Pfizer will form two research units after Wyeth buyout

NEW YORK -- Pfizer Inc. said yesterday that after completing its buyout of Wyeth, it will form two main research units -- focusing on traditional pharmaceuticals and cutting-edge biotechnology drugs.

The company's planned PharmaTherapeutics Research Group will be headed by Martin Mackay, the current leader of Pfizer's global research and development unit. The current president of Wyeth research, Mikael Dolsten, will head the biotechnology unit.

Pfizer Chief Executive Jeff Kindler will be CEO of the combined company.

Wyeth employs about 1,200 people in the Richmond area. The company's over-the-counter consumer-health products, including Robitussin, Dimetapp and ChapStick, are made at Wyeth's plant in eastern Henrico County.

Pfizer currently makes blockbuster drugs including the impotence treatment Viagra, antidepressant Zoloft and pain relievers Celebrex and Lyrica. Its Lipitor cholesterol drug is the world's top-selling drug and provides just over one-quarter of all company revenue, with nearly $13 billion in annual sales.

Sales are expected to plummet when the drug loses patent protection in November 2011.