This thread is about the updates of biotech and pharmaceutical and Hospital industry in Hyderabad:)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genome_Valley
http://www.genomevalley.in/default.htm

DRS Group forays into pharma business :banana:
Source:http://www.business-standard.com/ind...iness/96008/on


Hyderabad-based DRS Group today said it has made a foray into pharmaceutical business with the launch of its new division, DRS Labs.

The group, which has interests in transportation, logistics, supply chain management, warehousing and education, will inaugurate its first pharmaceutical manufacturing facility at Medchal in Hyderabad tomorrow.

DRS Labs will initially focus on contract manufacturing. It will have a capital of Rs 10 crore, the company said in a statement.

"There is a huge demand in the contract manufacturing space and with Indian drug manufacturing sector gaining international prominence, we felt this was the right time to launch DRS labs," DRS Group Director A K Agarwal said.

"The new division will commence its operations with contract manufacturing and we will target Rs 50 crore turnover in the first year," he added.

Its Hyderabad facility is spread over 9 acres of land and with a built-up area of 40,000 sq ft is fully equipped to manufacture over 300 tonnes of tablets, capsules, liquids and ointments per year.

Moreover, the facility will provide direct employment to 200 people and create indirect employment opportunities to over 300 people, it said.

Pharmexcil seeks global consultants
Source:http://www.livemint.com/2010/05/2722...onsul.html?h=B

The Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council (Pharmexcil) has invited global consultants to draw up a plan for a proposed India branding and export facilitation project.

The overseas project, which will be paid for by the market access initiative fund of the commerce ministry and part-financed by the council itself, envisages the setting up of drug regulatory compliance and liaison centres, warehouses, infrastructure and the hiring of staff for export promotion activities in the overseas markets.

Pharmexcil chairman Smitesh Shah said the draft should be ready in a couple of months as the consultants will be shortlisted soon.

The proposal, which is the first of its kind by an Indian export promotion council, has also been approved in principle by the commerce ministry, he said.

In the first phase of the project, the overseas centres will be set up in five countries—the US, the UK, Japan, Russia and Nigeria. It will be expanded to a few other emerging markets later.

“These five markets constitute a significant part of India’s drug exports. The plan to set up common facilities abroad is to help bring down export costs, and also to develop markets, especially for drug makers entering newly to these geographies,” said Shah. “We have to be closer to the markets where we can sell our capabilities.”

The main objective of this big investment is to make exporters familiar with target markets. The overseas centres will have special cells to help Indian companies handle regulatory compliance issues, customs documentation and sales and distribution activities along with warehousing facilities, he said.

Pharmexcil, set up to promote drug exports from the country, is headquartered in Hyderabad and has regional offices in Mumbai, New Delhi and Ahmedabad.

Indian Immunologicals to launch 4 vaccines in a yr

Source:http://www.ptinews.com/news/678356_I...ccines-in-a-yr
Immunologicals Ltd, a subsidiary of National Dairy Development Board, today said it will launch four vaccines in the next one year and will invest Rs 150 crore to set up a new manufacturing facility in Hyderabad.
"The new facility will come up by the middle of next year near Hyderabad in an area of 50 acres and will produce both animal and human vaccines," Indian Immunologicals Ltd(IIL) Managing Director K V Balasubramaniam said.

At present, the company has two vaccine manufacturing units in Ooty and Hyderabad.:cheers:

Indian Immunologicals embarks on greenfield project with Rs 150 cr investment
Source:http://www.pharmabiz.com/article/det...740&sectionid=


In a major effort to expand its vaccine portfolio, the Hyderabad-based Indian Immunologicals Limited, a subsidiary of the National Dairy Development Board has invested Rs 150 crore for a Greenfield project coming up on 50-acres at the Karkapatla Bio-Tech phase-III Genome Valley in Hyderabad.
The new project will augment the production capacity of vaccines for human and animal healthcare. The project will be completed in three phases.

The Rs 261 crore company is known for its rabies vaccine Abhayrab, which is its flagship brand generating Rs 102 crore, Abhay-Vac 3 for Measles Mumps Rubella and Elovac B are among the key products in the human health segment. Its animal healthcare range comprises 27 products, of which 10 are biologicals and the remaining are antibiotics, antihelminthics(worm expulsion drugs), NSAIDs and anti parasitics.

AP, MP too lure BT cos
Source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/...o-lure-bt.html

While Karnataka is busy playing host to the best of the lot in biotechnology sector at its three-day flagship event in the City, Madhya Pradesh (MP) and its neighbour Andhra Pradesh (AP) are doing their best to woo investors.


With revenue from biotech sector at around $3 billion in 2010 and ancillary industries $1 billion acording to Association of Biotechnology Led Enterprises (Able) study, it offers huge opportunities, representatives from both the states told Deccan Herald.

While, Andhra Pradesh is already home to several BT firms like GVK Bio Sciences, Nectra Therapeutics, Aptuit Laurus, Helvetica Industries, Matrix Laboratories et al, and boasts of Genome Valley, Hyderabad, IKP Knowledge Park and other projects, Madhya Pradesh is showcasing its upcoming BT park in Indore and the special packages for the sector.

The annual flagship event BioAsia: The Global Bio Business Forum, held in Hyderabad, has completed seven successful years and is hunting for investors and sponsors for its eighth edition scheduled in February 2011.

According sources from Federation of Asian Biotech Associations (Faba), biotech firm Lonza is bringing in about Rs 1,000 crore investment into AP, while French firm Rennaisance is setting up an anti-cancer drug facility slated:cheers:

^^@rizwan3 Thanks for taking the initiative... Been planning to do this for some time now..:)

BIOTECH Center's Of Excellence in HYDERABAD

1.Center For Cellular and Molecular Biology(CCMB)
(http://www.ccmb.res.in/)
2.Centre for DNA Fingerprinting & Diagnostics (CDFD (http://www.cdfd.org.in/))

3.International Crops Research Institute for the
Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT (http://www.icrisat.org/))

4.Acharya NG Ranga Agricultural University(ANGRAU (http://www.angrau.net/))

5.Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT (http://www.iictindia.org/))

6.University of Hyderabad (UoH (http://www.uohyd.ernet.in/))
http://img12.imageshack.us/img12/1646/icicici.png
Companies in ICICI Knowledge Park(IKP (http://www.iciciknowledgepark.com/))

Advanta Biotech- agribiotech
Aptuit Laurus- process development
CJ Pharma Research
Diacel Chemicals
DuPont
EBR Pharma
Indigene Pharma
i-Trace Nanotech
ITW Perfomance Polymers
JK AgriGenetics
NEKTAR therapeutics
Onan Biotech
Ortin Biotech
Regain Biotechnology
Several other Contract Research firms as well
http://img697.imageshack.us/img697/8474/icid.jpg
Dupont has its India R&D center in ICICI Knowledge Park on about 15 acres and focusses on Polymers, AgriBiotech, Nanotechnology Reserach

IKP Knowledge Park has a Life Science Incubator (LSI)to encourage and nurture startup companies and spin offs in pharmaceutical and biotechnology related areas with the support of National Science and Technology Entrepreneurship Development Board (NSTEDB) of Dept. of Science and Technology (DST) Government of India.

Also another highlight in Hyderabad attracting R&D is APTDC (http://www.aptdc.com/). Andhra Pradesh Technology Development And Promotion Center that helps in IPR Fillings

http://img692.imageshack.us/img692/8558/genomepic.gif
GENOME VALLEY

India's first and only state-of-the-art biotech cluster providing world-class infrastructure to over 100 biotech companies. Spread over 600 sq. kms, the Genome Valley is a natural cluster for biotech research, training, collaboration and manufacturing activities.


IKP Knowledge Park is located in a 200 acre campus in the heart of Genome Valley. Hyderabad. This is the first state-of-the-art biotech cluster in India for life sciences research, training, collaboration and manufacturing activities. Spread over 600 sq. kms. around the IKP Knowledge Park, the SP Biotech Park and the ICRISAT Agri-business Incubator, the Genome Valley provides world-class infrastructure facilities to over 100 biotech companies. A large number of R&D and academic institutions in and around the biotech cluster contribute to the knowledge and talent pool.


BIOASIA

Asia’s most Prestigious and Widely attended Bio Business Event. Organised by FABA(Federation of Asian Biotech Assosciations) in assosciation with AIBA(All India Biotech Assosciation) Govt of AP and CII.

SHAPOORJI PALLONJI BIOTECH PARK (http://www.spbp.co.in/home.shtml)

photo copyright Divya Bhat
http://img90.imageshack.us/img90/5078/spbiotechparkdivyabhateditedyf0.jpg
The Shapoorji Pallonji Biotech Park (SPBP) is spread over 300 acres near Hyderabad, India and is the first of its kind in the country. It is the hub of Genome Valley, India’s first state of the art biotech cluster for life science research, training and manufacturing activities.

Companies currently here:


Albany Molecular Research Centre Pvt. Ltd.
Avesthagen
Biogenex
Biomax
Genotex
Indigen
Issar Pharma
KCP Biotech
TATA Chemicals
Vimta Labs

Plans For Phase II
http://img191.imageshack.us/img191/4657/artistimpressionsinglet.jpg
http://img69.imageshack.us/img69/7448/artistimpressionalltowe.jpg

Companies Setting Up their centres in the current 1.2 million s.ft Phase II expansion

Uni-Sankyo
ITC
Symphony
Sandor
Biological E. among others
Phase I has 600000 sft

CARE Hospitals Acquires Da Vinci Robot @ Rs 10 crores (http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_hyderabad-hospital-aquires-surgical-robot_1390348)

http://img88.imageshack.us/img88/5808/davinci.jpg
Robot-assisted surgeries will soon be performed in Hyderabad as city-based Care Hospital has acquired the Da Vinci surgical robot, a mechanical arm which carries out orders with "millimeter precision".

It advances surgical precision and in cardiac, urological, gastro-intestinal and gynaec surgeries. Its advantages also include fast healing and decrease in human error during operations, Kapoor said.

[QUOTE=Prodigist;58124191]SHAPOORJI PALLONJI BIOTECH PARK (http://www.spbp.co.in/home.shtml)
[SIZE="1"]

http://img90.imageshack.us/img90/5078/spbiotechparkdivyabhateditedyf0.jpg

Plans For Phase II
http://img191.imageshack.us/img191/4657/artistimpressionsinglet.jpg
http://img69.imageshack.us/img69/7448/artistimpressionalltowe.jpg


U are Very Much Welcomed Bhai. :tyty::okay:
Feels GoOd..

Biotech sector may witness Euro 200 mn investment

Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD: Representatives of Biogenesis, the Hyderabad Health Cluster and Provence Promotion Economic Development Agency of France, have expressed confidence that soon the bio-technology sector would see an investment of Euro 200 million.

At a press conference here on Sunday, Olivier Blin of Biogenesis and Mathieu Viz from the French Agency, respectively said they were visiting the city following the successful conduct of ‘Bio-Asia' in February, where several companies from France had expressed interest to set up facilities here.:cheers:

They were meeting several interested persons/companies aimed at boosting the cluster here and also increasing bilateral trade and investment, said Prof. Olivier.

The Provence Partnership by the French Agency would be ideal for promotion of life sciences. The Provence was the fastest-growing region in France and, as a gateway to mainland Europe, was a strategic destination.

Mr. Viz said the Provence was known for hosting academic laboratories, like Luminy Immunology Centre and Oncology Research Institution of Pacli Calmettes, one of the most focussed networks of hospital/university programmes and clinical trials in France.

CIPLA Plans To Invest In a Manufacturing Plant (http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/cipla-unveils-rs-300-cr-plan-to-foray-into-biosimilar-space/398375/)

The JV partners had plans to invest over Rs 600 crore to create manufacturing facilities at Bangalore and Hyderabad to manufacture these drugs, Villoo Morawala Patell, chairman and managing director of Avesthagen had told Business Standard two years ago.

@rizwan : Can u please post the link of the article along.. And try to limit the parts of the article to whatever is relevant..:)

Nuziveedu Seeds, 4th largest biotech firm in India’
Andhra Business Bureau

HYDERABAD: City-based Nuziveedu Seeds Limited emerged as fourth largest biotech firm India in terms of income while Benguluru-based Biocon topped the list with the total revenues of Rs 1,180 crore for the last fiscal, according to ABLE-BioSpectrum survey.

This 8th annual survey conducted by Association of Biotechnology Led Enterprises (ABLE) and BioSpectrum, a monthly journal, stated that Nuziveedi Seeds, the largest hybrid seed company in the country, sold seven million packets of Bt cotton seeds, which accounted for 36 per cent market last fiscal. It also retained number one position as rice seed supplier.

Biotech firms Serum Institute and Panacea were at 2nd and 3rd positions while the India’s biotech industry grew by 17 per cent during 2009-10 to $3 billion. Another city-based firm Shantha Biotech came at 9.

According to the survey, which was based on 150 biotech firms in the country, south India continues to remain India’s largest biotech cluster in terms of the number of companies. The region is home top 172 biotech companies, which have posted revenues of Rs 5,537.68 crore last fiscal, which constitutes 39 per cent of the overall revenues.

Western India, though home to 137 companies, continued to dominate India’s biotech industry with 46 per cent share in the overall revenues of Rs. 14,199 crore. The 137 companies in the region clocked Rs. 6,631 crore during the year increasing the region’s share in the overall revenues by 3 per cent over 2008-09, thus gaining a lead of 6 per cent over South.

Mumbai outpaced Benguluru in biotech space and emerged as India’s top biotech city in terms of revenue as it generated Rs 200 more income from this crucial sector than the garden city.

This thread is about the updates of biotech and pharmaceutical and Hospital industry in Hyderabad:)

AP pips B'lore in Biocon deal
TNN, Feb 17, 2007, 02.26am IST

Article
Comments




HYDERABAD: The IT City has just lost another project to Andhra Pradesh. Biocon has decided to set up a Rs 1,000-crore manufacturing facility at Jawahar Pharma City, a special economic zone (SEZ) near Visakhapatnam.

Announcing this, Biocon chairman and managing director Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw said the company would become one of the major anchor investors in the SEZ.

The SEZ is being developed by Ramkey group. Shaw who was in AP to participate in the Bio-Asia conference told TOI, "Karnataka does not provide any infrastructural support for industries such as ours, while the Andhra Pradesh government is keen to do so. In Bangalore, the IT and hardware industries get all support."

A 50-acre spread has been allotted for the same by chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy, who handed over the allotment letter to Shaw on Friday.

The company is also taking a 10-acre land in a biotech SEZ in Hyderabad to be developed by Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Company.

Shanta Bio is the anchor client for this SEZ. The Vizag SEZ has a state-of-the-art effluent treatment plant with marine discharge facility.

AP has promised Biocon uninterrupted power and water supply. "Karnataka does not seem to be aware of the needs of our industry. Effluent treatment is expensive; captive power generation is also very costly. The state has become too expensive. Hence,we have thought of an alternative location for our second facility in India,"she said.

Biocon has a huge R&D facility in Bangalore. "We have decided to carry out only research activities at our Bangalore facility.

All manufacturing-related work will be done at Vizag,"she said. AP has been keen to get Shaw to invest in the state ever since it realised that the biotech major is unhappy over the lack of infrastructural support in Bangalore.

According to sources in Pharma City, Biocon is likely to invest Rs 700 crore in the first phase,which is likely to completed within one year.

"The manufacturing facility will be catering to the Biocon's global needs. It'll also be one of the biggest facilities for the company. The unit will employ about 2,000 people when it is fully operational,"Pharma City chief executive Eswar Reddy told TOI. :lol:

Model N to invest $25 mn in Hyderabad facility
BS Reporter / Chennai/ Hyderabad June 30, 2010, 0:58 IST

Model N Inc, a Silicon Valley-based revenue management solutions provider, will be investing $25 million (approximately Rs 117 crore) in its India operations at Hyderabad over the next three years, according to Zack Rinat, its founder and chief executive officer.

Announcing the launch of its Hyderabad centre on Tuesday, the company’s third with the other two located at Redwood Shores in the US and London, Rinat said the centre at present housed 105 professionals, which would be scaled up to 250 by the end of September 2011. The privately-held company follows the October-September financial year.


“Our decision to establish our Asia headquarters in Andhra Pradesh was largely driven by chief minister K Rosaiah’s vision :lol:for the region to become a hub for the pharmaceutical and high-tech industries,” he added.

The Hyderabad centre will be engaged in product development, professional services, application support, product management, quality assurance, customer support and documentation, with primary focus on the pharmaceutical, life sciences and high-tech marketplace.

Model N currently has a revenue management suite comprising 14 applications, and has over 40,000 end users in the high-tech space. Talking about revenue management, Rinat said for every $1 billion of revenues, companies leave anywhere between $40 million and $120 million on the table.

