Pfizer To Market Biocon’s Insulin Products Globally
Filed under: Americas, Biotech, Europe, Healthcare, JVs, Marketing, Pharma
October 19, 2010, Bangalore, India: Bangalore-based biotech company Biocon has entered into an agreement with Pfizer, the world’s biggest pharma company, under which the latter will pay $200 million (about Rs 900 crore) to have exclusive rights to commercialize several of Biocon’s insulin products globally.
Under the agreement, Biocon is also eligible to receive from Pfizer an additional payment of $150 million towards further development of the drugs and to meet regulatory milestones. It would also receive payment linked to Pfizer’s sales of the insulin products.
The two companies came together on Monday to announce the agreement and said that Pfizer would have the rights to commercialize Biocon’s biosimilar versions of insulin and what are called insulin analog products – Recombinant Human Insulin, Glargine, Aspart and Lispro. An insulin analog is an altered form of insulin, different from any occurring in nature, but still available to the human body for performing the same action as human insulin in terms of glycemic control. Read more
Albert Einstein College of Medicine Receives $10.8 mn Grant to Develop Stem Cell based Therapies
Newswise — Scientists at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have received a five-year, $10.8 million grant to develop stem cell-based therapies that could be used to mitigate radiation-induced gastrointestinal syndrome – part of acute radiation syndrome (ARS) – for military personnel, first responders and the general public. The Einstein research, funded by the federal Centers for Medical Countermeasures Against Radiation, is part of a program coordinated by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
“This type of research fills a special need,” said lead investigator Chandan Guha, M.B.B.S., Ph.D., professor and vice chair of radiation oncology at Einstein and Montefiore Medical Center. “Currently, post-event strategies for responding to ARS must be carried out within the first several hours of an event, and those strategies have demonstrated only marginal protection.” At present, there are no Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved treatments that can effectively treat ARS. For first responders and others, this lack of protection against the effects of radiation could be fatal. Read more