Schering-Plough Corporation was an American pharmaceutical company. It was originally the U.S.

subsidiary A subsidiary, subsidiary company, or daughter company is a company (law), company completely or partially owned or controlled by another company, called the parent company or holding company, which has legal and financial control over the subsidia ...

of the German company

Schering AG Schering AG was a research-centered German multinational pharmaceutical company headquartered in Wedding, Berlin, which operated as an independent company from 1851 to 2006. In 2006, it was bought by Bayer AG and merged to form the Bayer su ...

, which was founded in 1851 by Ernst Christian Friedrich Schering. As a result of

nationalization Nationalization (nationalisation in British English) is the process of transforming privately owned assets into public assets by bringing them under the public ownership of a national government or state. Nationalization contrasts with p ...

, it became an independent company. In 1971, the Schering Corporation merged with Plough, Inc. (founded by Memphis-based entrepreneur Abe Plough in 1908) to form Schering-Plough. On November 4, 2009 Merck & Co. merged with Schering-Plough with the new company taking the name of Merck & Co. Schering-Plough manufactured several pharmaceutical

drugs A drug is any chemical substance other than a nutrient or an essential dietary ingredient, which, when administered to a living organism, produces a biological effect. Consumption of drugs can be via inhalation, injection, smoking, ingestio ...

, the most well-known of which were the

allergy Allergies, also known as allergic diseases, are various conditions caused by hypersensitivity of the immune system to typically harmless substances in the environment. These diseases include Allergic rhinitis, hay fever, Food allergy, food al ...

drugs Claritin and Clarinex, an anti-

cholesterol Cholesterol is the principal sterol of all higher animals, distributed in body Tissue (biology), tissues, especially the brain and spinal cord, and in Animal fat, animal fats and oils. Cholesterol is biosynthesis, biosynthesized by all anima ...

drug Vytorin, and a

brain tumor A brain tumor (sometimes referred to as brain cancer) occurs when a group of cells within the Human brain, brain turn cancerous and grow out of control, creating a mass. There are two main types of tumors: malignant (cancerous) tumors and benign ...

drug Temodar. These are now available from Merck & Co. Schering-Plough also owned and operated the major foot care brand name Dr. Scholl's and the skin care line Coppertone. These also became a part of the new company. , Schering-Plough had 1.4% market share in the U.S., placing it seventeenth in the top twenty pharmaceutical corporations by sales compiled by IMS Health. Schering-Plough was a full member of the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA), a membership which is also maintained by the new Merck & Co.

History

Pharmaceuticals and consumer products

Schering was founded in 1851 by Ernst Christian Friedrich Schering as

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. Plough, Incorporated was founded by the

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...

area entrepreneur Abe Plough (1892–1984) in 1908. He borrowed $125 from his father to start the business at age sixteen. As a one-man business, he mixed "Plough's Antiseptic Healing Oil," a "sure cure for any ill of man or beast," and sold it off a horse-drawn buggy. Plough's acquisitions included St Joseph's Aspirin for children,

Maybelline Maybelline New York (formerly The Maybelline Company and Mabelline and Co.), trading as and commonly known as simply Maybelline ( ), is an American multinational cosmetics, skin care, perfume, and personal care company, based in New York City. ...

cosmetics, and Coppertone skin care products. Plough also had a broadcasting division, operating radio stations in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

( WPLO-AM & FM);

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the List of United States ...

( WCAO-AM & FM);

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

( WCOP-AM & FM);

Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

( WJJD-AM & FM); and

( WMPS-AM & FM). Following the entry of the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

into

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in 1941, U.S. President

Franklin Delano Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...

ordered

's U.S. assets be seized. These became the Schering Corporation. The company was placed under a government administratorship until 1952, when it was released, and its assets sold to the private sector. In 1957, Schering acquired White Laboratories. In 1971, the Schering Corporation merged with Plough, Inc. At the time of the merger, Abe Plough became Chairman of the combined company. In 2000, Schering-Plough bought a new campus in

Summit, New Jersey Summit is the northernmost City (New Jersey), city of Union County, New Jersey, Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, located within the New York metropolitan area. Situated on a ridge in north Jersey, northern–central Jersey, centra ...

from

Novartis Novartis AG is a Swiss multinational corporation, multinational pharmaceutical company, pharmaceutical corporation based in Basel, Switzerland. Novartis is one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world and was the eighth largest by re ...