“India is projected to be the 10th largest pharmaceutical market by 2015, and is set to be positioned among the top five markets with a $20-billion size in absolute growth terms by then,” he said, adding that the company was expecting the Asia-Pacific region to contribute 20 per cent to its global revenues over a period of time.:cheers:

Now, a brain pacemaker to reduce symptoms of Parkinson's disease (http://www.hindu.com/2010/07/22/stories/2010072256692200.htm)

http://www.hindu.com/2010/07/22/images/2010072256692201.jpg
HYDERABAD: Deep brain stimulation, a complicated surgery also known as the pacemaker for the brain, is fast evolving into a reliable therapy for Parkinson's disease.


A team of neurosurgeons of the Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS) has managed to achieve an improvement of 80 per cent in the condition of patients crippled by Parkinson's.


The team has conducted close to 90 successful surgeries, helping patients lead a life of independence and dignity. While pacemakers for the brain may not cure Parkinson's, neurologists say the therapy has drastically reduced the symptoms and managed to improve the quality of life.
Deep brain stimulation involves placing electrodes in the ‘sub-thalamus' region of the brain. The electrodes are connected to a pacemaker (Implantable Pulse Generator) which sends electrical signals to the brain to stimulate its activity.


The pacemaker is placed just below the collar bone, and runs on a battery, which has a shelf life of five years. Doctors programme the pacemaker to deliver appropriate stimulation to the brain.


(http://www.hindu.com/2010/07/22/stories/2010072256692200.htm)

Narayana Hrudayalaya plans seven more health cities


Chief Minister inaugurates 500-bed multi-speciality hospital at Jeedimetla:cheers:

HYDERABAD: The Bangalore headquartered Narayana Hrudayalaya Hospitals with presence in seven cities, including Hyderabad, will open hospitals in seven more cities in the next two or three years.

After Chief Minister K. Rosaiah formally inaugurated the 500-bed Narayana Hrudayalaya-Malla Reddy multi-speciality Hospital at Jeedimetla on Tuesday, Dr. Devi Shetty, Group Chairman, said their aim was to provide 30,000 hospital beds in the next seven years across the country.:banana:

The Rs.100 crore first phase of hospital where 100 heart surgeries were performed in the last four months would eventually be developed into a 5,000-bed health city.:banana:

“Our objective is to develop health cities with 2,000 to 5,000 beds to address the requirement of 1.2 billion nation,” he said.:)

Hi-tech health care

Dr. Devi Shetty, who pioneered the Yeshaswini micro health insurance scheme for farmers in Karnataka, appreciated the State government's Rajiv Arogyasri health insurance. With health insurance schemes, it was possible to provide hi-tech health care to masses, he asserted.

Infosys Technologies Chairman and Chief Mentor Narayanamurthy, who had set up venture capital fund Catamaran with plans to help entrepreneurs in healthcare apart from other sectors, said that despite India's great growth story, lack of access to health and education to majority population remained a serious concern.

:cheers:

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2010/07/30/stories/2010073053343100.htm
Bulk drug research centre to come up at NIPER-Hyderabad

Hyderabad, July 29

The Government will be setting up a National Centre for Research and Development in Bulk Drugs at National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education & Research (NIPER), Hyderabad.:banana:

This was announced by Mr Ashok Kumar, Secretary, Department of Pharmaceuticals, Government of India, while addressing the students of NIPER at its first convocation ceremony here on Thursday.

“Action has already been initiated to establish the centre. On completion of the entire project, I am confident that Hyderabad will have a centre which will provide leadership in pharmaceutical sciences and other related areas,” the official said.:cheers:

Dr Ahmed Kamal, Project Director, NIPER-Hyderabad said that in addition to Master of Science (Pharma) which is being offered by the institute at present, certificate programmes in intellectual property, technology management, drug discovery, development and pre-clinical research would be offered soon.:)

“A large number of our students have been able to secure placement in reputed industries and research establishments,” he added.:banana:

About 96 students of the first and second batch of MS (Pharma) were given away certificates in the convocation.:cheers:

Hip replacement facility available at Hyderabad hospital

Hyderabad-based Mediciti Hospitals, India's first facility to have excelled incomputer navigated hip replacement, is hosting the first structured training course on Hip Arthroplastywith the aim of educating surgeons for this procedure.

At a press conference in Hyderabad, Dr Ramesh Chandra from Mediciti Orthopedics department said that with cutting edge medicines and surgery, high bearing hip replacements will help people lead productive lives.

Mediciti is performing computer navigated hip replacements with an aim to achieve perfection, he said.

Normally surgeons make an error of 17% in alignments during hip transplants, but by using the computer-aidednavigated procedure doctors are ableto achieve 98% perfection and only 2% error, he said.

The navigation also minimizes the complications. Mediciti is the first hospital in India to do hip transplants using computer aided navigation. The cost for this type of surgery is a little more than the conventional surgery and depends on the transplants being used, Chandra said.

Mediciti is the only hospital to have 20 micron filters and the air gets filtered twenty times per hour which means lesser infections.

The conference will perform five live surgeries for the benefit of doctors and 150 to 200 doctors from across India are participating in this conference.:cheers:

Mediciti is the first Aesculap teaching academy for joint replacement in India.Aesculap academies are rated by Frost and Sullivan as being the premier training institutes for super specialists. Medicit hospitals Orthopedics department has collaborated with the Aesculap academy to bring the program to India.:banana:

Eminent surgeons from Germany and leading Indian facilities including the AIIMS of Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai and Chennai
will form the panel of experts in guiding the interactive sessions during the conference.:)

R&D centre in bulk drugs to come up in City

HYDERABAD: The union ministry of chemicals & fertilizers on Thursday said it will set up a national centre for research and development in bulk drugs with an estimated investment of Rs 45 crore. The proposed centre, which will come up at the National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER) campus in Hyderabad is likely to provide leadership in pharmaceutical sciences and other related areas.

“The ministry is resolutely working towards building up basic support systems to create the enabling environment for R&D activities by creating infrastructure as well as mechanisms,’’ said Ashok Kumar, secretary, Department of Pharmaceuticals.

Addressing the gathering at the first convocation of NIPER, he said, “The government has set up six new NIPERs under the ammended NIPER Act 1998. These centres of excellence offer courses in higher education, research and development in pharmaceutical sciences.” Currently NIPER’s centres are located in Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Hajipur, Kolkata, Guwahati and Rae Bareli.

NIPER Hyderabad was set up as part of the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) India.

Emphasising the significance of pharmaceutical science and research in the field of modern medical science, Dr Seyed E Hasnain, vice chancellor, University of Hyderabad, said students should contribute towards nation-building in the form of research and development.
:cheers:

State to build new complex to house OGH


State-of-the-art complex to be constructed at a cost of Rs. 200 :banana:crore

It will be built on the vacant land behind the existing hospital

The eight-storeyed building will be completed in three years

HYDERABAD: The State government has decided to take up construction of a state-of-the-art complex for housing the Osmania General Hospital with an estimated Rs. 200 crore.

The construction of the new complex, a proposed eight-storeyed building that could be scaled up depending on the requirement, would be taken up in the vacant land available behind the existing hospital. It will be completed in three years.

Chief Minister K. Rosaiah who convened a meeting of the Health Department officials on Sunday, gave green signal for construction of the new complex. The government gave its nod for construction of another new building at Koti to house the office of the Director of Medical Education and other offices presently located in old structures at an estimated Rs. 60 crore in the open place available on the same premises.

Healthcare city to come up near Hi-Tec City

HYDERABAD: A healthcare city with world class facilities will come up near Hi-Tec City.:banana:

US-based Alexandria Inc, will develop the healthcare city on five acres land with multispeciality hospitals, clinics and other allied medical facilities at Khanamet village in Serilingampally mandal in the city.

Officials said Alexandria Inc has recently entered into an agreement with the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority for the five acre land, which was given at the rate of Rs 10 crore per acre.

HMDA has already earmarked about 200 acres MedTech Valley at Jawaharnagar area. Two companies have shown interest to establish their units. But Alaxandria Inc wanted land near Hi-Tec City where it purchased land from the urban development authority.

"The civil works will begin within three months and will be completed in two years. The promoter has already begun the process to award construction works to developers," a representative of the group told TOI.

A draft plan for the healthcare city has been prepared by Alexandria Equities Management (India) Pvt Ltd. According to the report, Indian healthcare market was about $38 billion and is expected to increase 15 per cent every year.:cheers:

The healthcare city is being developed by Alexandria Inc on the lines of Dubai healthcare city, which is spread over 23.1 million square feet.:)

DuPont India bets big on agri, auto, biotech businesses


DuPont India aims to earn a billion dollar revenue by 2012-13 riding on agriculture, automotive and industrial biotechnology business in the country, Balvinder Singh Kalsi, president, south Asia, DuPont, said.

Kalsi told Financial Chronicle here on Monday that DuPont India proposed to partner premier research organisations like the Indian Council for Agricultural Research (ICAR) and Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), under PPP programme to augment agriculture production in India.

He said the company would more than double the scientist headcount at its Hyderabad based DuPont Knowledge Centre over the next three year period to develop new range of products for the domestic market primarily in agriculture business vertical as also feed global research projects for new products for the diversified businesses of the company. The company has 300 scientists at its facility in Hyderabad.:banana:

Kalsi said the firm, which earned $ 500 million revenue here last year, intended to log about $ 600 million plus this year, driving closer to the target to feature India as among the top five global markets for the diversified American multinational. It currently ranks tenth in the DuPont global ranking.

He said: “We have approached the government for collaboration with its security agencies for supply of our ballistic range of products. We are in talks but there are certain clearances required.” He added “our protection technologies offer materials and solutions to the military, para-military, industrial workers etc, while our safety resources unit works with clients like Reliance and the Tata group to upgrade the safety standards in their facilities to world-class levels.”

He said over the next three years as part of the plan to build India into the top five global markets the company would ramp up its two global centres at Hyderabad: DuPont Knowledge Centre, which focuses on science and technology, product development, working closely with customers bringing out new products and applications for India and other developing markets, working on joint projects for global research.

:cheers:

Apollo Hospitals to set up stem cell facility

HYDERABAD: Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Ltd., is focusing on stem cell therapy. The company, tied up with USbased StemCyte today and would together invest $15 million to set up a stem cell facility besides conducting research development activities at its Hyderabad centre.

Stem cells can be sourced from umbilical cord blood and bone marrow and are used in medical therapies. They can be grown and transformed into specialised cells for future therapies.

"The idea is to undertake intensive research and provide personalised medicine in future for patients. It's a 50:50 joint venture and will carry out research in several areas including chronic stroke, spinal cord injury and muscular dystrophy," said Dr Pratap C Reddy, Chairman, Apollo Hospitals Group.

While phase I involves $15 million, both companies would pump in capital as required.

The upcoming facility, which will focus on stem cell culturing, trials and research, will be the fourth such unit for StemCyte. It currently has three facilities, one each in the US, HongKong and South Korea. Apollo also said it has also tied up with Quintiles to start clinical trials unit at Apollo Health City in Hyderabad. It had earlier announced $10 million investment in this venture. The company is waiting for regulatory approvals to conduct first in human (FIH) studies.

Apollo is also conducting a study to assess the reasons for widespread CardioVascular Diseases (CVDs) in India. "Many young patients these days are prone to cardiac arrests. We want to assess why Indians are predisposed to cardiovascular diseases at an younger age," said Reddy adding that Apollo performed 9,800 cardiac surgeries last year alone. The hospital chain is working with the Institute of Genetic Engineering and Integrative Biology and National Institute of Biomedical Genomics in this regard. As part of its 2014 growth strategy, Apollo will invest Rs 2,200 crore to create 3,000 new beds.

Medtech Valley in city soon


HMDA project on medical devices, research

1,200 acres earmarked near Shameerpet

Project also to get connectivity with the Outer Ring Road:banana:

HYDERABAD: As part of its infrastructure development initiative, the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) has taken up a major project in the form of a world-class cluster that would be engaged in manufacture of medical devices and related equipment.

Called ‘Medtech Valley' and located at Jawahar Nagar, the project is to shape as country's first integrated medical devices cluster and also be a major centre for research and development apart from manufacture of the medical devices and equipment.

A site of around 1,200 acres has been earmarked near Shameerpet for the project with the first phase taken up in 200 acres. Adjacent to BITS (Pilani) Hyderabad campus and in close proximity to the Genome Valley, the project is also to get connectivity with the Outer Ring Road.:banana:

The external infrastructure for Medtech Valley being taken up include development of road network at Rs.10 crore, water supply scheme at Rs.5 crore, power supply and street lighting at a cost of Rs.3 crore apart from a Disaster Management Centre at Rs.2 crore while residential level development is to be by Rajiv Swagruha.

It is also proposed to establish a common utility block (CUB) which will include service facility for training personnel to repair, maintain, commission and refurbish the advanced equipment and instruments.

The broad categories for the medical devices include material science and biomaterials, cardiovascular and diabetes, orthopaedics, ophthalmology, oncology, neurology and diagnostics and imaging. The segmentation of the market has pacemakers, defibrillators, catheters and valves, joint replacement such as plates, nails, dynamic hip screw, limb deformity correction devices, intra-ocular lens, newer range of genetic diagnostic kits, radiology, ultrasound, CT, MRI and others.

According to the broad estimates available with the HMDA, the global medical devices market in the year 2008 has been estimated at $220 billion.:cheers:

Dr Reddy's plans to spend Rs 1,600 cr for capacity expansion in two years
Hyderabad September 11, 2010, 1:01 IST

Drug maker Dr Reddy’s Laboratories (DRL) has lined up investments worth around Rs 1,600 crore over the next two years for capacity expansion and building new capabilities.

The company feels these investments will help it meet future growth requirements and become a $3-billion company by 2013.

“We will be investing Rs 150 crore in the biologics segment and $150 million (over Rs 700 crore) every year for the next two years in global generics and pharmaceutical services and active ingredients (PSAI),” Satish Reddy, managing director and chief operating officer of the Hyderabad-based company, told Business Standard.

Reddy said DRL had been steadily building capabilities and capacities over the years, besides improving productivity and reducing costs. The capital expenditure is based on the company’s business plans for the next three-four years.

Satish ReddyDRL is betting big on follow-on biologics, or biosimilars, which, according to Reddy, presents a huge opportunity for the company. Biosimilars are products that are marketed after expiration of patents and claim to have similar properties to the existing biologic products.

“We are very well positioned in terms of developing biosimilar products and commercialising them,” Reddy said, adding that Reditux, launched three years ago, was still the only biosimilar monoclonal antibody.:)

Russia-India biotech network soon

The first phase of the network will be functional by October

Eighth edition of BioAsia 2011 to be held from February 21 to 24

HYDERABAD: An exclusive online platform to facilitate collaboration and networking between stakeholders of Russian and Indian biotech sectors was announced by the Chief Minister K. Rosaiah here on Tuesday.

Called as the Russia India Biotech Network (RIBN), it was jointly developed by the Federation of Asian Biotech Associations (FABA) and Russian Biotech Association. It would gradually be opened to other countries.

The platform would be useful for bio and pharma companies, scientists, university students of the two countries exploring new technology, both for both business and science. The concept was mooted during BioAsia-2010 conference held here in February this year. The first phase of the platform would be functional by October and become fully operational during BioAsia 2011. Mr. Rosaiah said that the State recognising the importance of biotech in India's knowledge economy, succeeded in providing the right environment, infrastructure and encouragement to leading biotech companies to establish their units in the city's Biotech Park, Genome Valley.

Mr. Vyacheslav I Trubnikov, Ambassador Extraordinary, said decades ago India sought Russian technology and expertise for its steel plants. It was now it was the turn of Russia to learn from India's experience in biotechnology.

The Chief Minister also officially announced that the eighth edition of BioAsia 2011 will be held from February 21 to 24 here. The event would feature multi-track conferences on medicine, agriculture and health, with focus on early diagnosis of cancer, increasing agriculture productivity and high quality and low cost vaccines and medicines. Tradeshows, presentation of awards including Dr. YSR BioAsia Innovation Award for young scientist aged below 35 would also mark the event.

Dr. B. S. Bajaj, convener, BioAsia 2011, said the global event would focus on business development between Indian and foreign companies. In the last edition organised here, 4,000 delegates from 21 countries took part. It also recorded 800 onsite B2B meetings and featured about 160 companies. The next year's event would be even bigger. Later Raif Vasilov, CEO, Russian Bio-industry Association and B. S. Bajaj, secretary, FABA, exchanged the agreement on Russia-India Biotech Network in the presence of Mr. Rosaiah.
:)

Eco management vital in pharma sector: Rosaiah

Mr K. Rosaiah

Hyderabad, Sept. 17

The Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister, Mr K. Rosaiah, on Friday said environmental management was the major challenge for the growth and development of pharma sector in the country and the State.

