Ranbaxy launches generic diabetes drug in US

Ranbaxy Laboratories said it launched a generic version of Takeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd' big-selling diabetes drug Actos in the United States.

The drug, which had annualized sales of USD 2.7 billion in the United States, is a prescription medication used with diet and exercise to control blood sugar levels in adults with type 2 diabetes.

Ranbaxy, a unit of Japan's Daiichi Sankyo Co and US drugmaker Mylan Inc have been granted a 180-day exclusivity for selling pioglitazone, the generic version of the drug, in United States.

While Watson Pharmaceuticals Inc was also one of the first to file for a generic version of Actos, it was denied shared exclusivity by the US Food and Drug Administration.

The first company that files for approval of a generic version of an off-patent drug typically gets marketing exclusivity for 180 days.

Ranbaxy will sell the full range of generic pioglitazone, which belongs to the same class of drugs as GlaxoSmithKline's Avandia, in the form of 15 mg, 30 mg and 45 mg tablets.

Shares of Ranbaxy closed at Rs 516.15 on Friday on the Mumbai stock exchange.