Projo 7 to 7 News Blog

Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy Tuesday plans to visit the Alexion Pharmaceuticals plant in Smithfield, where the company says he will speak about the historic spike in federal grants for medical research included in the federal stimulus bill. The hour-long visit begins at 9:30 a.m.

Kennedy visited the plant a year ago. But this time, a lull in manufacturing will allow the congressman to tour the full complex without slipping on a protective hat, boots, gloves and safety glasses, a procedure that takes 30 minutes.

Alexion, one of only two major biomanufacturing businesses in Rhode Island, is among the state's most closely watched new companies. Headquartered in Cheshire, Conn., Alexion bought the former Dow Chemical plant in 2006. Two years later, it completed a massive renovation to prepare the plant to produce Soliris, the only drug approved to treat paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria, a rare disease that destroys red blood cells and can lead to severe anemia, blood clots and kidney and liver damage.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the drug in March 2007, a milestone most startups never see. The company was founded in 1992.

But two years after it began selling Soliris in the U.S, Alexion still relies on a contract manufacturer, Lonza Biologics, to produce the drug. That could soon change, with a final FDA inspection scheduled for later this year, Alexion spokesman Irving Adler told The Providence Journal on Monday.

 Tags  economic development economy health healthcare Smithfield RI

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