He said that the State pharma exports are expected to grow by about per cent this year.:banana:

Addressing the national seminar on Indian Pharma Industry here today, the Chief Minister said the State Government with the assistance of the Centre is promoting a pharma cluster near Hyderabad at a project cost of Rs 66 crore to upgrade the existing infrastructure at Jeedimatla and Pashamylaram industrial estates which are the prominent for pharma production in the country.

In order to support the pharma sector with necessary human resources, the State has promoted 255 pharma colleges with an annual intake of 15,240 students.

In addition, the National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER) has been set up in Hyderabad with an outlay of Rs 180 crore to offer post graduate courses and research programmes for pharma sector.
:cheers:

Earth Hospital plans expansion using franchisee route

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2010/09/20/images/2010092051821301.jpg

Healing touch: The Chairman of Earth Hospital group, Mr Anish M. Kurias, in Hyderabad on Sunday . —

Hyderabad, Sept. 19

Earth Hospital, a chain of multi-speciality Ayurvedic hospitals, today opened its first facility in Jubilee Hills in Hyderabad and outlined plans to commission a network of hospitals through the franchisee route.

After inaugurating the hospital today, the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister, Mr K. Rosaiah, said that the years of Ayurvedic learning is very useful in contemporary treatments and has the potential to eradicate diseases from its roots.

Even now, there is a section of society which is dependent on Ayurvedic treatments.

He felt that there is a need to popularise what the traditional Indian methodologies could do in treatment of diseases. In a world dominated by modern-day medicine, he said that the team that has put together this facility needs to be complimented.

The Chairman of Earth Hospital group, Dr Anish M. Kurias, said the hospital chain, which has been developed over the years, now currently has five of them in Karnataka and this is the sixth in the network. “We plan to add more hospitals in Andhra Pradesh, and are also considering entering into other States—Tamil Nadu and Gujarat through the franchisee route,” he said.

The facility at Hyderabad has 35 doctors and provides a wide range of therapies for chronic disorders, skin ailments, diabetes and joint pains. The learning gathered through the ages is effectively used to address current day problems, he added.
:cheers:

hello this is lizz i really by joining your site

Investments in biotechnology sector on the anvil


HYDERABAD: The State capital is set to receive several investments in the biotechnology area in the coming months.
:banana:

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will lay the foundation stone for the National Institute of Animal Biotechnology, being taken up at a cost of Rs. 250 crore, on October 19. This will be followed by the setting up of animal resource centre with an estimated Rs. 400 crore by the Indian Council for Medical Research in the land allocated to it. Alexandria Real Estate India Pvt Limited has announced its plans to invest Rs. 1,000 crore for setting up an incubation centre and a ready-to-occupy lab space, Alexandria Innovation Centre, at the Genome Valley.

Thriving

Biotechnology Industry Organisation executive vice-president Alan F. Eisenberg has announced that the organisation had decided to hold its annual event BIO, the world's largest biotech-pharma trade event in Hyderabad for the next four years. “Biotechnology industry which grew from US $ million to US $ 3 billion in the past few years is thriving in India,” Mr. Eisenberg said.

Briefing reporters on the conclusion of this year's edition of BIO, held for the first time in Hyderabad, he said the biotech industry, considered to be US and Europe-centric, was now clamouring to meet with the Indian industry owing to the rapid strides witnessed here. Representatives of over 200 reputed firms participated in the event. Principal Secretary, Industries, B.P. Acharya, said the event was aimed at exposing the local industry to international collaborations and it featured visits of the delegates to Genome Valley and other biotech parks.
:cheers:

AP sees big boost to biotech sector

PM to lay stone for Rs 250-cr animal biotech institute.

Hyderabad, Sept.22

The Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, is set to lay the foundation stone on October 19 for the Rs 250-crore National Institute of Animal Biotechnology coming up in the University of Hyderabad campus here, according to Mr B.P. Acharya, Principal Secretary, Industries and Commerce, Government of Andhra Pradesh.

Mr Acharya said this is just one of several in a chain of investments that will provide significant boost to the biotechnology sector in the State.

Addressing a press conference along with Mr Alan F. Eisenberg, Vice-President, Biotechnology Industry Organisation (BIO), here on Wednesday, Mr Acharya said that Alexandria Real Estate India has decided to invest Rs 1,000 crore in setting up an incubation centre and ready-to-occupy lab space in Genome Valley — The Alexandra Innovation Centre. Mr Acharya said the Indian Council of Medical Research is in the process of setting up an Animal Resource Centre with an investment of Rs 400 crore in the Genome valley, to make it a very intensive biotechnology hub in the country.

The principal secretary said that over 200 companies are currently operating in the Genome Valley cluster in the State and there have been a series of events centred around biotechnology and pharma sector in the last few days in Hyderabad, reflecting growing interest in the country and the State.

Hyderabad as hub

Mr Eisenberg said BIO, representing global biotechnology companies, has decided to make Hyderabad a venue for BIO in India over the next four years. Members of BIO, which has over 20,000 representatives across the globe, will play a role in the growth of biotechnology industry in partnership with Indian companies.:cheers:

He said the biotechnology industry in the country has grown from $700 million in 2003 to about $4 billion, reflecting heightened interest and the potential the sector holds.

BIO is aimed at facilitating local industry players to partner their counterparts and explore opportunities to work collaboratively. Business-to-business interaction continues to be the main focus of the BIO event. Over 220 firms from across the world participated in the event hosted here.:banana:

He also expressed hope that the interactions between companies would pave the way for more collaborations, possibly leading to new investments.

Dr Sathya Dash, Chief Operating Officer of Association of Biotechnology-Led Enterprises, said that the infrastructure created in Hyderabad will help attract more investments into the State from the biotech sector players.
:cheers:

Lonza to invest in Genome Valley

HYDERABAD: Switzerland-headquartered Lonza AG, a global biopharma company, will invest Rs.250 crore in a phased manner in its project at the Genome Valley here.

This was indicated by its CEO Stefan Borgas in his key-note address at the Pharma CEOs conclave which concluded here on Friday.

Principal Secretary, Industries, B. P. Acharya, said in a press release later that the ground-breaking for the project is planned to be held during Bio Asia 2011 to be held from February 21. Land for the project was allotted by APIIC in June last year in the Biotech Park, phase-II.

Chief Minister K. Rosaiah, who gave away the export awards of Pharmaexcil, complimented Mr. Borgas for his decision to invest in Genome Valley.

He announced that a new cluster called ‘Medtech Valley' is coming up at Jawaharnagar near Genome Valley for medical devices and equipment manufacturing industries.

Mr. Rosaiah presented 12 Outstanding Export Performance Awards. Ranbaxy Laboraories Limited, Cadila Healthcare, Aurobindo Pharma and Matrix Laboratories were among the companies which bagged Awards.
:cheers:

World-class BMT unit in city

Facility for thalassemia patients to come up in six months

Italian doctors to visit city to identify hospitals for setting up BMT unit

In India 10,000 to 12,000 children are born every year with thalassemia

Hyderabad: Good news for thalassemia patients. A world-class bone marrow transplant (BMT) unit is being set up in Hyderabad shortly. The unit being promoted by Guido Lucarelli and his team from Italy will be ready in six months. A renowned transplant physician, Prof. Lucarelli, heads the BMT department at the Instituto Mediterraneo di ematologia (iMe), Italy.

Italian doctors will be paying a three-day visit to Hyderabad next month to visit the identified hospitals for setting up the BMT unit, said Chandrakant Agarawal, the man instrumental in bringing the facility to the city.

He told presspersons here on Wednesday that the unique thing about Prof. Lucarelli was that he was successful in doing transplants for mismatched sibling donors and 50 per cent HLA matched donors.

An industrialist, Mr. Agarawal came into contact with the Italian doctor while seeking treatment for his 12-year-old granddaughter in Rome. Due to non-availability of matched sibling donor, she was dependent on transfusion. She underwent 50 per cent HLA matched transplant from her mother last year. Mr. Agarawal found the success rate at iMe in partially matched BMT cases almost 90 per cent. On his suggestion the Italian doctors showed interest in setting up a BMT unit at Hyderabad, Mr. Agarawal said.
:cheers:

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/6681061.cms
DuPont to invest $100 mn to step up R&D here

DELAWARE: US-based chemicals giant DuPont plans to invest up to $100 million (approximately Rs 452 crore) over the next three years to expand its research and development (R&D) unit in Hyderabad , a top official said.
:cheers:
“India is among our top 10 revenue contributors. The plan is to make it among the top five. That’s the reason why we are investing more in DKC (DuPont Knowledge Center, Hyderabad),” said Mark P Vergnano, executive vice-president, at a global press meet recently.:banana:

DuPont, which was founded in 1802 as a gunpowder mill and later transformed itself into a chemical maker, producing iconic brands such as Nylon, Teflon and Kevlar, set up DKC — its biggest R&D unit outside the US — in 2008 for around Rs 150 crore.

DuPont is targeting a revenue of $1 billion from its Indian business by 2012, compared with $500 million in 2009, said Balvinder Singh Kalsi, who is in charge of the company’s Indian operations. The company’s global sales was $26 billion in 2009. However, DuPont has no plans to list on Indian bourses, Mr Kalsi said.

The proposed investment in India is part of DuPont’s global growth plans, termed as ‘megatrends’ within the company, that include tapping growth in emerging markets, increasing food productivity and decreasing dependence on fossil fuels and security solutions business. DuPont is focusing more on emerging economies as developed countries struggle to emerge from the recession.

A portion of DuPont’s investment in India will be utilised to develop a newer technology for protective equipment, including helmets and vests for armed forces. The company is developing a testing lab in DKC for this purpose and is in talks with the Indian government for clearances, DuPont officials said. The company will also use the funds to improve technology for its products for tyre, road construction and packaging solutions industries in India.

“We are looking at coming out with newer products to improve efficiency in agriculture, clean technologies and our other focus areas. We have filed about six patents in all these areas,” said Homi Bhedwar, director, DKC. Further, Pioneer Hi-Bred , a DuPont subsidiary, plans to set up a seed processing plant in India in 2011, said Paul Schickler, president, Pioneer. But, Mr Schickler declined to reveal how much does the company plan to invest for this unit and where would it set up the unit.:)

8 Oct, 2010, 01.08AM IST,
Sequoia Cap invests Rs 70 cr in Celon Labs


BANGALORE: Private equity major Sequoia Capital has made its first investment in the pharmaceutical sector in the country by pumping in `70 crore into Celon Labs. This is the first round of equity funding for the Hyderabad-based company that manufactures a range of branded generic formulations to treat cancer.:cheers:

“The wide range of drugs in its portfolio and the growing market opportunity are huge factors in driving this investment,” says Sandeep Singhal, managing director, Sequoia Capital, who termed this as a mid-size deal for the fund, that has in the past backed healthcare services companies such as diagnostics major Dr Lal Path Labs and eye-care chain Vasan Eye Care.



Celon Labs will use the funds to double its manufacturing facility. It currently produces 30 million tablets. “We will also upgrade the product portfolio and add on new drugs in oncology and gynaecology care,” says KV Ravindra, founder Celon Labs, who expects the company to hit a revenue target of `100 crore by year end.

The firm, set up in 2007, now derives nearly a fifth of its revenues from exports to the Asia Pacific, Latin America and African markets. “But, we are primarily an India-focused company and will drive future growth in domestic markets,” says Mr Ravindra, who expects the company to invest more in research directed at producing more branded generics in oncological and critical care.


“We think of investments on a company level and less as sectors,” says Mr Singhal. Two of the fund’s earlier growth stage investments in healthcare services are now ripe for public listings with IPOs expected for both Dr Lal Path Labs and Vasan Eye Care in the next 18 months. “This is a market with opportunity for both good investments and exits,” says Mr Singhal.
:)

http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/fusion-pharma-to-invest-rs-40-cr/410556/

Fusion Pharma to invest Rs 40 cr
BS Reporter /Hyderabad October 08, 2010, 0:25 IST

Hyderabad-based Fusion Pharma, a startup drug maker engaged in production of antibiotics and nutritional supplements, is planning to invest Rs 40 crore in building a new plant in the pharma special economic zone at Jadcherla, about 80 km from here.

Fusion is raising the entire investment from Prosecure, a venture capital firm that focuses on early stage companies in the healthcare and life sciences area.

According to company promoters Pavan Gorukanti and Madhu Ramadugu, the new plant will have a capacity to produce 15 million dosages annually. It will be set up over an area of three acres and employ about 120 people.:banana:

Gorukanti, a physician by training, and Ramadugu, a graduate in pharmacy with experience in distribution of pharmaceuticals, started Fusion in 2007 with an initial investment of Rs 10 crore. This money was raised from the their personal assets and contribution from family members.

They told Business Standard that the new plant would come up according to the standards of the US Food and Drug Administration (US FDA).

After obtaining the US FDA certification, the company would enter the regulated markets of the US and European Union.

Fusion, which currently produces 12 products, proposes to add eight more products to its portfolio in the next 12 months. With a sales force of 65 persons, it is currently marketing its products in eight states.

The company plans to expand its operations across India by adding an additional 100 persons to its marketing division.

At present, the four southern states account for 60 per cent of its revenues. This is expected to decline to 40 per cent in future.
:cheers:

http://www.exclventures.com/News/Newslink-10994.asp
Hyderabad News.Hitec City to Have Fortis Hospital Complex in 4 Acres

Hyderabad News. TOI 09.11.2010

An international hospital with commercial and residential facilities will soon come up in Hyderabad.The hospital will be developed by New Delhi-based Hospitalia Eastern Private Ltd., which represents the Fortis Hospitals.


The Municipal Administration and Urban Development (MA&UD ) department issued a GO (No 482) on Monday allotting four acres land at Khanamet village in Serilingampally mandal on 33-year lease basis to the company.

The estimated cost of the project would be about Rs 200 crore.During the lease period,the developer would pay five per cent of market value of the land,which is Rs 10,000 per square yard,or approximately Rs 96.8 lakh as annual lease rent with annual escalation of five per cent over the previous year.


Officials justifying land lease to the group claim that if the hospital is constructed,nearly 1,000 people would get direct employment and another 800 indirect employment at the health facility.The government order said the proposed hospital project would contribute towards better patient care and health management.

The developer has tie-up with Fortis,a healthcare chain.
The Hospitalia Eastern Pvt Ltd would adopt three to four villages in the adjoining Medak and RR districts and take care of overall health care of villagers and also conduct health camps,cardiology and eye camps in different parts of the state.
:)

rizwan3 you are brilliant in providing the updates man.:cheers:

rizwan3 you are brilliant in providing the updates man.:cheers:

Thx Buddy...:D

Apollo's stem cell research facility in H'bad to be opened shortly (http://www.pharmabiz.com/article/detnews.asp?articleid=58737&sectionid=)

Apollo Hospitals Educational and Research Foundation (AHERF), an autonomous organization spearheading the research activities of Apollo Hospitals Group, is all set to open its stem cell research facility in Hyderabad in a month, it is learnt. The facility will be located at the Apollo Health City in Hyderabad.

The AHERF has already entered into collaboration with the US-based StemCyte Inc., which has a cord-blood stem cell facility in Ahmedabad for the same. The StemCyte holds 51 per cent stake in the joint venture, while AHERF 49 per cent. The total initial investment involved in the project is $15 million.

Ranjit Roy Choudhary, chairman, AHERF, said, "Apollo is setting up a stem cell research facility in Hyderabad and we have already recruited a team for the same. The facility will supply stem cells on demand to Apollo group hospitals all over the country."

The centre would use stem cells from bone marrow and cord blood of patients in research and treatment for diseases such as cardiovascular, cerebral palsy and limb ischemia. The objective was to provide scientific basis to therapy in the absence of published studies in clinical cell research.

At the same time the AHERF, which manages 200 clinical trials currently, has a preferred partner agreement with Quintiles India for clinical trial sites. The specific studies are either for registration of a new drug molecule or for marketing. About 50 per cent of the clinical trials are submitted either for US FDA or European Union registration. In the last one decade, AHERF has conducted over 350 global multi-centric phase II / III / IV clinical trials in the areas of oncology, cardiology, neurology, endocrinology, pulmonology, vascular surgery, etc. Apollo has partnered Quintiles to start a phase I clinical trial unit at Apollo Health City, Hyderabad and is managed by Quintiles.

Ocimum closes $8 million to fuel future growth

Ocimum Biosolutions today announced its growth plans after having closed funding worth $ 8.0 million from multiple sources, including founders and existing shareholders, in order to cater to the growing demand for its integrated genomic services and to provide unparalleled, hassle-free user experience by enhancing its RaaS (Research as a Service) platform.