. On March 12, 2007, Schering-Plough Corp. purchased Organon BioSciences, the drug unit of Netherlands-based Akzo Nobel, for $14.4 billion, giving the US pharmaceutical company an array of women's health products and numerous late-stage pipelines of experimental medicines. ''

Organon The ''Organon'' (, meaning "instrument, tool, organ") is the standard collection of Aristotle's six works on logical analysis and dialectic. The name ''Organon'' was given by Aristotle's followers, the Peripatetics, who maintained against the ...

'' itself was founded in 1923 by Dr. Saal van Zwanenberg, the president of Zwanenberg's Slachterijen en Fabrieken. On November 4, 2009 Schering-Plough merged with Merck & Co. and through a

reverse merger A reverse takeover (RTO), reverse merger, or reverse IPO is the acquisition of a public company by a private company so that the private company can bypass the lengthy and complex process of going public. Sometimes, conversely, the public compa ...

, Merck became a subsidiary of Schering-Plough, which renamed itself Merck.

Animal health

Coopers Animal Health

One of Schering-Plough's plants, in Upper Hutt, New Zealand was the largest single site for the production of veterinary

vaccines A vaccine is a biological preparation that provides active acquired immunity to a particular infectious or malignant disease. The safety and effectiveness of vaccines has been widely studied and verified. A vaccine typically contains an ag ...

in the world. This was primarily because

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

's isolation has formed a natural

quarantine A quarantine is a restriction on the movement of people, animals, and goods which is intended to prevent the spread of disease or pests. It is often used in connection to disease and illness, preventing the movement of those who may have bee ...

, leaving the country free of

rabies Rabies is a viral disease that causes encephalitis in humans and other mammals. It was historically referred to as hydrophobia ("fear of water") because its victims panic when offered liquids to drink. Early symptoms can include fever and abn ...

foot and mouth Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) or hoof-and-mouth disease (HMD) is an infectious disease, infectious and sometimes fatal virus (biology), viral disease that primarily affects even-toed ungulates, including domestic and wild Bovidae, bovids. The vir ...

, scrapie,

bovine spongiform encephalopathy Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), commonly known as mad cow disease, is an incurable and always fatal neurodegenerative disease of cattle. Symptoms include abnormal behavior, trouble walking, and weight loss. Later in the course of th ...

, and many other livestock diseases. It formerly had echinococcosis, but this has been eradicated. The site was known locally as Coopers Animal Health, a trademark which originated in the 1850s with a British company, Cooper & Nephews; the Coopers brand name was still in use by Schering-Plough in Australia, but not elsewhere.

Intervet

As a result of the acquisition of Organon BioSciences, Schering-Plough bolstered its animal health business with the Akzo Nobel subsidiary Intervet, obtained control of the active pharmaceutical ingredient manufacturer, Diosynth and gained access to human vaccine production through the subsidiary Nobilon. The three companies comprising Organon BioSciences were Organon, Diosynth, and Intervet. HomeAgain continues to use the Intervet name owned by Merck.

Merck Animal Health, MSD Animal Health

After the merger of Schering-Plough with Merck the animal health division was still known as Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health. A merger of Merial and Intervet/Schering-Plough was planned in 2010 but was abandoned in March 2011. On June 29, 2011, the company announced that the animal health division would now be known as Merck Animal Health in the United States and Canada; it is now called MSD Animal Health elsewhere in the world.

Chief executives

Medical products

Prescription products

*Bridion (

sugammadex Sugammadex, sold under the brand name Bridion, is a medication for the reversal of neuromuscular blockade induced by rocuronium and vecuronium in general anaesthesia. It is the first selective relaxant binding agent (SRBA). It is marketed by ...

