Pharmaceutical sector roundup: UR Associates

UR Associates has come out with its report on pharmaceutical sector. According to the research firm, domestic pharma companies need to target key fast growing pharmerging markets of Japan, Russia and Brazil, and focus on biologics as a strategy of future growth.

Malaria cases have come down by more than 40% over the last 10 years
The number of malaria cases have come down to 1.18 million in 2011 (Jan-Nov 2011) compared to 2.09 million in 2001. Malaria is an acute parasitic illness caused by Plasmodium falciparum (Pf) or Plasmodium vivax in India. Nine major species of anopheline mosquitoes transmit malaria in India. The major vector mosquito for rural malaria is Anopheles culicifacies, which is found all over the country and breeds in clean ground water collections. In urban areas, malaria is mainly transmitted by Anopheles stephensi which breeds in man-made water containers.

About 92% of malaria cases and 97% of deaths due to malaria are reported from Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Rajasthan, West Bengal and Karnataka.

The lower incidence of the disease is because of a concerted effort of the central and state governments who provide anti-malaria medicines and aid for the malaria programs, World Bank funded projects and high quality combination drugs manufactured by Indian pharma companies.

Orchid Pharma sells businesses to Hospira for $200 mn
Orchid Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals Ltd (OCPL) announced that it has divested its penicillin and penem active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) business and the API facility at Aurangabad, in Maharashtra, along with an associated process R&D infrastructure in Chennai, to Hospira for a total cash consideration of around $ 200 million (around Rs 11.12 billion). The business sold accounts for around 23% of the total sales of the company last year, according to company officials. “Given the current scenario, it is a prudent decision for Orchid to monetise these verticals and bring in cash to de-leverage its debt position and fund newer growth horizons,” he added. The business Orchid sold to Hospira now accounts for around $80 million (almost Rs 4.50 billion) of the total Rs 19 billion revenue of the company as on March 31, 2012, according to an official. The company, at present, has a total debt of around Rs 22 billion and it would repay around Rs 8 billion from the total amount from divestment, said a company official. The rest would go into current working capital requirement, company's new plans and new products, said the official.

Sun Pharma's Caraco gets USFDA nod to resume drug production
Sun Pharmaceutical Industries has received approval from US FDA for resumption of manufacturing operations at its US-based subsidiary, Caraco for two drugs after inspections of facilities early this year. Subsequent to inspections earlier this year and corrective action, the USFDA has determined Caraco to be in compliance with relevant paragraphs of the consent decree, Sun Pharma said in a statement. “During their inspection, the USFDA reviewed the certification reports for production of cardiovascular drug Carvedilol as well as anti-biotic Paramomycin and said that Caraco may resume production of only these two products, Sun Pharma said. "Manufacturing of other products from these sites, including those pending approval with the USFDA, will be subject to similar rigorous approval procedure," the company said.

Dr Reddy’s in parleys for Europe biosimilar debut
Dr Reddy's Laboratories is preparing to take Reditux, a monoclonal antibody (MAb) used in the treatment of Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, a group of cancers arising from lymphocytes, or white blood cells, to Europe. The company is engaged in discussions with European regulators on this. The original form of the drug is called Rituximab, and is sold by its innovator Roche AG. Reddy’s effort to launch the world’s first MAb “biosimilar” is expected to happen jointly with its partner Merck Seroni, a division of the US drug giant Merck. Dr Reddy’s had entered into an agreement with Merck Seroni to expand its biosimilar footprint and co-develop a portfolio targeting the biosimilar compounds in oncology.

Domestic drug company's need to focus on pharmerging mkts
Domestic pharma companies need to target key fast growing pharmerging markets of Japan, Russia and Brazil, and focus on biologics as a strategy of future growth. This is in the wake of lucrative patent opportunities dying away'' post 2015, with few blockbuster drugs losing patent protection in the US. Indian companies, he said have been selective in pursuing certain markets and have made selective investments. The fast growing market of Japan ($115-135) billion has a low generic penetration of 13%, but is growing rapidly. "Indian companies need to have strategies in place through partnerships and acquisitions for particularly Japan, Brazil and Russia".

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