The company is in the process of building a state-of –the art integrated campus in Patancheru, Hyderabad. Part of the funds will go into completing this 360,000 sq ft facility spread across four blocks. This sprawling four acre campus housing the GLP compliant, genomic and diagnostics labs is scheduled for move in by March 2011.:banana:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/Eye-surgeries-shoot-up-in-Hyderabad/articleshow/7108335.cms

Eye surgeries shoot up in Hyderabad
TNN, Dec 16, 2010, 03.28am IST

HYDERABAD: In what has become a December ritual, city eye hospitals have recorded a 50 per cent rise in the number of eye surgeries being performed at their premises. Eye specialists attribute the record jump in their clientele to the NRIs who are here for the holiday season and are going under the knife mainly for Lasik surgeries. To add to this, eye hospitals in the city are also seeing a 15-20 per cent surge in the number of patients of cataract who have opted for surgeries this month.

While doctors say that numbers shoot during the winter months every year, there is a further rise in numbers this year. Doctors say that conducive weather, a holiday season and a relatively free month makes December a comfortable time to go for such surgeries. Specialists at Apollo Hospital said that NRIs who come for vacation during this time are major contributors to the rise. "Being a holiday season for them, many NRIs are undergoing Lasik surgeries for correcting myopia and hypermyopia among other complications here at a much lesser cost," said Dr K Sreekumar Reddy, consultant ophthalmologist, Apollo Hospital. He further said that the hospital is recording a 50 per cent rise in Lasik surgeries and 15-20 per cent rise in cataract surgeries.

L V Prasad Eye Hospital in Banjara Hills has also recorded a 15-20 per cent rise in these surgeries this month. Doctors here said that a large number of people usually plan for non-emergency eye procedures in December and first half of January.

However, it is not just the NRI crowd filling up hospital beds this December. The state-run Sarojini Devi Eye Hospital, which mostly gets people from below the poverty line, too is witnessing a rise in the number of cataract surgeries. "Since patients are advised that water should not enter the eyes for about a week after the surgery, people tend to avoid the hot summer months as well as the rainy season as they cannot take head bath if they undergo a surgery," says Dr Vidyavathi, superintendent, Sarojini Devi Eye Hospital. Dr Vidyavathi says that people from other districts do not prefer travelling during summer and are busy during the monsoon. Hence, they prefer to undergo cataract procedures during this month.

Though doctors say that this is an annual ritual but note that the trend is changing slowly because of the introduction of sophisticated technology which has reduced the healing time as well as hospital stay. But they do admit that winter being the preferred month for surgeries as a notion is here to stay.
:)

International Rice Research Institute
(http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/IRRI-to-set-up-rice-research-institute-at-Angrau/articleshow/7188499.cms)to set up rice research institute at ANGRAU, Hyderabad (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/IRRI-to-set-up-rice-research-institute-at-Angrau/articleshow/7188499.cms)

Chief minister K (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/topic/search?q=Kiran%20Kumar%20Reddy)iran Kumar Reddy might just end up realising the dream of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. In welcome news for a state beleaguered by the Telangana tango that has brought investments to a halt, the world-renowned International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) based in the Philippines is all set to open shop in Hyderabad.

The advanced research facility that IRRI is scheduled to operate from Hyderabad is to be the first international facility of the institute outside the Philippines. The main campus is located in the University of Philippines at Los Banos, close to the country capital Manila.

Hyderabad has been chosen by IRRI because of the importance of rice cultivation in the state, the country and the South Asian region. The facility will concentrate on the varieties that could withstand long-duration submergence of crop due to floods as well other extreme climatic conditions.

According to sources, a high-level delegation of scientists led by IRRI director general Robert S Zeigler is scheduled to meet Kiran Kumar Reddy on January 5 to finalise the proposal on setting up of the state-of-the-art Molecular Breeding Facility (MRB).

After the devastating impact of the great Bengal famine in the 1940s, Nehru in the 1950s wanted IRRI to set up its institute in India and offered the National Rice Research Centre located in Cuttack to be upgraded to international standards. However, partly due to opposition from the then Orissa government and also due to Indian scientists' reservations about new rice varieties, his plans did not fructify.

This facility will herald a new phase in rice research in Andhra Pradesh which has been facing natural calamities like drought, cyclone and floods repeatedly in the last few years. Former director general of IRRI M S Swaminathan, who will be in the city on Thursday, is expected to discuss with state officials the details of the facility that will come up in Hyderabad.

IRRI wants to develop the facility as a major training centre for young graduates who could then strengthen research capacity in Andhra Pradesh, Zeigler assured the chief minister in a letter. In fact, a year ago, then agriculture minister Raghuveera Reddy had offered assistance if the IRRI was interested in setting up their campus in Hyderabad.

According to sources in the CMO, Zeigler's letter to the CM said that the Hyderabad facility would focus on the entire south Asian region. "Our intention to set up this facility in Hyderabad has also been influenced by the fact that this is a world-class city and its infrastructure and other facilities are second to none," Zeigler wrote in the letter. Praising Hyderabad as the seed capital of India, Zeigler said the IRRI's presence would definitely provide an additional boost to the rice seed industry in the state.

IRRI wants to locate the facility in an extent of 80 acres in Acharya NG Ranga Agricultural University (Angrau) as it wants to collaborate with the university as well. The students and faculty of Angrau will have access to this world-class MBF and will benefit from their interactions with many internationally renowned scientists who will be based there, Zeigler said in the letter. Angrau vice chancellor P Raghava Reddy said the university is positively disposed to the proposal.

This (MRB) will facilitate developing a breeding programme that will produce a new generation of varieties that are better suited to local cropping environment and also meet consumer preferences, Zeigler said. Once set up, the IRRI will pump in Rs 80 core to Rs 90 crore per annum into the rice research activities.

http://www.pharmabiz.com/article/detnews.asp?articleid=59262&sectionid=

BioAsia 2011 to be held at Hyderabad from Feb 21-24

Tuesday, January 11, 2011 08:00 IST
Hyderabad

The Federation of Asian Biotech Associations (FABA) in association with the University of Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh government and Pharmaceutical Export Promotion Council of India (Pharmexcil) will organize the BioAsia 2011: The Global Business Forum at Hyderabad from February 21 to 24, 2011.

The eighth edition of BioAsia, an annual event being held since 2004, will be inaugurated by Kapil Sibal, minister of Human Resources and Science and Technology and Kiran Kumar Reddy, chief minister of Government of Andhra Pradesh will preside over. The theme of the event is “Boosting Bioeconomy”.

The event, comprising conferences, trade shows and business to business platforms, is expected to create opportunities for academic and industrial collaborations and showcase latest trends and technology to a large gathering of biotech fraternity from across Asia and the world.

It will have three track conferences such as MediAsia, HealthAsia and AgriAsia. The MedAsia track will focus on oncology, diagnostics and medical devices, AgriAsia on latest developments in the world in Agribiotech and HealthAsia on pharmaceuticals with emphasis on biopharma and vaccines.

The event will also see the release of whitepapers by Grant Thorntom, knowledge partner of the event, on indigenous medical devices, merger and acquisitions in the pharma and biotech industry and learning’s from the evolution of agri sector globally.
:)

http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/expect-to-cross-rs-500crrevenue-this-yr-natco-pharma_511878.html

Expect to cross Rs 500cr in revenue this yr: Natco Pharma

Symphony Pharma to ink deals with domestic, overseas firms to provide CRAMS

Symphony Pharma Life Sciences, a Hyderabad-based Custom Research And Manufacturing Services (CRAMS) provider, is in an advanced stage of discussions with several leading domestic pharmaceutical companies to provide custom research and manufacturing services.:cheers:

The discussions with domestic pharmaceutical companies are to provide custom research and manufacturing services in both Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) and formulations. The company, which has already completed more than 50 projects for various leading national as well as international companies, is also in discussions with many foreign companies to provide CRAMS. Currently the company is working on 20 projects.

Talking to Pharmabiz, Dr C Prabhakar, chief executive officer, Symphony Pharma Life Sciences, said, "We are in discussions with a number of domestic and foreign firms to provide CRAMS. The discussions with Indian companies are to enter into agreements for partnerships". The agreements with domestic companies will be of multi-year in nature and back-to-back agreements for manufacturing, he elaborated.

The company, currently located in the Alexandria Knowledge Park, is in the process of setting up a new Research and Development (R&D) centre with cGMP pilot plant and a manufacturing facility at the Genome Valley, Hyderabad. The first phase of the facility, which is coming up in two phases, will be completed by May this year. The new facility, with a land area 0f 45000 square feet, will have six process chemistry labs and two fully equipped analytical labs.:cheers:

According to the company, in a short span of time it has established a track record of developing and delivering projects to the customers in record time, right from the conceptual stage to multi-kilo state. The projects handled include those from big pharma companies, generic players, and biotech companies across the world.

The Symphony Pharma Training, a sister institute of Symphony Pharma Life Sciences and providing integrated training to young chemists and scientists in various branches, is planning to increase the number of branches with the opening of the new facility. It has also plans to expand the short-term pharma training courses.

http://www.exclventures.com/News/Newslink-11047.asp

Hyderabad News.Zephyr to invest $5 m in Hyderabad start-up Aizant Drug

Hyderabad News. E 18.01.2011

IN its first investment in the drug development space,private equity fund Zephyr Peacock India will invest $5 million in Aizant Drug Research Solutions.

The global PE fund will take a minority stake in the Hyderabad-based start-up that provides contract research outsourcing,formulation development and clinical research services to both international and domestic pharmaceutical companies.Pharma companies use these services for conversion of base drug molecules into marketable and consumable forms ,says Mukul Gulati,managing director,Zephyr Peacock India.


The global outsourcing market for drug development is estimated to be at $120 billion annually,with clinical trials accounting for almost 70% of the time and money invested in new drug development.Emerging markets including China,India and Eastern Europe are emerging as hotbeds for clinical research outsourcing.This is the next wave for the global pharma industry analogous to outsourced product development in the IT sector,says Gulati.The Aizant team which consists of Indian origin scientists with global work experience will use the funding to expand operations across other emerging markets.


Apart from technology upgradation,we will also use a portion of these funds to increase partnerships with local educational institutions and invest in training local personnel,says Varma Rudraraju,founder,Aizant who feels the company cannot depend on external sourcing alone for its talent needs.Future growth will depend on building a strong network of local talent,he added.The four year old firm now employs about 160 people in its local development centre.

This is the second investment this year for the fund that put in 22.5 crore in early January into telecom services firm Metro Telworks.Zephyr Peacock India Fund I was launched in 2006 and Zephyr Peacock India Fund II in 2008.We expect to make an additional three investments this year in sectors ranging from education,logistics,and agri-businesses,says Gulati who estimates that most investments will fall in the median range from $5 million to $15 million each.

Our sweet spot for investing is typically in the $8 million to $10 million range he added.With offices in New York and Bangalore Zephyr focuses on investing in small and medium enterprises that focus on domestic consumption
:)

IICT sets up NATIONAL MOLECULAR BANK in Hyderabad (http://www.pharmabiz.com/article/detnews.asp?articleid=59405&sectionid=)

The Hyderabad-based Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT), a premier research institute in the country, has set up an automated compound storage and retrieval system in its campus in Hyderabad.

The facility, which has been named as National Mol Bank (NMB), will be used for the storage of natural products, samples from organizations and institutes across the country. The system is designed to offer a storage capacity of 16 million samples in tubes and vials and will be capable of future seamless expansions.

According to the institute, the facility is first of its kind in the country and is similar to the NIH Molecular Libraries Small Molecule Repository in the USA.

“The IICT was chosen for setting up this national facility and will be used for storage of natural products, samples from organizations and institutes across the country”, said Dr J SYadav, director of IICT.

The facility, funded by CSIR and Department of Science and Technology (DST) will showcase a high performance, high quality facility providing long term high integrity compound storage and automated compound retrieval. It will allow Indian scientists to screen small molecules in a high throughput fashion to identify hit molecules much more efficiently for various human ailments.

Director General of Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Prof. S K Brahmachari inaugurated the facility on January 18, 2011.

http://www.vancouversun.com/business/Quintiles+Speeds+Early+Phase+Decision+Making+with+Unit+Hyderabad+India/4155013/story.html

Quintiles Speeds Early-Phase Decision Making with New Unit in Hyderabad, India

Quintiles, the only fully integrated bio pharmaceutical services company offering clinical, commercial, consulting and capital solutions worldwide, today officially opened its new Phase I research facility in Hyderabad, India at Apollo Health City.:cheers:

http://mms.businesswire.com/bwapps/mediaserver/ViewMedia?mgid=259815&vid=4
Quintiles Phase I Facility in Hyderabad. (Photo: Business Wire)

Constructed in partnership with Apollo Hospitals Group, the new facility will complement Quintiles existing Phase I facilities around the globe to help customers navigate complex early development challenges and make key decisions early. It will provide biopharma customers additional options to complete integrated Phase I programs across multiple geographies at this pivotal stage in medical research.

Eddie Caffrey, Senior Vice President and Head of Quintiles Phase I globally comments: “Sponsors, are under intense pressure to speed delivery of results, ethically, and without compromising patient safety or quality of data. With this new, state of the art, Phase I facility in Hyderabad, India, we will be better able to ally with customers by providing access to large numbers of healthy volunteers for simple studies, in parallel to more complex studies conducted by scientific experts in Europe and the US.”

“We are excited to be working with Quintiles to deliver high quality Phase I studies for international customers in India. Apollo has pioneered the provision of many medical and surgical procedures in India and our mission is to bring healthcare of international standards to within the reach of every individual,” says Ms. Shobana Kamineni, Executive Director, Apollo Hospitals Group.

“With this new unit we are reinforcing India’s position as a key player in the global drug development market and expanding the options available to pharma sponsors.”

The team in Hyderabad under leadership of Ashish Jain, Executive Director will work to global standards and procedures and will be connected to sites in London, Uppsala and Kansas through Quintiles global data network to simplify study management for sponsors and provide integrated information and perspective as early as possible in the development process.

The 86-bed unit will evaluate compounds developed both in India and in other countries. Data capture will be linked electronically to Quintiles other Phase I units in UK, US, and Sweden. Thirty two beds are equipped with technically advanced diagnostic cardiology equipment for TQT studies.

In addition, this unique Phase 1 facility at Apollo Health City, Hyderabad, Quintiles also has offices in India, with existing operations in Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Delhi, and Mumbai. Expertise across the country covers a wide range of therapeutic areas, including leading physicians and experts in the areas of oncology, CNS, infectious disease, and cardiovascular disease.
:cheers:

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2011/01/27/stories/2011012751491100.htm

Beams opens hospital in city

Hyderabad, Jan. 26

Beams Hospitals, the Mumbai-based chain popularising minimal access surgery, announced the launch of its new centre at Hyderabad and hinted at setting up more centres across the country. Mr N. Kiran Kumar Reddy, Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, inaugurated the Beams centre. “Beams hospitals were conceptualised to provide its patients a comfortable and painless way of treating any surgical procedures through minimal access surgery,” Dr Rakesh Sinha, Managing Director, Beams Hospitals, said in a statement.
:)

http://ibnlive.in.com/generalnewsfeed/news/sleepcare-launches-facility-in-hyderabad/552761.html

SleepCare launches facility in Hyderabad
PTI | 08:01 PM,Jan 27,2011

Hyderabad, Jan 27 (PTI) SleepCare Solutions (SCS), a Hyderabad-based sleep solutions enterprise today launched its first SleepCare facility at Banjara Hills in collaboration with Philips Healthcare. Announcing the launch of its operations, SCS Managing Director Dr Lavanya Gali, who is also a specialist in the area of sleep medicine told reporters that SleepCare is a dedicated facility that offers diagnosis and treatment of adult sleep disorders using the latest technology and therapeutic options. She said there are 84 types of sleep disorders and insufficient sleep is becoming common in India due to lifestyle modifications, adding "We will work with organisations towards doing research on sleep disorders among the Indian population." Speaking about SleepCare plans, its Director, Corporate Development, Prashant Koirala said, "Our goal is to launch 25 new centres in the next two years in India, Middle East and Southeast Asia." SleepCare has invested Rs One Crore in setting up its first facility here and plans to invest Rs 20 crore during the next two years. Speaking on the occasion,Philips Healthcare, (Home Healthcare Solutions) Business Manager Satyakam Sharma said Philips a global leader in diagnostic and theraputic equipment for diagnosing and treating sleep disorders, was working on creating awareness in the public on the sleep disorders. "We are also working towards making affordable devices that are presently brought from the manufacturing plants of Philips in the United States "

http://www.pharmabiz.com/NewsDetails.aspx?aid=61078&sid=1

Sai Advantium plans to set up two formulation manufacturing facilities in AP
Hyderabad
Friday, February 04, 2011

Sai Advantium, Hyderabad-based one of the leading players in the Contract Research And Manufacturing Services (CRAMS) segment, is planning to set up two formulation manufacturing facilities in Andhra Pradesh.

The planned-facilities are likely to come up in Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh. However, the company is yet to finalise locations for the same. Besides, the company has not yet finalised investments for the same. It is learnt that the Vizag facility will be exclusively for formulations. The company, which is currently doing formulation development for its various customers, is planning to get into formulation manufacturing in a big way with the opening of these two planned-facilities.

