While You Were Going to California

Greetings from balmy San Francisco (where our colleague Ellen Licking is taking full credit for the good weather, so if you see her at the JP Morgan meeting do thank her). Your IN VIVO Blog will be well represented at the meeting as will the broader FDC-Windhover team & we look forward to meeting some interesting companies and seeing old friends. Stop us and say hello! And don't forget to buy Roger a (free) birthday drink.

So while you were watching the NFL divisional playoff round ...

• Matthew Herper at Forbes writes about a management shuffle at Merck & Co., where Bev Lybrand, formerly leader of the pharma's Gardisil vaccine business, will move to cardiovascular drugs.


• Eben Tessari at Pharmababble expresses his dismay at Alnylam's Cubist partnership for its RSV project. Our (slightly rosier) report on the alliance is over at Pink Sheet Daily...


• The NY Times takes a look at the wacky and divided world of food safety, where FDA shares responsibility with the dept of agriculture, and where "Frozen cheese pizzas are inspected by the F.D.A., pepperoni pizzas by the Agriculture Department." May we humbly suggest the madness be ended by establishing a new federal Department of Pizza?
  
• WSJ op-ed at first glance argues for naked doctors/nurses, on closer inspection merely advocating for short sleeves.
  
• More voting: WSJ Health Blog among finalists for the best health blog! You can find the link to vote for Jacob, Scott & co. here.


• Hey look, it's an All-Bird NFC Championship game ... go Eagles!