Taro Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., a generic-drug maker with operations in Hawthorne, has received final approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administratio for for Terbinafine Hydrochloride Cream 1%. Taro’s terbinafine cream is a generic version of Lamisil Cream from Novartis Consumer Health Inc. Terbinafine cream is sold over-the-counter to treat fungal ailments, such as athlete’s foot, jock itch and ringworm. It relieves the itching, cracking, burning and scaling that often is associated with these conditions. Citing industry sources, Taro said Lamisil Cream has annual U.S. sales of more than $50 million. In May, Taro Pharmaceutical Industries said it would be purchased by Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. of India for $454 million.

Barr Pharmaceuticals Inc., a generic drug manufacturer with major operations in Rockland County, announced that its Pliva subsidiary received tentative regulatory approval for a generic product used in treating depression.

The action by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration covers generic versions of Wyeth Pharmaceuticals Inc.’s Effexor medication in tablet sizes of 25mg, 37.5mg, 50mg, 75mg and 100mg.

A tentative approval means that a generic product satisfies the requirements for final approval, but does not allow marketing of the generic product, according to Barr, based in Woodcliff Lake, N.J.

Advanced Viral Research Corp., a biopharmaceutical company based in Yonkers, today announced positive preliminary results from its Phase II dermotological study of a topical drug called AVR118. Early findings show that treatment with AVR118 appears to reduce inflammation and redness associated with surgical incisions and dermabrasion, the company said.

The first group of patients underwent dermabrasion for severe acne and then had the topical applied to half of their inflamed facial tissue. The treated area showed less inflammation and a reduction of redness and swelling of acne lesions. The second group had the drug applied to one of two incisions following plastic surgery. One of two patients had a decrease in inflammation on the treated side.

“I am very encouraged by this data,� Stephen M. Elliston, President and Chief Executive Officer of Advanced Viral, said in a written statement. “The response we’ve seen thus far indicates that AVR118 may have beneficial activity in both sets of patients. A preliminary and unexpected result was the reduction of the inflammatory symptoms of acne. We plan to amend the protocol to include patients being treated solely for acne, given the potential of this market.�

Progenics Pharmaceuticals Inc. of Eastview and Wyeth Pharmaceuticals announced today that regulators have agreed to review Progenics’ application to market a drug for the treatment of constipation in patients who take certain pain medications. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has set Jan. 30, 2008, as the date by which it will finish its review of the application for permission to market methylnaltrexone. The FDA’s decision means Progenics is entitled to a $5 million payment from Wyeth. The companies have an agreement to develop the drug.

Emisphere Technologies Inc., a biotech company in Eastview, said Swiss drug company Novartis Pharma AG and its development partner Nordic Bioscience have informed it that the third phase of testing has been initiated for an oral osteoarthritis treatment known as calcitonin. Emisphere develops ways to deliver drugs in oral forms, such as pills or liquids, that are usually given by methods such as injection. Emisphere’s eligen delivery technology is being used to make an oral form of salmon calcitonin, a synthetic hormone that inhibits calcium breakdown in bone. The drug more commonly is administered by injection or by nasal spray. Michael V. Novinski, president and chief executive of Emisphere, said the drug might become the first to actually help prevent the progression of osteoarthritis or joint damage. The testing is being conducted by Nordic Bioscience in the European Union and in the United States, and is planned to include more than 2,000 patients. Emisphere and Novartis Pharma entered into a license agreement for the development of oral salmon calcitonin for the treatment of osteoarthritis and osteoporosis in 2000.

Progenics Pharmaceuticals Inc., an Eastview-based biotechnology research company, and Wyeth Pharmaceuticals said today that Wyeth applied to regulators in Europe for permission to market a drug for constipation caused by certain types of pain medicines.

The companies said Wyeth applied to the European Medicines Agency for marketing rights for methylnaltrexone. Progenics submitted the same application to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in March.

Submission to the European regulators means Progenics receives a $4 million payment from Wyeth.