Speaking to Pharmabiz, Krishna Kanumuri, chief operating officer of Sai Advantium, said, “We want to provide integrated services to the customers under one roof. Currently we are doing research, biological and animal studies, formulation development and manufacturing.”

The company’s main focus, with five facilities of various nature is on regulated markets such as the US, the UK and Japan. The company said that it is more focused on high values and most of its customers are innovator companies from these regulated markets.

According to the company, it recovered quickly from the economic slowdown thanks to the good relation it maintained with customers and is registering 30 per cent annual growth for the last two years. It is expecting to register a growth rate of 30 per cent to 50 per cent in the next three years.

The company’s Research and Development (R&D) centre, which is coming up in the IKP Knowledge Park at Genome Valley in Hyderabad, will be completed by June this year. Currently the company is having manpower strength of 900 people and out of it 750 are scientists. It is planning to increase it to 1100 in a year’s time.:cheers:
:)

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-company/earnings/earnings-news/aurobindo-pharma-q3-net-up-981-pc-to-rs-18863-cr/articleshow/7432517.cms

5 Feb, 2011, 07.20PM IST,PTI
Aurobindo Pharma Q3 net up 9.81 pc to Rs 188.63 cr

NEW DELHI: Drug firm Aurobindo Pharma today said its consolidated net profit rose by 9.81 per cent to Rs 188.63 crore for the third quarter ended December 31, 2010.

The company had a net profit of Rs 171.77 crore in the same period last fiscal, Aurobindo Pharma said in a statement.

Net sales of the company rose to Rs 1,192.20 crore for the third quarter ended December 31, 2010, compared to Rs 915.24 crore in the same period last fiscal.

"We continue to see a strong momentum in our formulations business with the scaling up of operations of the large formulations units in Jedcherla SEZ near Hyderabad, India and New Jersey, USA," Aurobindo Pharma Chairman Ramprasad Reddy said in a statement.

The Hyderabad-based company filed 15 abbreviated new drug applications (ANDA) during the third quarter taking the cumulative filings to 200.

Aurobindo Pharma, during the quarter, has also filed 54 dossier filings in Europe, taking the cumulative filings to 906.

Last month, the company had announced to divest nearly 80 per cent of its stake in its loss-making Chinese subsidiary Aurobindo (Datong) Bio Pharma Co Ltd (ADBPL) to China National Pharmaceutical Group Corporation (Sinopharm).

"We have recently unlocked our non-core asset in China having a positive impact on our profitability and cash flows," it added.
:cheers:

http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/bbil-starts-phase-iii-trialheart-drug/424250/

BBIL starts Phase III trial of heart drug
BS Reporter / Chennai/ Hyderabad February 07, 2011, 0:52 IST

Hyderabad-based biopharmaceutical company Bharat Biotech International Limited (BBIL) announced that it had initiated Phase III trial of THR-100 in India in patients suffering from acute myocardial infarction (AMI or heart attack).

The company intends to recruit about 120 patients for the trial that is expected to be completed in the second half of 2011. The global market size for the vaccine is estimated to be around $1 billion.

In December 2006, BBIL entered into a license agreement with ThromboGenics, a Belgium-based biopharmaceutical company, for the manufacture, clinical development and commercialisation of the new vaccine.

THR-100 is being developed as a replacement for established thrombolytics, such as streptokinase and urokinase, in developing markets. It is a novel variant of Recombinant Staphylokinase, a thrombolytic agent developed by ThromboGenics for the treatment of AMI and other vascular diseases, based on its ability to dissolve blood clots.

The results of the Phase III trial will pave the way for the vaccine to be filed for marketing approval with Indian regulatory authorities
:)

ConJoin Changes Name to Anthelio; Company Launches World Class SEZ Facility in Hyderabad, Sets Aggressive Hiring Goals

The ConJoin Group, which recently acquired PHNS, the leading independent provider of comprehensive healthcare information technology (“IT”) services and business process solutions in the U.S., today announced that effective immediately it is changing its name to Anthelio.

The new name reflects the broadening of the company's services portfolio and a reinvigorated go-to-market strategy focused on providing hospitals with innovative ways to use technology and re-engineered business processes to improve patient care, streamline operations and achieve significant cost advantages.

Anthelio will leverage U.S. domain and clinical expertise converged with a truly integrated global delivery model to provide innovative, market leading, high value, low cost solutions to the provider market. This model will fundamentally transform the cost structure for hospitals, allowing them to allocate critical resources to improve patient care.

Concurrently, Anthelio announced that it has acquired a 50,000 square foot DLF-SEZ facility in a world-class Special Economic Zone in Gachibowli, Hyderabad. The facility is equipped with state of the art security and processing equipment, and will support aggressive hiring goals in India. Anthelio currently has approximately 50 people in Hyderabad and 250 people in Mumbai. The Company expects to ramp to more than 1000 people in India by end of the year 2011, more than 3,000 people by end of 2012, and up to 15,000 people by 2015. In the U.S., the Company expects to grow from 1,300 people currently, to between 3,000 and 5,000 people by 2015.

"Our new corporate identity reflects a renewed commitment to transform the fundamental economics of the U.S. healthcare system, which includes building out our vital infrastructure and talent pool in India to help hospitals meet unprecedented technology, operational and financial challenges,” said Richard S. Garnick, Chief Executive Officer of Anthelio. “We are focused on building global teams that are laser focused on the healthcare market, and will pair clinical and domain expertise with our significant global infrastructure to create a distinct competitive advantage from other technology providers in our space.”

“When I founded ConJoin in 2008, we had no revenues and only four employees. We’ve since grown to more than 300 people in India, and now have 1,300 employees in the U.S., and total combined revenues exceeding $250 million. Our name change today will kick off our next phase of growth, and I look forward to further building out our resources in India as we continue to expand into the healthcare IT market,” added Mr. Garnick.

“The U.S. healthcare market faces a multitude of business, operational and technology challenges that will require a fundamentally new approach. The Industry has to re-engineer basic business processes and underlying technology to streamline operations, and manage costs,” said Viswanath (Vish) Sivaswamy, Managing Director, India and Global Corporate Strategy of Anthelio. “We continue to explore innovative ways to bend the cost-curve in the U.S. healthcare sector and need to position ourselves for this significant challenge and growing market opportunity by building out our talent base in Hyderabad and Mumbai.”

Anthelio recently received the NASSCOM Corporate Award for Excellence in Gender Inclusivity in the Emerging Companies category for its efforts creating a culture in which women employees are supported and encouraged to seek and achieve their fullest potential and advance to leadership positions. NASSCOM awards companies which have implemented outstanding practices that promote gender empowerment and women leadership development.

Anthelio is actively recruiting women at senior level positions, who are committed to providing unmatched client service and unique offerings to the healthcare IT industry.

US Pharmacopeia setting up $15-mn facility in Hyd (http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/us-pharmacopeia-setting15-mn-facility-in-hyd/425575/)

The United States Pharmacopeia (USP), an official public standards-setting authority for all prescription and over-the-counter medicines and other healthcare products, is setting up a new facility at the Genome Valley (ICICI Knowledge Park) on the outskirts of Hyderabad with an investment of $15 million (approximately Rs 68 crore).

“The new 110,000-sft building that we are constructing on 4.5-acre land will be our ‘second home’. The completion of the building is expected by the end of April 2011 and we are working out the logistics of the inauguration date, which is likely to take place by the end of August or beginning of September,” V Srini Srinivasan, head (USP international sites and USP global verification programmes.

The facility will be the largest site for USP outside the US. It will house analytical research and development, micro-biology, micro-analytical and organic synthetic chemistry labs, besides boosting facilities to conduct training programmes. The organisation has been operating from a 10,000-sft leased space in Hyderabad since the last five years.

Outlining the objective behind expanding its India operations, Srinivasan, who is responsible for USP’s international sites in India, China and Brazil, said India offered a lot of opportunities for USP in many ways. “We started as a collaborative testing laboratory in Hyderabad. It is a service that we want to provide to the USP's headquarters in Washington. But we soon found that the site is beginning to grow on its own. It has gone beyond that today.”

Roughly 35 per cent of the drugs that are imported into the US comes from India. USP's main customers (users) for its reference standards and USP books are all in India, accounting for 10-12 per cent of the organisation's global customers, he said.

Stating that there was a natural synergy between USP and the Indian pharmaceutical industry in the development and establishment of public standards of the latter's drugs, Srinivasan said the organisation was expanding its certification activities in the country, not just for India but also involving several other countries in the world. “Hyderabad will be our central location for providing certification services.”

From 15 personnel five years ago, USP’s Hyderabad site grew to 100 now (excluding the 45 building maintenance staff). With the 110,000-sft facility in place, Srinivasan said, the organisation would grow by an equal number here in the course of one year or so.

Biocon has acquired land in the special economic zone, Jawaharlal pharma city, near Visakhapatnam for its second manufacturing facility in Andhra Pradesh. The company has acquire approximately 50 acres of land to set up a manufacturing facility.

"It is incorrect to view our preference for Andhra Pradesh to establish a second manufacturing base due to lack of infrastructure in Karnataka. Given the current size of the company's operations, it was imperative to have a multi-location strategy to de-risk the business. While Bangalore is an ideal location for research and development for high value and low volume manufacturing, Andhra Pradesh is a place suitable for low value and high volume manufacturing," said Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, chairman and managing director, Biocon Ltd.

"In order to achieve high volumes, low value manufacturing needs, a lower investment and operational cost base that is globally competitive, is often the choice of companies. Other attractive factors include, uninterrupted power that allows a smaller standby power generation system, availability of water at low cost and a central effluent treatment facility. In the case of Biocon, it decided on the SEZ at Visakhapatnam because the facility would allow the company to release effluent after secondary treatment" said Shaw.

Biocon's operations in Bangalore has cent per cent standby power generation, a zero discharge effluent treatment facility and water supply at a rather high cost. Expanding the current manufacturing operations in Bangalore therefore will not allow the company to be globally competitive, she said.

Raichur-based Shilpa Medicare has slated an invested Rs 90 crore to set up an oncology formulations facility at the Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation Ltd's Pharma Formulations Special Economic Zone (SEZ) at Jadcherla in Mahaboobnagar district.

The company has been allotted the land and has raised the funds through internal accruals and banks. The plant construction will begin in a few weeks. "We are looking to commission the advanced plant in the next 18 months", said Vishnukanth Bhutada, managing director, Shilpa Medicare Ltd .

"We have a total of 25 APIs in oncology and therefore we will do well in formulations. Not only that, we are one of the few dedicated oncology drug manufacturers in the country," he added.

http://www.pharmabiz.com/NewsDetails.aspx?aid=61422&sid=21

BioAsia likely to see new investments worth Rs 3000 crores (http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/bioasia-likely-to-see-new-investments-worth-rs-3000-cr/425707/)

Biotech projects worth Rs 3,000 crore are likely to be announced during the annual BioAsia conference, which begins here from February 21. These projects have been proposed in Hyderabad.

Sri Bio Integrated Discovery Centre, a stem cell banking and a research facility by Pacific Hospitals and Trans-Scell Biologies, and a large cancer research centre and hospital in collaboration with French government by Renaissance and Biogenesis and Renaissance Cancer Hospital & Research Centre would announce their plans next week, major industries minister J Geeta Reddy said here today.

Apart from new investments, Lonza Knowledge Centre by Swiss-based Lonza, which has already acquired land for its research and manufacturing facility in the Hyderabad Genome Valley and Lepakshi Knowledge Hub in Anantapur would be launched during the four-day international event, said the minister.

Addressing a press conference in connection with the BioAsia, the global business forum supported by the Andhra Pradesh government, the minister said delegates from 24 countries, including China and Malaysia, were taking part.

For the first time Pharmexcil, the Government of India’s pharmaceutical export promotion council, has also joined the meet by sponsoring the visit of over 30 foreign delegates from 18 counties to promote biopharma products from India.

Hyderabad accounts for about 40 per cent of the country's biopharma exports, according to PV Appaji, executive director of Pharmexcil. He said the pharmaceutical exports this year were expected to register around 17 per cent CAGR. The biopharma segment, which includes vaccine manufacturing, is also looking up.

B Sam Bob, principal secretary, state industries and commerce department, said about 200 companies were currently operating out of the three phases of Genome Valley project.

Tran-Scell sets up stem cell bank in Hyderabad (http://www.mydigitalfc.com/entrepreneurship/tran-scell-sets-stem-cell-bank-hyderabad-068)

Tran-Scell Biologics, a partnership venture with Vitae Healthcare, has set up a Stem Cell Bank and a Research Centre in Hyderabad at an investment of around Rs 20 crore.

Though it may not be the first of its kind stem cell bank, the company will eventually offer stem cell therapy services too, said Subhadra Dravida, founder and CEO, Tran-Scell.

“The centre will be complete in three phases with the stem cell bank and research centre coming initially. We have earmarked Rs 15 crore towards research over the next one year. In the first year, we hope to receive at least 10,000 stem cell units,” she said.

“We plan to establish ourselves in Hyderabad and then move nationally,” she said.

“The technology is gaining momentum in the country as it claims to offer successful treatment in chronic diseases. Among the better known personalities in India, film actor Lisa Ray used stem cell therapy to cure her cancer,” said Krishna Swaroopa Reddy, neonatologist and paediatrician from Vitae Healthcare.

APPOLO to establish Stem Cell Center (http://www.business-standard.com/taketwo/news/new-age-treatments-may-stemcell-research/426069/)
The country’s largest private healthcare provider, Apollo Hospitals, recently roped in Ashok Khar — a senior scientist associated with research institution Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) — to establish a centre dedicated to stem cell research and application in Hyderabad.

The centre aims to be the hub of all applied stem cell research to happen within Apollo group of hospitals, and has prioritised four areas — cardiovascular diseases (CVD), spinal injuries, stroke and basic research in stem cell activity — for applied research

Khar’s team is busy standardising the protocols that need to be followed in each case and has applied for government funding for its first project, on CVD.

“The application of the technology happens in hospitals. My centre (Cell & Molecular Biology Research Centre) is the research unit,” Khar says, adding that the Apollo policy does not permit charging patients who undergo clinical trials. “All these therapies will be categorised as trials and will clear all necessary ethical approvals. We are also seeking government support, as such therapies may cost about Rs 12 lakh,” he says.

Khar’s entry into the corporate world is indicative of the manner in which cell therapy, an evolving area of medical treatment globally, is fast becoming the next frontier for India’s private heathcare players.

AP bulk drugs capital of India
source: http://expressbuzz.com/cities/hyderabad/%E2%80%98ap-bulk-drugs-capital-of-india%E2%80%99/250632.html
HYDERABAD: Andhra Pradesh is recognised not only as the pharmaceutical hub but also as the bulk drugs capital of India, according to J Geeta Reddy, minister for major industries, sugar, commerce & export promotion.
“We have more than 266 bulk drug manufacturing companies in the state of which more than 90 per cent are small and medium enterprises.
AP also registered pharma exports worth `20,000 crore and the industry is growing at about 20 per cent,” Geeta Reddy said. Delivering the inaugural address at the eighth edition of BioAsia 2011 here on Tuesday, she said, “Several pharma companies are investing in the state.” According to Geeta Reddy, at least three companies have already announced plans to set up facilities in Hyderabad with investment of `3,000 crore.
Dr Roger Williams, CEO, US Pharmacopeia, in his keynote address said it was in the process of preparing standards for the Indian pharmaceutical industry. “These standards can be used by companies for exports, to seek regulatory approvals and to market the products overseas,” Williams said adding that Indian biologics with its scientific and manufacturing expertise can lead the world.
Meanwhile, Geeta Reddy unveiled the plaque for four facilites, Alexandria Innovation centre, Lonza R&D and manufacturing facility, Lepakshi Knowledge Hub Pvt Ltd and Transcell Gene Pvt Ltd.
Geeta Reddy also presented the Genome Valley Excellence award to Dr K Anji Reddy, founder & chairman of Dr Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd and Beijing Institute of Genomics, China for their independent contribution towards life sciences.

UoH puts KIP project on the back burner (http://expressbuzz.com/cities/hyderabad/uoh-puts-kip-project-on-the-back-burner/250630.html)

HYDERABAD: The controversial Knowledge and Innovation Park (KIP) proposed by the University of Hyderabad (UoH) and the Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (APIIC) remains a non-starter as the university management is likely to initiate a dialogue with those opposing the project only after a new vicechancellor is appointed.

“We have put it on hold and the matter would be taken up only when the new vice-chancellor takes over next month.

My term is almost over and I do not intend to start any dialogue with the local community.

But I clarified that the project cannot be shelved altogether as demanded by them,” Prof Syed E Hasnain, chairman, AP Biotech Advisory Council and vice-chancellor, UoH told Express on the sidelines of BioAsia 2011.

