Nobel Prize
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
laureate Arvid Carlsson
Arvid Carlsson
Arvid Carlsson is a Swedish scientist who is best known for his work with the neurotransmitter dopamine and its effects in Parkinson's disease...
. In the same vein, Astra Draco was founded in Lund
Lund
-Main sights:During the 12th and 13th centuries, when the town was the seat of the archbishop, many churches and monasteries were built. At its peak, Lund had 27 churches, but most of them were demolished as result of the Reformation in 1536. Several medieval buildings remain, including Lund...
, where Lund University
Lund University
Lund University , located in the city of Lund in the province of Scania, Sweden, is one of northern Europe's most prestigious universities and one of Scandinavia's largest institutions for education and research, frequently ranked among the world's top 100 universities...
was located. The research at Hässle led to a number of Astra drugs against cardiovascular conditions including Aptin in 1967 and Seloken in 1975. Another highly successful and profitable Hässle product was Losec against gastroesophageal
Gastroesophageal reflux disease
Gastroesophageal reflux disease , gastro-oesophageal reflux disease , gastric reflux disease, or acid reflux disease is chronic symptoms or mucosal damage caused by stomach acid coming up from the stomach into the esophagus...
conditions, introduced in 1988.
A drug which hadn't been developed by Astra, but that the company distributed in Sweden under its own name under the designation Neurosedyn, which was a prescription-free sedative. It was developed in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
by Grünenthal
Grünenthal
Grünenthal GmbH is a German pharmaceutical company in Stolberg near Aachen, which holds the patent to Ultram , and its much stronger derivative Nucynta , both used as analgesics with Norepinephrine Reuptake Inhibition...
under the name Contergan and was also sold under the name Thalidomide
Thalidomide
Thalidomide was introduced as a sedative drug in the late 1950s that was typically used to cure morning sickness. In 1961, it was withdrawn due to teratogenicity and neuropathy. There is now a growing clinical interest in thalidomide, and it is introduced as an immunomodulatory agent used...
in other countries. In late 1961 this drug was connected to a number of birth defects in Germany and was withdrawn from the German market. Three weeks later Astra's Neurosedyn was withdrawn in Sweden, after having been on the market slightly less than three years. It turned out that around one hundred Swedish children had suffered deformation from their mother's taking the supposedly safe drug during their pregnancies, as the Swedish part of the wider Thalidomide scandal affecting around 10,000 worldwide. After complicated legal turns in the 1960s, a settlement was reached in 1969, whereby Astra set aside certain compensation funds to the victim. This turn of events led to a revision of safety thinking in drug development, and to date it is still considered as the worst tragedy and scandal in the history of the Swedish pharmaceutical industry.
In 1983 Astra withdrew its neuropharmacological drug Zelmid, which had only introduced the year before, because of concerns over side effects. Zelmid was a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor
Selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors or serotonin-specific reuptake inhibitor are a class of compounds typically used as antidepressants in the treatment of depression, anxiety disorders, and some personality disorders. The efficacy of SSRIs is disputed...
(SSRI), and although Astra was a pioneer in the SSRI area, they did not follow up with another drug using the same mechanism. Instead, it was the US pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly and Company
Eli Lilly and Company
Eli Lilly and Company is a global pharmaceutical company. Eli Lilly's global headquarters is located in Indianapolis, Indiana, in the United States...
which later introduced the bestselling SSRI drug Prozac, which lead Astra to realise that they would probably had been able to beat Lilly to this lucrative market if they had continued their SSRI drug development. Despite losing out in the SSRI area, in the 1990s, Astra had become one of the heaviest companies on the Stockholm stock exchange
Stockholm Stock Exchange
The Stockholm Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located in Stockholm, Sweden. Founded in 1863 it is the primary securities exchange of the Nordic Countries....
, to a large extent due to profits from Losec.
Responding to increasing development costs of new drugs and a perception that the pharmaceutical industry needed more international fusions, Astra started to look for partners. On December 9, 1998 plans for a fusion with Zeneca was announced, which would create the world's third largest pharmaceutical company. Despite some initial criticism of the plans, owners representing 96.4% of the stock voted for the fusion, which was effected in 1999.