By the year 2020, 450 of every 1,000 people will be senior citizens and every one of those older folks will need a place to live, an executive with a construction and development company told an audience in Tarrytown this morning.

The Hudson Valley is getting gray even faster than that, Michael J. DiTullo, executive vice president of Hillside Communities in Newburgh, said. About 500,000 of the 2.2 million residents of the region are 55 or older, he said.

DiTullo said that while many New Yorkers mark their retirement by moving to warm-weather places, many stay in the Northeast, moving to New Jersey, Connecticut of Pennsylvania because they can get housing easier there than they can in New York.

That trend is one of many that speakers at a meeting on eldercare discussed in an attempt to cast light on the economic and social problems and opportunities presented by the aging of the American population.

DiTullo said he believes many people whose children have grown up and moved out remain in their large homes because of a lack of smaller homes in the area. If the region had more smaller homes so that these folks could “downsize� that would free up their houses for young homebuyers, he said.

Meredith Oppenheim, who runs Oppenheim Real Estate Ventures LLP in Manhattan, said the government in Mexico is working to make it easier and safer for American retirees to move to that country. The government and developers see an economic opportunity in the influx of older Americans crossing the border in pursuit of a more affordable place to live.

Many health-care providers in Mexico are seeking partnerships with U.S. health-care institutions in order to establish credibility, said Oppenheim, who won a Congressional Medal of Honor for writing a cookbook for seniors donating all the proceeds to charity.

She said that though Americans who make the move surrender certain benefits, it can still be more affordable.

“It’s not a panacea,� she said of moving to Mexico. “It’s just what some people are seeking as an alternative.�

Provident Bank, Elant Inc. — which is a Goshen-based provider of services for senior citizens — and other sponsors were behind the summit. The audience of more than 100 included government officials, businesspeople, educators and experts on aging.

Progenics Pharmaceuticals Inc., a biotechnology research company in Eastview, said this morning that the first clinical tests on a drug to treat the virus that causes AIDS produced positive results. The company said the drug, PRO 140, reduced the viral concentrations in the blood of patients.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted fast-track status to the company’s efforts to commercialize the drug. Progenics said it plans further tests during the second half of the year.

Progenics shares closed yesterday at $24.20, down, $1.48.

Rivertown Physical Therapy & Rehabilitation has opened a full-service office on 8 Aqueduct Lane in Irvington. It will hold an open house from 3 to 7 p.m. Thursday.

The facility is a joint venture of Rye Physical Therapy & Rehabilitation, which has two offices in Rye and one in White Plains, and Bronx River Physical Therapy. The new office has extended hours from 6 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 8 a.m. to noon on Saturday.

Most insurance is accepted. For appointments, call 914-591-4332.

Electro-Optical Sciences Inc. announced today that it has signed an agreement with L’Oreal to study the feasibility of using EOS’ imaging technology for the evaluation of pigmented skin lesions of cosmetic importance.

EOS, based in Irvington, is a medical device company that focuses on the early detection of melanoma, the rarest but most deadly form of skin cancer.

The company has granted L’Oreal an option to use its technology in research funded by L’Oreal.

MelaFind, its flagship product, uses a hand-held imaging device that to capture images of suspicious pigmented skin lesions and extract data. The data is then analyzed against a proprietary database of melanomas and benign lesions to provide information physicians and a recommendation on whether the lesion should be biopsied.

“We are delighted to collaborate with the L’Oreal researchers in Paris who are acknowledged worldwide leaders in the science of skin conditions,â€? said Dr. Joseph V. Gulfo, president and chief executive officer of EOS, in a written statement. “The work that we will perform with L’Oreal is based on the years of clinical research that we have undertaken and experience that we have amassed in the development of MelaFind. Important multi-spectral imaging-based diagnostic systems for cosmetic conditions may result directly from this collaboration.â€?

EOS shares closed at $5.15, up 15 cents, or 3 percent in trading on the Nasdaq.

For more information on EOS, visit its Web site (www.eosciences.com).