Biotech and pharmaceutical companies are not coming forward to set up operations in the KIP due to the ongoing controversy between the protestors and the university management over allotment of land for private companies on a commercial basis. “There have been no formal requests from companies for land allotment and there have been no land allotments since March, 2010,” Hasnain said.

Last year, UoH had put the project on hold following protests from the staff and students.

US Contract Research Firm QPS Takes Majority In Hyderabad's Bioserve (http://www.vccircle.com/500/news/us-contract-research-firm-qps-takes-majority-in-hyderabads-bioserve)

US-based contract research firm QPS Holdings has taken a majority stake in Hyderabad-based Bioserve Clinical Research Private Limited (Bioserve). Bioserve, a phase 1 CRO, will be known as QPS-Bioserve India after this transaction. Suneil Reddy, the current managing director, will continue in his position. The transaction value was not disclosed.

QPS is a CRO focussed on translational medicine, early stage clinical and late stage clinical research. Bioserve's infrastructure includes a 92-bed clinical unit for conducting phase I studies and a bioanalytical lab. Over the past six years, it has conducted over 500 studies, with numerous product approvals, and has been inspected by the USFDA, UKMHRA, WHO and Indian DCGI.

The company has been growing at a rate of over 50% per year, with a current team of over 100 employees, said a statement from QPS. Its clients include large Indian as well as MNC pharmaceutical firms. Bioserve’s promoters are the founders of Vijaya Diagnostic Centre, one of the largest chains in Hyderabad.

Veda Corporate Advisors was the exclusive advisor to Bioserve in the transaction.

“This new partnership further expands QPS’ global range of linearly integrated services,” said Ben Chien, PhD, Chairman, President and CEO of QPS.

This is the second acquisition by QPS in Asia in recent months. Earlier this month it acquired the Center of Toxicology and Preclinical Sciences (CTPS) from Taiwan’s Development Center for Biotechnology (DCB).

source: http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/sri-biotech-to-setrs-30-crore-discovery-centre/427205/
Sri Biotech Laboratories India Limited, a Hyderabad-based multidisciplinary agri biotechnology company, is in the process of setting up an integrated discovery centre at Genome Valley on the outskirts of the city with an investment of Rs 30 crore.

“We will be commencing construction work on the centre soon and expect it to be completed in one-and-a-half years from now,” said Sri Biotech chairman and managing director KRK Reddy.

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The project will be funded through the $10-million private equity (PE) money that was infused into the company by Rabo Equity Advisors through its $100-million India Agri Business Fund in 2009. Sri Bio raised the PE fund to focus on seed research and development of new molecules for crop protection besides putting up infrastructure for the same.
Speaking to Business Standard on the sidelines of the Indian Seed Congress here recently, Reddy said the company was developing products since 2003 and had so far got four patents.

“The new discovery centre will focus on agriculture, health and environment. On the agriculture front, we are interested in developing transgenics … in the area of disease and pest-resistance crops, while the thrust will be on developing molecules, enzymes and proteins for the pharmaceutical sector, besides bioremediation studies like waste management,” Reddy said.

Stating that the objective behind proposing to set up the integrated centre was to exclusively dedicate it to intensify its discovery activities in the area of transgenics, Reddy said it would take four to five years for the company to get final results out of its discoveries, after which it would develop products based on them.

Sri Biotech reported revenues of Rs 85 crore in the last financial year. The company projects to cross revenues of Rs 100 crore this fiscal.

17 Companies graduate from IKP Knowledge Park, move to own facilities (http://www.pharmabiz.com/NewsDetails.aspx?aid=61712&sid=1)

Seventeen companies have graduated from the IKP Knowledge Park, a joint venture between the ICICI group and Andhra Pradesh government, in Genome Valley, near Hyderabad, and moved to their own facilities, it is learnt.

The IKP Knowledge Park, a purely Research and Development (R&D) park established in 1999, has so far promoted 45 R&D based companies, 17 of which have graduated and moved into their own facilities. Currently the park has 29 companies working in various areas of pharma, biotech and chemistry. A couple of companies are expected to graduate in the next one year and move into own facilities. Several new companies have come in place of the graduated companies. Ras Life Science is latest company to occupy space in the park.

Elaborating on the process of graduating of companies, Deepanwita Chattopadhyay, managing director and CEO, IKP Knowledge Park, told Pharmabiz, “The lab space in the park is being leased for a period of three years with an option to renew it for three more years and the max space the park can allot to a company is 15000 sq feet. When the companies grow bigger and need more than 15000 sq feet space they graduate from the park and move out to set up their own facility or become anchor companies by taking land on lease for a long term basis.”

Prominent companies graduated from the park are Anu’s Laboratories, Biomax, Nektar Therapeutics, Biogenex, and Krebs Biochemicals and Industries. Nektar has graduated in the last year and moved into its own facility. GVK Bio is the last one graduated from the park.

Some of the companies of the park have grown over the years and transformed themselves as anchor companies. Aptui-Laurus was the first company to convert themselves as an anchor company. Dupont and Laxai Aventis are some of the anchor companies. The Park, with a land area of 200 acres, has already eight anchor companies and has the capacity to accommodate four more companies as anchor companies.

Chattopadhyay also added that the park is purely for research and development and no manufacturing activities are allowed in the Park. She expressed the hope that several of the occupant companies will transform itself into global companies in the five years’ time. The park, which already hosted 45 companies, is aiming to host another 95 companies in the next five years.

In order to promote start-up companies, it has a seed fund scheme and is also arranging various funds from different agencies.

http://www.hindu.com/2011/03/12/stories/2011031261600200.htm

New plastic surgery technique on cards

Apollo Hospitals evaluating Celution System procedure

HYDERABAD: Apollo Hospitals is evaluating a new technique of plastic surgery that could change the traditional method, which involves collecting excess fat from one body part and fill up the ‘affected' body part.

The new method, called as Celution System, involves using a machine to pull stem cells and other regenerative cells out of normal fat and injecting them into the affected part of the body to repair the damaged cells.

“The stem cells and regenerative cells will grow naturally, repair the damaged area and heal the wounds. The new technique is under evaluation and we are hoping that very soon we will get the required approvals from the Central Government,” said Senior Consultant, Cosmetics and Plastic Surgeon, Apollo Hospital, Dr. Sudhakar Prasad.

The new technique will be useful for patients suffering from breast cancer, those needing facial surgeries and quick healing of wounds.

“If we simply transfer fat from one part of the body to the other then the transferred fat cells will disappear after some time. The patient will have to again go for a plastic surgery. In the new technique, however, we rejuvenate the cells in the effected region,” Dr. Sudhakar said.

The hospital doctors, who interacted with media persons on Friday, said that the Celution System, which is patented by United States-based Cytori Technologies, is being widely used in Europe and Asia for breast cancer surgery, facial rejuvenation and wrinkle filling.

As part of initial evaluation of the technology, hospital physicians have already performed cosmetic procedures on patients from Delhi and Hyderabad.
:)

http://gulfnews.com/news/world/india/hyderabad-city-is-scaling-new-altitudes-1.780902
Hyderabad City is scaling new altitudes
Hyderabad has made its niche in India as a pharmaceutical hub
You have probably heard a plethora of tales about Hyderabad's exquisite cuisine — including its world-renowned biryani and its naan bread rolls — its ancestral heritage, represented by a cluster of beautiful, ancient palaces and monuments, and, of course, the city's more contemporary exploits in the field of information technology, assuming the heady moniker of Cyberabad.
However, not many people know that Andhra Pradesh's capital city has become India's, and possibly Asia's, pharmaceutical hub. Hyderabad, India's fifth-largest city, has made huge strides in the field of pharmaceuticals. If its rival, Bengaluru, is fixated on information technology, which has driven the city's development, Hyderabad's forte lies not so much in information technology but in biotechnology.
While other Indian cities are crumbling under the pressure of urban migrations and exploding populations, Hyderabad has maintained itself well over the decades since independence.
Indeed, Dr Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar, who scripted modern India's constitution with his brilliant legal mind and political acumen, had even tried in 1955 to make Hyderabad India's "second capital" because of its impressive amenities.
With adequate space and other incentives available, the cluster of pharmaceutical and biotech companies in and around Hyderabad has steadily grown — and continues to grow — over the years. Top companies such as USP, Novartis, Dr Reddy's Laboratories, Agilent, Biological E Limited, Shantha Biotechnics, Bharath Biotech, Matrix Laboratories and Krebs Biochemical have operations here. Other companies are also expected to create extensive infrastructure in biotechnology.
Hyderabad's development as a pharmaceutical hub, strengthened by a large and modern airport, has a strong pull for foreign airlines as demand for capacity to transport pharmaceutical products grows.
It is not surprising, therefore, that Germany's Lufthansa Cargo, the world's leading cargo carrier, has established a strong presence in Hyderabad.
Indeed, Lufthansa Cargo and the GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd (GHIAL), which operates the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGLA) in Hyderabad, recently inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at jointly developing the airport into a major cargo hub of Asia for the transport of temperature-sensitive pharmaceuticals.
GHIAL is a joint-venture company involving four partners — Malaysia Airport Holdings Bhd (11 per cent stake), the GMR Group (63 per cent), the government of India (13 per cent) and the state government of Andhra Pradesh (13 per cent).
The MoU serves as a framework for both sides to set up a modern infrastructure at the RGIA with the intention of providing reliable, temperature-controlled transport solutions. Under its terms, the cargo carrier will provide capacity for the transport of temperature-sensitive cargo. For this, Lufthansa Cargo will station its own fleet of special cooling containers, called "Opticoolers", in Hyderabad. Lufthansa Cargo claimed that the "Opticoolers", unveiled for the first time in India, are the most modern cold-chain containers in the industry.
Describing India as the "world's largest market for generics", Martin Schlingensiepen, Lufthansa Cargo's vice-president for product management, told Weekend Review that demand for temperature-controlled transport will continue to grow in India in the coming years, with Hyderabad playing a dominant role in this traffic. Lufthansa Cargo is the only international cargo carrier operating two flights a week to Hyderabad.
He said that the transport of temperature-sensitive cargo made exacting demands on airlines and airports. "While outside temperatures at airports may range from minus 30°C up to 40°C, the temperature inside the container may only fluctuate minimally so as not to damage the sensitive freight. This calls for a modern infrastructure at airports, high-performance cooling containers and reliable processes," he explained.
Paul Smith, chief executive officer of Hyderabad Menzes Air Cargo Pvt Ltd (HMAC) — a joint venture created by the United Kingdom-based Menzies group and the GMR group to manage the cargo terminal at the airport — said the Hyderabad airport had generated an "impressive business volume".
"The pharmaceutical industry has not been affected by the economic downturn. After all, people tend to become sick and there will always be demand for pharmaceuticals," he said.
A pharma-zone, the first of its kind in India, has already been established at the airport. At present, the airport has a cargo capacity of 100,000 tonnes. But the actual cargo volume shipped from Hyderabad airport is about 75,000 tonnes. The major part of the export-cargo volume — almost 60 per cent — consists of shipments of pharmaceutical products. The airport has become a key outlet for India's pharmaceutical exports.
According to Smith, the United States is the most important market for India's pharmaceutical exports. Europe is the second-largest, with Brussels serving as a transit point for further shipment and distribution, followed by Africa and Russia.
Over the years, India has emerged as one of the leading suppliers of generic drugs, particularly for HIV treatment; these drugs, according to Smith, are shipped to Africa by chartered flights. "Without these generic drugs, HIV-affected people in many countries would suffer. Thus, the Hyderabad airport's role is unique," Smith said.
Because of growing traffic, Smith said there were plans for expansion of the terminal in 2011. Domestic cargo transporting companies such as Blue Dart and Deccan 360 will also increase their presence in Hyderabad. With India's economy posting impressive growth rates, Smith envisaged greater demand for capacity. "We do not have the freighter or belly capacity on passenger aircraft to ship out the products. It would be great to also have Jade Cargo of China [Lufthansa Cargo has a stake in the cargo carrier] in Hyderabad," he said.
Smith expects airports in Mumbai or Chennai to follow Hyderabad's example. Mumbai already has a temperature-controlled facility for perishables.
Hyderabad is also creating a free-trade zone. Vikram Jaisinghani, GHAIL's deputy CEO, confirmed that the free-trade zone would be established on a 28-hectare plot of land that would offer duty and demurrage-free facilities to shippers.

Manik Mehta is a commentator on Asian affairs.

http://www.mydigitalfc.com/news/biocon-spend-rs-200-cr-rd-manufacturing-934

Biocon to spend Rs 200 cr on R&D, manufacturing

Healthcare products manufacturer Biocon plans to spend $100 million in its efforts to develop insulin drugs over the next 3-4 years, said its chairperson and managing director Kiran Mazumdar Shaw.

Further, the company is also looking at investing around Rs 200 crore towards stepping up its manufacturing and research capabilities in the domestic market this fiscal, she said.

Of this, the company plans a capital expenditure of around Rs 100 crore towards the Research & Development centre in Bangalore, which would be operational in the next six months, said Shaw.

“The R&D centre would house 500-600 scientists. Apart from the capex, we would also be investing in drug development. For instance, we are hopeful to put in $100 million in the next 3-4 years towards research on insulin products,” she told reporters in Hyderabad on the sidelines of an international conference on patient safety.

The company has already invested Rs 50 crore in its Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients facility in Hyderabad. “We would further invest another Rs 50 crore in a couple of years,” she said.

The Bangalore-based company, which has a major thrust on diabetes drug development, feels that the increase in sales of human insulin due to the 18 per cent hike in the price allowed by the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA), will be reflected in its balance sheets in the first quarter of current financial year. “Increase in insulin prices is a positive sign. It will have an impact on our balance sheet from this quarter (April-June),” she said, without giving details.
:)

http://ibnlive.in.com/generalnewsfeed/news/make-quality-healthcare-affordable-to-people-says-ap-cm/658712.html
Make quality healthcare affordable to people, says AP CM
PTI | 09:04 PM,Apr 22,2011
Hyderabad, Apr 22 (PTI) Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy today underscored the need to make quality healthcare affordable to the people. He said technological advancements should aid in the poor and needy people getting modern medicare facilities. Reddy recalled the statement of US President Barack Obama a few days ago about Americans going to India for medical treatment. It is good that people from developed countries like the USA and UK are coming to India for affordable treatment, he said, speaking at a conference on `Transforming Healthcare with Information Technology (IT)' hosted by Apollo Group. The Chief Minister said Hyderabad has emerged as the health and medical capital of the country as the state capital has the maximum number of super multi-speciality hospitals. Hyderabad is also the pharma capital of the country as it is home to the highest number of pharmaceutical companies and bulk drug manufactures, Reddy said. "It is a well-known fact that the Governments across the globe are grappling with a range of healthcare challenges like affordability, quality of care, patient safety, rural- urban and rural-tribal divide, demand-supply gap of skilled workforce, among others. Our Government is no exception." With the advent of IT and IT-enabled services, healthcare is undergoing tremendous transformation. IT influence is growing by the day and there is amazing impact of tele-medicines and tele-surgery, Reddy said.

Phenomenex opens new office in India


Phenomenex Inc. announced that it has expanded its international subsidiary network to serve India directly from a new office in Hyderabad. The new entity will serve research communities throughout India with sales and service teams that sell all Phenomenex products directly and provide timely technical support, training, and seminars.

"Phenomenex India will provide our growing customer base with the most innovative products along with fast deliveries, expert technical support, and outstanding service," commented Fasha Mahjoor, president of Phenomenex. "We are proud to continue the expansion of our international operations, which serve customers worldwide."

Phenomenex serves research customers in a wide range of industries including drug discovery and development, chemical processing, biofuels analysis, food and water safety, forensics, and toxicology. All Phenomenex products, including the Luna, Gemini, Synergi, Kinetex, Strata-X, BioSep, Lux, and Zebron brands, will be supplied exclusively from the Indian office to customers in India.

http://www.pharmabiz.com/NewsDetails.aspx?aid=62640&sid=2
Phenomenex opens new office in Hyderabad

Our Bureau, Mumbai
Saturday, April 30, 2011, 14:15 Hrs [IST]
Phenomenex Inc., a global leader in the research and manufacture of advanced technologies for the separation sciences, has expanded its international subsidiary network to serve India directly from a new office in Hyderabad. The new entity, which opened this month at Laxmi Cyber City, Kondapur, Hyderabad, will serve research communities throughout India with sales and service teams that sell all Phenomenex products directly and provide timely technical support, training and seminars.

“Phenomenex India will provide our growing customer base with the most innovative products along with fast deliveries, expert technical support and outstanding service,” commented Fasha Mahjoor, president of Phenomenex. “We are proud to continue the expansion of our international operations, which serve customers worldwide.”

Phenomenex serves research customers in a wide range of industries including drug discovery and development, chemical processing, biofuels analysis, food and water safety, forensics and toxicology. All Phenomenex products, including the leading Luna, Gemini, Synergi, Kinetex, Strata-X, BioSep, Lux and Zebron brands, will be supplied exclusively from the Indian office to customers in India, a company press release said.

