Archives April 2011

...says Dr Saranjit Singh, Professor and Head, Department of Pharmaceutical Analysis and Dean NIPER, SAS Nagar (Mohali). He reviews the present pharma education system and stresses on the need for infrastructure and aid in government institutes. Chandreyee Bhaumik Your views on the Indian pharma industry. The world is gradually recognizing the quality status of the Indian pharma industry. There is a strong future that lies ahead. The coming times will be tough for those who do not grow at the required pace and are unable to prove the quality of their manufacturing.  It is important for Indian companies to match the international standards. Also, the country needs to improve its regulatory system and raise the standard of academic training to support the industry. How is the current scenario of pharma SME culture in India? The Small and the Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are gaining momentum gradually. However, in order to strengthen more...

With the pipeline of modern medicines facing a drought and increase in life style diseases, nutraceuticals hold a lot of potential. However, the rural Indian population is still reluctant to go the neutral way due to various reasons. A market check on the prospects that this segment holds...  The term 'nutraceutical' was coined in the 1990's by Dr Stephen DeFelice, Founder and Chairman, Foundation of Innovation Medicine (FIM), Crawford, New Jersey. He defined nutraceutical as: 'Any substance that is a food or a part of a food and provides medical or health benefits, including the prevention and treatment of disease.' Whereas   Health   Canada,   the department of the government of Canada with responsibility of national public health has modified the meaning of the term since its coining by Dr DeFelice, Thus, the definition of nutraceuticals read: 'A product isolated or purified from foods, and generally sold in medicinal forms not usually more...

A streamlined chemist-patient interaction can ease a lot of burden from the physician, and also helps the less educated patient population. Using innovative sales techniques, companies spend 3 fortunes to get their drugs to the consumer, and it is time to utilize the chemist's counter by making it an efficient and innovative tool to aid the patient population. The marketing manager and his team are always looking for ideal opportunities to make sure that their selling strategies get quickly converted into profits for the organization. Most of the rime the focus for promoting their products is limited to astounding doctors with in-clinic detailing by the Medical    Representatives (MRs), providing great literature and journals, seminars,      workshops and gifts. Innovative   ideas   are applied mainly to impress physicians. The MR may dress like a commando or the manager may request the doctor to inaugurate a pack of new skin cream by cutting the more...

Over 300 million people suffer from asthma worldwide. The global drug market is estimated to be over $15 billion. While drugs to manage asthma have existed for several decades, pharmaceutical companies have developed faster acting and more effective products over the years. Here is a prediction of the business of drugs used for this respiratory condition until the year 2017. According to  reports  of Global Data,   the   global asthma market valued at S 12.4 billion in 20U9 is expected to grow with a Compounded Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of approximately 1.5 per cent to S14 billion by 2017. Although the respiratory market has expanded considerably from 2004 to 2009, growth in the seven major markets is expected to slow down from 2010 to 2012.The decline in sales during this period would be due to patent expiries of leading brands. Growth is driven by the expansion of sales in more...

Curtains came down on the eleventh edition of India's premier biotechnology event Bangalore INDIA BIO, when the plethora of participants and several global organizations came together on. This platform. It reflected promising prospects in biopharma, agri-biotechnology and industrial biotechnology, as well as called for greater government industry interaction, especially in the regulatory landscape. A report...  Manas R Bastia  Welcome to   the   new world   order!   Global biotechnology market is increasingly looking at emerging economies like India, Brazil, China as the destination next to drive growth, of the industry, "1'he Indian biotechnology sector, especially buoyed by promising prospects in biophaima, agri- biotechnology, industrial biotechnology, among others is likely to reach the $10-billion revenue milestone by 2015. To put this in perspective, the biotech sector in the country is currently pegged at around S4 billion of which nearly 40 per cent is contributed by more than 180 companies based in Karnataka. However, when more...