Progenics Pharmaceuticals Inc., an Eastview-based biotech research company, and Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, said this morning that Progenics would file an application for U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval to market methylnaltrexone, a drug for the treatment of constipation in patients who have taken certain painkillers.

The companies said the product could be available in vials early next year.

Under the companies’ 2005 agreement, Progenics got $60 million upfront and the possibility of an additional $356.5 million based on achieving certain goals with the drug. Wyeth would also pay Progenics royalties on sales.

Progenics stock closed yesterday at $23.64, down a penny.

Taro Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., an Israel-based company with operations in Hawthorne, said this morning that it has gotten tentative federal approval for a product that treats fungal infections of the nails.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has determined that Ciclopirox is safe and effective compared with a product made by Sanofi-Aventi Pharmaceuticals. That product has annual sales in the United States of $88 million, Taro said.

Taro said the approval means it can market the product when patents and other restrictions expire, which is expected to happen in September.

Taro shares closed yesterday at $8.50, down 5 cents.

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. of Eastview and Germany-based Bayer HealthCare AG said this morning that testing of a possible treatment for an eye disease showed the product reduced retinal thickness and improved eyesight.

The companies said they plan to begin the next phase of testing of the VEGF Trap-Eye during the second half of the year.

The companies have an agreement to develop the product for the treatment of a condition known as wet AMD, an age-related degeneration, and other eye problems.

Regeneron shares were trading at $21.93, up $2.78 or 14.5 percent at 10:17 this morning.

Pomona-based Barr Laboratories Inc. is challenging the patent of a billion-dollar schizophrenia drug manufactured by Tokyo-based Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co. of Tokyo, Barr’s parent company confirmed yesterday.

The news comes a day after Otsuka announced it was suing Barr in U.S. District Court in New Jersey to prevent the company from selling generic Abilify, known as aripiprazole.

Barr Pharmaceuticals Inc. of Woodlcliff Lake, N.J., said its generic-drug subsidiary’s application to begin marketing aripiprazole tablets in five dosages was accepted by the Food and Drug Administration on Nov. 15, the first date the regulatory agency could accept such a petition.

Barr said it believed it was one of several companies to file an application challenging Otsuka’s patent. In addition to schizophrenia, Abilify is also prescribed as a treatment for symptoms of bipolar disorder.

The drug had U.S. sales of about $1.9 billion in the year ending January, according to industry data.

Taro Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., which has operations in Hawthorne, said this morning it has received tentative government approval for its Ranitidine syrup, a product that treats ulcers, gastroesophageal reflux disease and other gastro-intestinal problems.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has ruled that the product is safe and effective when used properly, the company said.

The company said the approval means it can market the drug when other companies’ patents expire. That is expected to happen in 2009, the company said.

Taro shares closed Friday at $9.10, up 10 cents.

Negotiations over reimbursement rates are continuing between CIGNA HealthCare and the Pinnacle Health Care Network, which represents four Westchester hospitals that get reimbursed by CIGNA. Until a settlement is reached, some patients will not be eligible for in-network benefits with their current doctors.

This weekend, Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield and four other local hospitals reached a deal on new reimbursement rates.

Pinnacle represents Westchester Medical Center in Valhalla, Sound Shore Medical Center in New Rochelle, Mount Vernon Hospital and Hudson Valley Hospital Center in Cortlandt.

“We’re still in conversation and are committed to continuing the conversation, but we need to balance fair reimbursement to the hospital system wile trying to keep health care costs as reasonable as possible for our members and their plan sponsors,� said Lindsay Shearer, a spokeswoman for CIGNA Health Care, based in Bloomfield, Conn.

CIGNA notified its patients by letter telling them what procedures to follow, Shearer said.

Patients whose doctors have privileges only at the four hospitals will not be able to receive in-network benefits with those doctors until an agreement is reached; they can call the phone number on the back of their insurance cards to find other providers. Patients currently receiving medical treatment are being allowed to continue under their current plans. Also, members who have doctors with privileges at other hospitals can receive in-network benefits if treated at the other hospitals.