In 1992 Frazier was hired as the general counsel of Astra Merck Group, a joint venture in charge of marketing the heartburn drug Prilosec.

FORBES: Merck Could Return To Greatness If CEO Can Leave His Own Past Behind

Patients on this vegetarian diet for four weeks reduced their bad cholesterol levels just as much as a control group on Merck's Mevacor.

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He said there was another group of drugs, led by Merck's Raltegravir which are also targeted at this group of patients, but which stop HIV integrating into cells.

BBC: Cell infected with HIV