Following an audit conducted in February 2011, Gracure has received European Union-Good Manufacturing Practice (EU-GMP) certification for its manufacturing site in Bhiwadi, India, by Belgium's Federal Agency for Medicines & Health Products (FAMHP). The site has been approved for manufacturing of non-sterile dosage forms, which includes capsules (hard shells), liquids, tablets, semi solid and other (dry syrup for reconstitution with water). The Belgium's FAMHP certificate is accepted by all EU Health Authorities and by authorities of several other countries that recognize EU Certification. A S Bhargava, CMD, Gracure Pharmaceuticals Ltd stated, "This achievement would help Gracure enter European countries with its products and gain confidence and recognition from existing and new clients. "EU GMP is an important milestone in scaling up for new ventures and it was a tremendous team effort of the entire Gracure team which resulted into this success," he added. The long and rigorous preparation for EU-GMP, more...

IPF Ingenieria a Barcelona based major manufacturer of special machines destined for high profile industrial customers needed a special machine capable of tackling the challenge of inspecting small vials of serum for its customer, Fresenius Kabi, a global leader in infusion therapy and clinical nutrition. IPF provided them with a machine equipped with In-Sight vision systems from Cognex as recommended and integrated by Cognex partner, Edge Vision. In this application, In-Sight cameras were installed to inspect the levels of liquid in vials of serum as well as inspecting for impurities at a speed of 10,000 bottles an hour.

The product has a market size of approximately $ 2.4 billion for the twelve months ending September 2010 according to IMS and will be launched after June 1, 2011. Aurobindo now has a total of 134 ANDA approvals (103 final approvals and 31 tentative approvals) from USFDA.  ï»¿ Aurobindo  Pharma  Ltd has received a tentative Abbreviated   New  Drug Application approval for Venlafaxine  hydrochloride extended-release capsules 37.5 mg, 75 mg and 150 mg (ANDA No 200834) has received the final approval from the US Food & Drug Administration (USFDA). Venlafaxine hydrochloride extended-release capsules 37.5 mg, 75 mg andl50 mg are the generic equivalent of Wyeth Pharmaceuticals Inc's Effexor®XR capsules 37.5 mg, 75 mg and 150 mg. Venlafaxine hydrochloride extended-release capsules are indicated for the treatment of major depressive disorder (MDD) and falls under the neurological therapeutic category.  

Suven   Life   Sciences   Ltd, a    Hyderabad-based    bio- pharmaceutical company, has been awarded the Bio-Excellence Award   under   Bioservices category at Bangalore India Bio 2011, a biotech event held from May 4-6, 2011 at Bengaluru. Instituted by the department of IT-BT & ST, government of   Karnataka,   the   Bio- Excellence award recognizes and honours biotech leaders for their outstanding achievements in the field of science and technology. The bio-pharmaceutical company that was initiated from 1989 is committed to discovery of New Chemical Entities (NCE) for central nervous system (CNS) disorders, provide niche scientific services through drug discovery research services and conduct research collaborative projects with major pharmaceutical companies. The company has been declared as a winner of Bio-Excellence Award under Bioservices category by the jury of Industry experts constituted by Association of Biotechnology Led Enterprises. The company is engaged in drug discovery and developmental activities for CNS disorders in India, the US, Europe, more...

Novozymes Biopharma, part of Novozymes A/S, has recently unveiled its enhanced next generation albumin technology, which was developed in collaboration with the University of Oslo, Norway. Built on Novozymes’ original Albufuse platform, the proprietary Albufuse Flex technology has been designed to enable users to adapt and control the pharmacokinetics or their target protein or peptide with retained efficacy, ensuring flexibility and optimal use. "Novozymes Biopharma is thrilled to introduce Albufuse Flex to the industry. Albumin is a natural and benign carrier molecule, and by having the unique ability to decrease or increase its half-life it will help our customers to develop novel drugs with improved pharmacokinetic properties for a wide range of applications," said Dave Mead, Business Development Director, Novozymes Biopharma. Further, Prof Inger Sandlie, Group Leader, Norwegian Centre of Excellence for Immune Regulation, added, "The unique Albufuse Flex technology will result in enhanced treatment efficacy, more favourable dosing regimes more...