) *Cerazette * Desloratadine:

antihistamine Antihistamines are drugs which treat allergic rhinitis, common cold, influenza, and other allergies. Typically, people take antihistamines as an inexpensive, generic (not patented) drug that can be bought without a prescription and provides ...

branded ''Clarinex'' *Esmeron/Zemuron ( rocuronium) *Famvir ( Famciclovir): for

Shingles Shingles, also known as herpes zoster or zona, is a viral disease characterized by a painful skin rash with blisters in a localized area. Typically the rash occurs in a single, wide mark either on the left or right side of the body or face. T ...

(herpes zoster) treatment, developed by

*Intron A & PEG-Intron Interferon alfa-2b: for treatment of

hepatitis C Hepatitis C is an infectious disease caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV) that primarily affects the liver; it is a type of viral hepatitis. During the initial infection period, people often have mild or no symptoms. Early symptoms can include ...

*Levitra ( vardenafil): Erectile-dysfunction drug; co-marketed with

Bayer Bayer AG (English: , commonly pronounced ; ) is a German multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company and is one of the largest pharmaceutical companies and biomedical companies in the world. Headquartered in Leverkusen, Bayer' ...

, and

GlaxoSmithKline GSK plc (an acronym from its former name GlaxoSmithKline plc) is a British Multinational corporation, multinational Pharmaceutics, pharmaceutical and biotechnology company with headquarters in London. It was established in 2000 by a Mergers an ...

*Livial ( tibolone) *Marvelon/Desogen *Nasonex and Asmanex ( Mometasone furoate) *Noxafil ( posaconazole) *NuvaRing *Puregon/Follistim * Quazepam (Doral) *Remeron/Remeron SolTab (

mirtazapine Mirtazapine, sold under the brand name Remeron among others, is an atypical antidepressant, atypical tetracyclic antidepressant, and as such is used primarily to treat Depression (mood), depression. Its effects may take up to four weeks but ca ...

) *Remicade (

infliximab Infliximab, a chimeric monoclonal antibody, sold under the brand name Remicade among others, is a medication used to treat a number of autoimmune diseases. This includes Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing ...

) *Suboxone ( Buprenorphine/Naloxone) *Temodar ( temozolomide) *Vytorin ( ezetimibe/simvastatin): Cholesterol-lowering combination drug *Zetia ( ezetimibe): Cholesterol-lowering drug

Over-the-counter products (Most products sold to
Bayer Bayer AG (English: , commonly pronounced ; ) is a German multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company and is one of the largest pharmaceutical companies and biomedical companies in the world. Headquartered in Leverkusen, Bayer' ...
, except Coppertone)

* Afrin: A

nasal spray Nasal sprays are used to deliver medications Route of administration#Local, locally in the nasal cavities or systemic administration, systemically. They are used locally for conditions such as nasal congestion and allergic rhinitis. In some sit ...

decongestant *Claritin (

loratadine Loratadine, sold under the brand name Claritin among others, is a medication used to treat allergies. This includes allergic rhinitis (hay fever) and hives. It is also available in drug combinations such as loratadine/pseudoephedrine, in whic ...

): An

which has less risk of causing drowsiness *Correctol: A stimulant laxative incorporating dioctyl sodium sulfosuccinate and yellow

phenolphthalein Phenolphthalein ( ) is a chemical compound with the chemical formula, formula carbon, C20hydrogen, H14oxygen, O4 and is often written as "HIn", "HPh", "phph" or simply "Ph" in shorthand notation. Phenolphthalein is often used as an indicator in ...

* Coricidin: A palliative remedy for the

common cold The common cold, or the cold, is a virus, viral infectious disease of the upper respiratory tract that primarily affects the Respiratory epithelium, respiratory mucosa of the human nose, nose, throat, Paranasal sinuses, sinuses, and larynx. ...

, targeted towards individuals with

high blood pressure Hypertension, also known as high blood pressure, is a long-term medical condition in which the blood pressure in the arteries is persistently elevated. High blood pressure usually does not cause symptoms itself. It is, however, a major ri ...

* Coppertone: sunscreens * Bain de Soleil: sunscreen *Drixoral *Solarcaine: Sunburn relief * Zinka: Colored sunscreen

Veterinary products

* Home Again Pet Recovery System: HomeAgain is an advanced pet identification and retrieval system. * Zubrin: A non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (

NSAID Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID) are members of a therapeutic drug class which reduces pain, decreases inflammation, decreases fever, and prevents blood clots. Side effects depend on the specific drug, its dose and duration of ...