Phenomenex is a leading provider of advanced technology solutions for separation science techniques in the areas of sample preparation, high-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) and gas chromatography (GC). Founded in 1982 and headquartered in Torrance, California, USA, Phenomenex helps scientists around the world analyze and purify a variety of important chemicals, biochemical raw materials, intermediates, and finished products.

Grace Davison opens new India center
COLUMBIA, Md. -- Grace Davison Discovery Sciences, a product line of W. R. Grace & Co., has opened a new technical service center in Southern India for customers in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries.

The new facility is located in Genome Valley (close to Hyderabad), a growing biopharmaceutical area with more than 100 biotechnology companies and major generic pharmaceutical manufacturers.

The center was opened to support Grace’s customers in the areas of laboratory separations, bulk purification, excipients and pharmaceutical intermediates. Grace’s expertise in these areas ultimately assists pharmaceutical companies to bring potentially life saving medications to market sooner.

“To better meet our customer demand, we are geographically expanding where it will benefit our growing client base the most,” said Joanne Green, vice president and general manager of Grace Davison Discovery Sciences. “We continuously strive to improve our technologies, products and services. The new facility is part of our strategy to build on our footprint in the region and to position for further expansion in the future.”

The center will serve as a resource for Indian customers, as well as being an Asia Pacific support hub for the region, the company said. In addition, it will be a center for product development and applications support for Grace Davison Discovery Sciences. Other services provided will include customer training, validation and testing for a variety of products and product demonstrations. The new center complements existing application laboratories in the United States, Europe and China.

Grace opened its first India office in Bangalore in the mid-1990s. Over the years, the company has significantly expanded its presence on the subcontinent, the company said. Today, Grace has sales, technical service and manufacturing operations across the country -- from New Delhi to Bangalore and from Mumbai to Chennai -- servicing customers in the discovery sciences, packaging, refining and construction industries.

Grace is a supplier of catalysts and other products to petroleum refiners; catalysts for the manufacture of plastics; silica-based engineered and specialty materials for a wide range of industrial applications; sealants and coatings for food and beverage packaging, specialty chemicals and additives and building materials for commercial and residential construction. Founded in 1854, Grace has operations in over 40 countries.

http://expressbuzz.com/cities/hyderabad/hyderabad-a-hub-for-medical-tourism/271253.html

Hyderabad, a hub for medical tourism

Express Features

Last Updated : 04 May 2011 09:28:37 AM IST

The Federation of Andhra Pradesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FAPCCI), in association with Tourism Department, Government of Andhra Pradesh, are currently hosting a two-day seminar and exhibition on ‘Hyderabad as an International Hub for Medical Tourism - A Road Map’.

The event involved various stalls and in-depth discussions on the medical tourism scenario in the city. The guest of honour was Vatti Vasant Kumar, minister for tourism and culture, Government of Andhra Pradesh.

Post the inaugural session began the seminar, in which various issues were addressed — global perspective of medical tourism, role of government in medical tourism, potential of Hyderabad in medical tourism, among others.

“India has a lot of potential for medical tourism because our country has some of the best medical facilities at reasonable and affordable costs,” said Dr Prem Jagyasi, founder of Global Healthcare Network. While India on the whole has immense potential for medical tourism, discussions mainly focused on Hyderabad as a great market for the same. “There are many reasons for Hyderabad having the best potential for medical tourism,” said Kali Prasad from Ernest & Young Company, continuing, “This city has a strong medical infrastructure, there is immense support from the government, the infrastructure like airports, flyovers are very well structured here. Also, some of the medical centres in Hyderabad, which are a strong mix of single and multi-speciality hospitals, are well known in the world.”

Post the presentations, followed open house sessions for everyone to express their opinions. The first day of this seminar ended on a satisfactory note, only for everyone to look forward to the second day.
:cheers:

Translation:
AP Takes it in the behind, Just throw them few bones/jobs and they are willing to take effluent, pollution and any other crap....
Low value / High manufacturing.

Govt should aspire to make AP R&D hub not a sweat shop for all kinds of industry (ship breaking) why not ship building, well nothing to have in commission.
Centre has asked for land long back for a major port and ship building, AP doesn't want it.
What a bunch of crooks in this govt
Biocon has acquired land in the special economic zone, Jawaharlal pharma city, near Visakhapatnam for its second manufacturing facility in Andhra Pradesh. The company has acquire approximately 50 acres of land to set up a manufacturing facility.

"It is incorrect to view our preference for Andhra Pradesh to establish a second manufacturing base due to lack of infrastructure in Karnataka. Given the current size of the company's operations, it was imperative to have a multi-location strategy to de-risk the business. While Bangalore is an ideal location for research and development for high value and low volume manufacturing, Andhra Pradesh is a place suitable for low value and high volume manufacturing," said Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, chairman and managing director, Biocon Ltd.

"In order to achieve high volumes, low value manufacturing needs, a lower investment and operational cost base that is globally competitive, is often the choice of companies. Other attractive factors include, uninterrupted power that allows a smaller standby power generation system, availability of water at low cost and a central effluent treatment facility. In the case of Biocon, it decided on the SEZ at Visakhapatnam because the facility would allow the company to release effluent after secondary treatment" said Shaw.

Biocon's operations in Bangalore has cent per cent standby power generation, a zero discharge effluent treatment facility and water supply at a rather high cost. Expanding the current manufacturing operations in Bangalore therefore will not allow the company to be globally competitive, she said.

Raichur-based Shilpa Medicare has slated an invested Rs 90 crore to set up an oncology formulations facility at the Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation Ltd's Pharma Formulations Special Economic Zone (SEZ) at Jadcherla in Mahaboobnagar district.

The company has been allotted the land and has raised the funds through internal accruals and banks. The plant construction will begin in a few weeks. "We are looking to commission the advanced plant in the next 18 months", said Vishnukanth Bhutada, managing director, Shilpa Medicare Ltd .

"We have a total of 25 APIs in oncology and therefore we will do well in formulations. Not only that, we are one of the few dedicated oncology drug manufacturers in the country," he added.

http://www.pharmabiz.com/NewsDetails.aspx?aid=61422&sid=21

http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2011-05-10/news/29528313_1_formulations-aurobindo-pharma-gross-sales

Aurobindo turns billion dollar pharmaceutical company
May 10, 2011, 10.48am IST


HYDERABAD: Hyderabad-based Aurobindo Pharma has joined the billion-dollar club of pharma fraternity as the company's consolidated revenues registered a growth of 22.5% at Rs 4381.5 crore in the financial year ended March 31, 2011 as against Rs 3575.4 crore last year.

The company s net however, did not witness an upward momentum due to a dip in forex gains. Its net was at Rs 563.45 crore compared to Rs 563.4 crore in the previous year. "Though the sales have gone up, the company s margins have not expanded considerably. That is one of the reasons for net profit being flayed on a yearly basis.

Besides, this fiscal, the company's forex gain was Rs 37 crore as against Rs 110 crore last year. We expect margins to improve in FY13 when its formulations business is expeted contribute about 70% of its gross sales, said Sarabjit Kaur Nangra, V-P (research), Angel Broking. The spurt in sales is led by growth in formulations business especially anti-retrovirals (ARVs).


Its formulations business clocked 30.8% growth at Rs 2423.1 crore compared to last financial year while ARV sales went up by 40% to Rs 693.6 crore. Currently, formulations sales constitute 57.3% of the company s gross sales. The company s sales in the US went up by 30.4% to Rs 1189.7 crore. In fact, the increased allocation to PEPFAR by the US augurs well for Aurobindo. US President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) is the largest effort by any nation to combat a single disease. Aurobindo is one of the largest participants in PEPFAR. "The results are in line with our expectations.

Majority of the company's ARV revenues come from PEPFAR. The net remains flat because the company s staff cost has gone up by 30% due to its SEZ becoming operational in AP. Besides, material cost also has gone up," said Rahul Sharma, Analyst, Karvy Stock Broking.

The Company has filed and received approvals for a large number of products in various key therapeutic segments across several countries. As on March 31, 2011, the company filed 209 abbreviated new drug applications (ANDAs) in the US, of which 134 have been approved, including 32 tentative approvals . During FY 2011, the company filed 1270 formulations dossiers in other key regulated markets including multiple registrations in European Union.
:cheers:

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/healthcare/biotech/healthcare/msn-laboratories-to-foray-into-pain-management-market-with-launch-of-painkiller-tapentadol/articleshow/8366640.cms

16 May, 2011, 04.15PM IST,PTI
MSN Laboratories to foray into pain management market with launch of painkiller 'Tapentadol'


HYDERABAD: MSN Laboratories Limited, a city- based research oriented pharma company, today said it will foray into the pain management market with the launch of 'Tapentadol' a pain killer under brand name Tapal in Indian market, a top company executive said today.

According to MSN Reddy, chairman MSN Labs , the drug was developed by the company for the first time in India and the results of phase-III trials of the drug have shown that it would work better than the current acute pain relieving drugs.

"We expect to clock revenues of up to Rs 100 crore in the next 3-4 years from Tapal," Reddy told media persons here.

He said the market for pain killers in the country is around Rs 3,500 crore.

Reddy said currently 10 to 12 drugs are under research and development and the company will centralise R&D activities in a new facility being developed near Hyderabad with an investment of Rs 100 crore.

MSN currently has five manufacturing units, one facility for finished dosage and a dedicated R&D centre. The company so far has filed over 100 Indian and over 40 international patents.

The company has also filed nearly 80 drug master files for the USA, Canada and European markets, Reddy said.
:cheers:

Shares of Suven Life Sciences gained around 5% after the company secured four overseas product patents . The Hyderabad-based pharmaceuticals company bagged one patent each from Europe, New Zealand, Australia and Korea for the treatment of disorders associated with neurodegenerative diseases.

According to analysts, Suven will be able to sell these compounds to manufacture medicines for the treatment of disorders like Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson and Schizophrenia. Suven Life Sciences currently has eight foreign patents for its various drug discoveries. Shares of Suven Life Sciences closed at .`21 on the BSE on Thursday.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/stocks/views/recommendations/heard-on-the-street-suven-life-sciences-climbs-on-patent-acquisitions/articleshow/8593199.cms

KIMS to invest over Rs.600 cr for expansion, plans three new hospitals

Krishna Institute of Medical Sciences (KIMS), one of the leading super speciality hospital groups in Andhra Pradesh, will invest over Rs.600 crore for the expansion of existing facilities and to set up new facilities in one year.


The group, with five hospitals in the state, will add more than 500 beds to its existing bed capacity of 1600 beds in a year. As part of its expansion plan, KIMS will invest Rs.350 crore in its Hyderabad facility to increase the bed capacity from the present 300 beds to over 700:cheers: It is also planning to increase the bed capacity of its Vijayawada hospital from the present 120 beds to 250 beds. KIMS will shortly open its new facility, with bed capacity of 150 beds, at Srikakulam in Andhra Pradesh.


KIMS has also plans to set up three more hospitals as part of its expansion plan and they would come up in Visakhapatnam and Guntur in Andhra Pradesh and Bilai in Chhattisgarh. The Chattisgarh facility will be a joint venture project. KIMS will make invest of Rs.250 crore for the expansion of its Vijayawada facility and to set up the new hospitals.


“We have all the state-of-the-art facilities in our Hyderabad hospital and are planning to open hospitals in all districts in the state. We are also planning to open five diagnostic clinics in Hyderabad. So the patients need to come to the main hospital every time and it will also help to diagnose health problems at an early stage and involve less expenditure.” He added that the group will make an investment of Rs.50 lakhs to set up the diagnostic clinics.


The hospital, with a staff strength of 1600, including 350 doctors, is planning to add another 3000 staff after completing the expansion. It has patient visit of 1.8 lakh of outpatients and 15000 inpatients per annum. KIMS, with 58 departments, has so far carried out over 150 clinical research studies for various pharmaceutical companies and has a site management organisation, KIMS Clinical Research Foundation to manage the studies.

Even as top German scientists are baffled at the behaviour of the new strain of E. coli now creating havoc across Europe, a team of researchers from Hyderabad has taken up the task of decoding the superbug's genomic signatures that give it the killer instinct.

The Hyderabad team is also working to develop diagnostic markers for easy detection of the bacterium in a diagnostic laboratory, in case the new strain of E. coli hits India.

The team, which consists of bio-informatics specialists, has completed the work on annotating the genome of the bacterium.

The work is being carried out as part of the Indo-German International Research Training Group (IRTG), a collaborative network of scientists from the University of Hyderabad, Mahavir Hospital, Lepra India, Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology and CDFD, and corresponding fraternity based in Berlin at the Humboldt University, Charite Medical University, Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology, Free University of Berlin and the Robert Koch Institute.

The network is supported by the German Research Foundation (DFG) in collaboration with the University Grants Commission.

“We hope to make available our results in the next few weeks in the form of a publication. Once we understand the genetic make-up of this new strain, which has thus far been elusive to scientists in Germany and China, we will be able to develop diagnostic tests for the new serotype. This will help us understand the pathogenic mechanism of the bacterium so that we can identify it for better diagnostics and medical treatment of the affected,” a senior researcher associated with the project told this correspondent.

Though Chinese researchers are known for quick sequencing of bacterial genomes, they have thus far failed to get answers about the aggressive new form of E. coli.

The Germans outsourced the decoding work to Chinese scientists at the Beijing Genome Institute as a collaborative exercise.

Hyderabad, Jun 10 (PTI) The Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) here is planning to start a mega project on re-sequencing of a large number of human genomes from different ethnic groups, Union Minister of State for Science and Technology and Earth Sciences, Ashwani Kumar, said. "Results of the study will give us prior knowledge which would help in understanding how each ethnic group is at risk of getting a particular type of disease. This study should help us in understanding genetic basis of diseases susceptibility and in designing strategies to develop personalised medicine," Kumar told reporters last evening after visiting Hyderabad-based central scientific institutes. Lauding the institutions including CCMB, Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services and Indian Institute of Chemical Technology for their excellence, the minister said these institutions are making huge and significant contribution in the field of science and technology. Mentioning some of the new initiatives launched by these institutions, Kumar complimented them saying "I am delighted to say that our scientific and technological institutions are doing research and developmental works which is comparable to the finest in the world. The institutions that we have been able to establish have acquired near global standards and in some cases they excel the global standards," Kumar added. The number of publications, increase in the number of patents, demonstrate that pure science research is in fact being translated into technology and technology in turn is acquiring cutting-edge on account of innovative strategies, he said. .

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-06-10/people/29638992_1_mf-husain-paintings-city-artists

MF Museum in Hyderabad?
Christina Francis Jun 10, 2011, 12.00am IST
MF Husain might just be remembered in his adopted hometown Hyderabad forever with a museum that houses only his works.

City artists have come together to request all the art collectors, friends and family of Husain saab to donate one painting each so that a new museum of his works can be built in Hyderabad in his memory.

Husain himself was a large-hearted man who would make mammoth paintings and donated them to charity. In fact, MF Husain painted a Ramayan series in Hyderabad and later donated the paintings to the Ram Manohar Lohiya Trust.

http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2011-06-09/news/29638530_1_q400-spicejet-chief-commercial-officer-aircraft

MUMBAI: Private air-carrier SpiceJet will begin regional operations from Tier-2 and 3 cities like Vijayawada, Tirupati, Mysore, Mangalore, Madurai, Nagpur and Indore from mid-July using the Bombardier Q400 Next Gen turboprop aircraft, a top company official said.

"We have selected Hyderabad Airport as the first base for our operations. We will be flying from Hyderabad to Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities in South and Central India," Spicejet Chief Commercial Officer Samyukth Sridharan told PTI here.

Deliveries of the Q400 aircraft start in the last week of this month, he said.

"We expect the first aircraft to enter into service and become operational by mid-July. The delivery of the first 15 Bombardier Q400 aircraft starts this month-end and will be completed by June, 2012 - over a period of 13 months. The order also has an option to purchase 15 additional aircraft. If this option is exercised by SpiceJet, there would be 15 more deliveries over a period of 24-months," Sridharan said.

The Bombardier Q400 NextGen turboprop aircraft, which can seat 78 passengers, was chosen for SpiceJet's regional operations because it is designed for short-haul routes and has a reputation of being fast, quiet and fuel-efficient.

The aircraft has a unique ANVS (Active Noise and Vibration Suppression) system which renders noise and vibration levels to minimal levels. It also delivers the lowest operating costs per seat in the industry, with a 30 per cent to 50 per cent advantage over other aircraft on short-haul routes, he said.

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-06-06/hyderabad/29625235_1_foundation-stone-inauguration-multi-level-parking

HYDERABAD: The state government will develop the Old City on a par with Banjara Hills and Jubilee Hills, chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy said on Sunday. He also announced that a modern Haj House and a study circle for minority students will be constructed on a plot of 10 acres near the Shamshabad airport.

