AstraZeneca PLC ( , , ), is a large Anglo-Swedish pharmaceutical company formed on 6 April 1999 by the merger of Swedish Astra AB and British Zeneca Group PLC. Zeneca was part of Imperial Chemical Industries prior to a demerger in 1993. AstraZeneca develops, manufactures, and sells pharmaceuticals to treat disorders in the gastrointestinal, cardiac and vascular, neurological and psychiatric, infection, respiratory, pathological inflammation and oncology areas.
The corporate headquarters are in London, England, the research and development (R&D) headquarters are in Södertälje, Sweden. Major R&D centres are located on three continents in the United States, United Kingdom, Sweden, and India.