) for the treatment of

osteoarthritis Osteoarthritis is a type of degenerative joint disease that results from breakdown of articular cartilage, joint cartilage and underlying bone. A form of arthritis, it is believed to be the fourth leading cause of disability in the world, affect ...

in dogs. * Mometamax: Is indicated for the treatment of canine acute externa and chronic otitis externa associated with

yeast Yeasts are eukaryotic, single-celled microorganisms classified as members of the fungus kingdom (biology), kingdom. The first yeast originated hundreds of millions of years ago, and at least 1,500 species are currently recognized. They are est ...

( Malassezia pachydermatis, formerly Pityrosporum canis) and/or

bacteria Bacteria (; : bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one Cell (biology), biological cell. They constitute a large domain (biology), domain of Prokaryote, prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micr ...

susceptible to

gentamicin Gentamicin is an aminoglycoside antibiotic used to treat several types of bacterial infections. This may include bone infections, endocarditis, pelvic inflammatory disease, meningitis, pneumonia, urinary tract infections, and sepsis amo ...

. It contains the strongest steroid ( Mometasone furoate) in Veterinary Medicine. * Eclipse Vaccines: Attenuated modified live feline vaccines available in a multitude of

antigen In immunology, an antigen (Ag) is a molecule, moiety, foreign particulate matter, or an allergen, such as pollen, that can bind to a specific antibody or T-cell receptor. The presence of antigens in the body may trigger an immune response. ...

combinations. * Galaxy Vaccines: Canine vaccines available in a multitude of

combinations. * Optimmune: Ophthalmic ointment (ciclosporin) for the treatment of Pannis and Keratoconjunctivitis sicca in dogs. * Orbax: Trade name for orbifloxacin, a fluoroquinolone. * Otomax: Is indicated for the treatment of canine acute otitis externa and chronic otitis externa associated with

( Malassezia pachydermatis, formerly Pityrosporum canis) and/or

susceptible to

. It contains betamethasone valerate as an anti-inflammatory. * Banamine: A non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (

) used in horses, cattle and swine in different parts of the world. * Estrumate: A synthetic

prostaglandin Prostaglandins (PG) are a group of physiology, physiologically active lipid compounds called eicosanoids that have diverse hormone-like effects in animals. Prostaglandins have been found in almost every Tissue (biology), tissue in humans and ot ...

used in reproduction of cattle. * Trivetrin: Trimethoprin sulfate for the treatment of cattle and swine. *Nuflor-Florfenicol-for treatment of bovine respiratory disease, foot rot and control of respiratory disease in cattle at high risk of developing bovine respiratory disease.

Exercise drug

Schering-Plough also received much publicity for a drug AICAR which mimics the effects of exercise, having especially potent effects when used alongside another drug GW1516 developed by

Collaborative research

In addition to internal research and development activities Schering-Plough was also involved in publicly funded collaborative research projects, with other industrial and academic partners. One example in non-clinical safety assessment was the InnoMed PredTox.

Controversy

In 2004, Schering-Plough was accused of marketing gimmicks and payoffs to doctors for prescribing the company's pharmaceutical products. Schering-Plough entered a

consent decree A consent decree is an agreement or settlement that resolves a dispute between two parties without admission of guilt (in a criminal case) or liability (in a civil case). Most often it is such a type of settlement in the United States. The ...

with the FDA on March 6, 2002 due to manufacturing issues with its albuterol inhaler. It was ordered to pay $500 million US dollars to the US Treasury.

References

External links

Yahoo! - Schering-Plough Corporation Company Profile

{{Authority control Merck & Co. 1971 establishments in New Jersey 2009 mergers and acquisitions 2009 disestablishments in New Jersey American companies established in 1971 Companies based in Union County, New Jersey Companies formerly listed on the New York Stock Exchange Defunct companies based in New Jersey Defunct pharmaceutical companies of the United States Pharmaceutical companies established in 1971 Pharmaceutical companies disestablished in 2009 Pharmaceutical companies based in New Jersey American corporate subsidiaries