After inaugurating the renovated Unani Hospital and College building in the Old City on Sunday, the CM claimed he was also a 'Hyderabadi' and was keen to see that development gains pace in the Old City.

The chief minister said the state government had sanctioned Rs 2,000 crore worth works, including Rs 1,046 crore for providing infrastructure facilities in 2006.

Kiran Kumar informed that the Outer Ring Road (ORR) Phase I was completed with Rs 3,600 crore and ORR phase II would be completed with another Rs 3,800 crore.

The chief minister laid the foundation stone for a water works project in Riyasatnagar that would benefit 15 surrounding colonies and National Academy of Construction Building at Naseebnagar.

He also laid the foundation stone for

an e-library, teacher training facility and community hall in Barkas. Later, the chief minister inaugurated the Salar-e-Millat Salauddin Owaisi Sports complex at Chandulal Baradari. Kiran Kumar Reddy played badminton with Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi and table tennis with a senior citizen during the inauguration.

The chief minister also laid the foundation stone for a multi-level parking complex in Khilwat and inspected the Charminar Pedestrianisation and Save Musi projects.

The chief minister, who also participated in a Congress meeting in Lal Darwaza, said the Congress would recognise services of workers who have been striving hard for the party

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-06-08/hyderabad/29633102_1_diagnostic-centres-genome-foundation-programme

Genome Foundation to set up centres in rural areas
TNN Jun 8, 2011, 12.37am IST
Tags:Genetic
HYDERABAD: A unique programme by the Hyderabad-based Genome Foundation is set to spread its web into the rural heartland of India, by helping detect genetic anomalies and providing testing facilities at affordable rates.

The foundation, headed by a former director of the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) will establish the central facility for the programme, on 4.13 acres allotted to it by the AP government in Hyderabad.

Qualified personnel from the Genome Foundation will conduct a training programme, the participants of which will then set up centres in rural areas to conduct more training programmes, diagnostic and research facilities. This will help form a network of genetic facilities that will penetrate all parts of India, rural and urban.

One such rural centre has already been established at Kalwari in the Jaunpur district of Uttar Pradesh. It has carried out an epidemiological research study, the largest study of this kind in the country, in 30 villages, covering a population of 20,000 people with door-to-door surveys, funded by the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India. The data collected is now being analysed.

But the facilities are not just research-oriented. They also function as diagnostic centres where patients can get tests for measuring blood sugar, cholesterol and others for a nominal rate.

"The results will be accurate at the facility and the charges affordable. It is sad that many corporate hospitals and diagnostic centres fleece patients. Sometimes the results also vary from one place to another confusing the patient," Dr Lalji Singh told TOI.

The programme hopes to isolate and identify genetic abnormalities like a few instances in the past where females of a family were born without fingers or toes for the last four generations. It hopes that identifying the gene that causes these problems will help curtail such problems in the future, said Lalji Singh.

The Genome Foundation has Dr C Rangarajan as chairman of the board of directors, and also has K Kasturirangan, former chairman of ISRO; Prof P Rama Rao, former secretary of the department of science and technology; and other eminent scientists.

To achieve its mission, the board is seeking financial assistance from the Department of Science and Technology, under the Government of India but has announced that it will not be deterred in its mission if the governmental aid did not come through. "The issue at hand concerns India and the health of its population. If every individual contributes even Re 1 each, the mission is achievable," Dr Lalji Singh said.

Some individuals have already made donations, even token amounts of Re 1. The funds gathered will be used for the construction of the Hyderabad facility for now.



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CDFD campus to come up at Survey of India premises

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/CDFD-campus-to-come-up-at-Survey-of-India-premises/articleshow/8894709.cms


The Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics (CDFD) is set to get its own campus at Uppal in the city.

The new building of CDFD, which is an autonomous body under the department of biotechnology, ministry of science and technology, would come up on a 20-acre piece of land on the premises of Survey of India (SoI) .

An understanding has been reached with SoI for the transfer of land to CDFD. In return, SoI will get the CDFD's building and land at Gandipet and is likely to make use of it as an academic centre.

However, Survey of India would continue to exist at Uppal as only 20 acres out of 200 acres is being alienated for CDFD.

"We are now in the process of selecting an architect and chose appropriate design for the facility," CDFD director J Gowrishankar told The Times of India. Gowrishankar said the understanding was reached with SoI for land a couple of weeks ago. The funds for the new facility will come from the department of biotechnology.

CDFD's new facility at Uppal would mean one more national scientific institution in the Tarnaka-Habsiguda-Uppal area. CCMB (Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology), IICT ( Indian Institute for Chemical Technology) and NIN ( National Institute of Nutrition) are some of the institutions located in the area.

After being carved out from CCMB, CDFD has functioned from a building at Nacharam. In 2002, a new building for CDFD was constructed at Gandipet on a 10-acre piece of land. However, the centre was prohibited from carrying out its functions from there as it falls under the catchment area of Gandipet reservoir. The CDFD, however, took up the legally recourse, but to no avail.

The contention of the A P Pollution Control Board (APPCB) was that as per G O 111, no polluting industry should be allowed within the 10-km range of a water body. In case of CDFD, its building came within the range of Gandipet and Himayatsagar reservoirs, both are drinking water sources for the city.

Since the issue was dragging on for the long, CDFD was left with no option but to move out of premises. While its laboratory functions from a building at M J Market, the administrative office is housed in another building nearby.

It may be mentioned here that CDFD is an institution of national repute, which has among other things, a laboratory for DNA fingerprinting services. Cases are referred to the centre from all over the country.

US Pharmacoeia to set up new unit in City

The United States Pharmacopeia (USP), an official public standard setting authority for all prescription and over-the-counter medicines and other healthcare products, is setting up its new facility at the Genome Valley (ICICI Knowledge Park) on the outskirts of Hyderabad. Chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy is likely to inaugurate the unit in September.
A USP delegation led by its India branch vice president KV Surendranath on Wednesday called on the chief minister requesting him to inaugurate their Hyderabad facility.

The facility is being established with an investment of about Rs 68 crore and will house analytical research and development, microbiology, micro-analytical and organic synthetic chemistry labs, besides boosting facilities to conduct training programmes.
The organisation has been operating from a 10,000-sqft leased space in Hyderabad since the last five years.

Surendranath said the objective of the organisation for expanding its India operations is because India offered a lot of opportunities for USP in many ways. They started as a collaborative testing laboratory in Hyderabad and are now planning to make it their central location for providing certification services for maintaining public standards in development of drugs, he said.

http://www.hindu.com/2011/06/30/stories/2011063055802000.htm

Celon Labs to set up Rs.120 cr facility

HYDERABAD: Hyderabad-based Celon Laboratories, an integrated, research-based specialty bio-pharma company, has announced that it would invest Rs.120 crore to set up a world-class manufacturing facility at the Genome Valley here. The company crossed a significant milestone of Rs.100-crore mark in turnover, said its founder K. V. Ravindra.

In a release, he said Sequoia Capital, a venture capital firm, had invested Rs.70 crore to support Celon Labs' growth plans. He said the company also envisaged expanding operations by establishing local entities in South and Central America, Asia-Pacific, Africa and the Commonwealth of Independent States.

Celon Labs had registered 114 products and launched them in 17 markets, he said, adding that 18 more products were in the process of registration, while 321 product files were in the filing stage.

Managing Director, Sequoia Capital, V. T. Bharadwaj, said he was confident that Celon Labs, with a comprehensive portfolio of products would maintain its growth momentum.
:cheers:

Hands-free cataract surgery successfully conducted (http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article2214579.ece)

In a pioneering effort, eye surgeons from Maxivision here on Saturday successfully conducted an eye surgery without using the human hand.

Conventional surgeries need 40 per cent involvement of hands to make primary and secondary incisions and to cut open the lens capsule of the eye so that the cataract is removed using modern methods such as phaco surgery.
Surgeons, led by Maxivision CMD Dr. Kasu Prasad Reddy, used Femtosecond Laser, branded as Customlens, to conduct the surgery.

After the surgery, the laser could be used to conduct a refractive surgery to reduce the dependency on glasses and contact lenses. Customlens is developed by German company Technolas. “The significant part of this new method is that surgeons now can make precise incisions, which is usually not possible with hands. This ensures better vision quality and excellent results. Apart from removing cataract, we are also using this laser to conduct refractive surgeries so that patients need not use spectacles,” Dr. Reddy told The Hindu.
The surgery was beamed live to eye surgeons, who were in a surgery convention in Chennai organised by Intraocular Implant and Refractive Society on Saturday.

This is the first time in the country such a novel surgery was taken up by using Customlens, the surgeons said.

“The surgery is hands-free and there is no margin of error. The safety and precision of the surgery has improved now. This technology is 100 per cent error-free,” said Dr. Reddy.

Traditionally, there are two steps involved in cataract surgery. The first one involves using the surgeon's hand to make entry wounds known as primary and secondary incisions and to open up the lens capsule to remove the cataract.

In the second step, the cataract is removed by phaco surgery, which involves making a small incision and removing the cataract.
The Femtosecond Laser, which is introduced to India by Trivitron Healthcare, will be 10 to 15 per cent costlier than conventional surgeries.
“In future, when technology is readily available, prices will come down. At the end of the day, this method is safer,” Dr. Reddy said.

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/cities/hyderabad/%E2%80%98robodocs%E2%80%99-boost-ap-med-tourism-139

Robodocs’ to boost AP med tourism
A 45-year-old patient from Warangal, suffering from a gastric tumour, was operated on by small robotic arms attached to an endoscope.

A 4.1 cm cancerous tumour was removed and the patient went home just four hours later.

Welcome to the world of “robot doctors”. These are not humanoid-like robots with two or four limbs and heads, but a computer-driven technology, where three tiny robotic arms are used to perform minimally invasive surgeries that are controlled and monitored by a trained surgeon seated at the console. A surgical robot is a stainless steel cover with 3D magnification, fitted with a camera eye and attached to electronic cables.

The operation on the patient from Warangal was the world’s first robotic flexible endoscopic scarless surgery, performed at the Asian Institute of Gastroenterology (AIG) in the city.

In India, there are just half- a-dozen “robot-doctors”. In the city, the technology is barely a month old.
The technology has been imported from USA to perform intricate surgeries on prostrate and lung cancers, urological procedures, gastro-intestinal surgeries, hip replacement, kidney transplants, radiotherapy and cardiac ailments.

Complex, minimally invasive surgeries, where doctors’ hands cannot reach and those that cannot be done using traditional procedures like laparoscopy can be performed quickly, with minimum blood loss, less pain and risk of infection and a shorter hospital stay time.

Around 10-15 per cent of laparoscopic surgeries require robotic assistance, say doctors. “Under this system, instead of directly operating with the instruments, the surgeon uses a computer console to manipulate the instruments attached to multiple robot arms,” explains Dr B. Bhaskar Rao, cardiothoracic surgeon and CEO of Krishna Institute of Medical Sciences.

“The computer translates the surgeon’s movements, which are then carried out on the patient by the robot. Other features of the robotic system include an integrated tremor filter and the ability for scaling of movements,” Dr Bhaskar Rao says.

Though the use of robots in laparoscopy has been in practice in leading hospitals in the developed nations for quite some time, it is catching up in India of late. Since there are no formal guidelines on this novel medical procedure, the AP medical council says hospitals and doctors should take permission to do such procedures.

The hospitals in Hyderabad, which have undertaken robotic assisted surgeries, say that they have followed the required ethics while performing the surgeries.

Dr K. Ramesh Reddy, vice-chairman, AP Medical Council, said, “Since the technology is in an experimental stage, the permission of Medical Council of India in respective states should be taken before applying it on patients. The credentials of doctors who perform it have to be approved by MCI too. It’s still not a part of the medical curriculum since it’s a new and debatable concept because instead of human hands, machines are operating on the patient and going inside the body. However, the robotic laparoscopy is now more or less accepted."

HYDERABAD SEPT 2:
Indian drug makers may now get an easier access to global markets, including the US, with the US Pharmacopeial Convention (USP), a non-profit organisation that sets standards for quality and safety of medicines, opening its expanded Indian testing facility in Hyderabad on Friday.

Expanded at a cost of $ 14 million, the Hyderabad laboratory, USP’s second biggest after its facility in the US, will be undertaking collaborative and verification testing of medicines produced in the country to attest whether the drugs conform to USP standards.

“Indian exporters of pharma products can export to the US and other markets with the USP certification directly. Medicines not covered by the Indian Pharmacopeia can also be tested at our facility here,” Mr Roger Williams, USP’s Chief Executive Officer, told media persons.

Indian medicines may also become cheaper, as pharma companies can save costs of getting the drugs tested in different countries in accordance with their regulations by getting the USP stamp. Mr Williams said the Hyderabad facility will be playing a more active part in USP’s global verification programmes, especially for dietary supplements.

Dr B. Suresh, chairman on the Indian Pharmacopoeia Commission’s Scientific Body, said it had so far established 1900 monographs in India so far. A drug monograph is a detailed explanation of a drug that is usually accompanied with the prescription medication and contains information about the structure, function, uses and dosing.

“In the next five years, we aim to come out with 3,000 monographs,” he said. The commission was also coming out with an on-line National Formulary of India, a publication that contains the right dosage of medicines, to help doctors, chemists, nurses and students. It will be expanding its network of 40 pharmaco vigilance centres to 100 by 2012 to report on drug withdrawals and side-effects reported from different hospitals across the country.

Keywords: US Pharmacopeial Convention (USP), testing facility, USP standards, Dr B. Suresh, Roger Williams, quality medicines

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industry-and-economy/article2418458.ece

National food technology regional centre likely in Hyderabad

http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/national-food-tech-regional-centre-likely-in-hyderabad/448043/

As part of the various initiatives proposed in the next five years under the National Mission for Food Processing, the Union government is setting up a National Centre for Food Technology in Haryana with a regional centre likely to be located in Hyderabad.

Disclosing this here on Saturday, CR Biswal, principal secretary, food processing industries and commerce department of the Andhra Pradesh government, said value-addition assumed a significant role in making agriculture a more viable economic activity apart from creating additional employment opportunities in the rural sector.

Source: Inpharm


The US Pharmacopeial Convention (USP) has expanded a quality testing laboratory in Hyderabad, India, with an additional 86,000 sq.ft. of space and 20 additional staff members which will allow it to "do more collaborative testing, verification testing, pharmacopeial education, customer support and sourcing of written and physical stands for drugs". USP said it would now be able to launch new initiatives in synthetic chemistry and bio-analytic chemistry and testing.


Royal DSM has been granted approval by antitrust authorities for its anti-infective manufacturing and supply joint venture with Chinese company Sinochem. Under the terms of the deal, the two firms will set up a Hong Kong-based unit called DSM Sinochem Pharmaceuticals that will make ingredients such as penicillin and cephalosporin antibiotics. Around 2,000 DSM employees will be transferred to the new company.


Contract biopharmaceutical manufacturing and development company CMC Biologics has completed the installation of a 2,000-litre single-use bioreactor unit at its manufacturing facility in Copenhagen, Denmark, and should complete its validation by the end of the year. The company said that adding the new reactor would help it meet increasing demand for late-stage clinical and commercial biologics supply.


Lonza has licensed its GS Gene Expression system to Oxford BioTherapeutics, which will use it to produce antibodies directed at a range of novel cancer targets. The agreement covers the research, development and commercial use of the GS system by Oxford BioTherapeutics and is subject to undisclosed payments and licence fees.


Excipient specialist Roquette has completed construction of a plant in Lestrem, France, which will be used to manufacture carbohydrate ingredients such as glucose and dextrose solutions for use in injectable drugs and dialysis solutions. The new plant replaces an earlier facility and production will be transferred to the new unit over the course of 2011.


US contract manufacturer DavosPharma has forged a non-exclusive strategic alliance with Advantar Laboratories, a contract laboratory provider of analytical and formulation development services. The two companies say they will work together to provide US-based biopharmaceutical clients with development, consultancy and programme management support for preclinical and clinical trial materials, as well as approved drugs and devices.

Source: thehindubusinessline


Hyderabad, Sep. 12:
The two-day, BIO India international conference will be held in Hyderabad during September 21-22. It will bring together biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies from North America, Europe and Asia to meet and explore business opportunities with India's emerging biotech sector.

Keynote addresses by Mr G.V. Prasad, Vice-Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Dr Reddy's Laboratories, Ltd., Aaron Schacht, Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer, Global External R&D, Eli Lilly & Company and Mr Glenn Saldanha, Managing Director and CEO, Glenmark Pharmaceuticals, will be the highlights.
The conference will also feature company presentations, exhibition and networking opportunities.

Experts will discuss innovation and financing, global biopharma and examining a high-profile deal between a multi-national pharma and an Indian biotech company. Panel sessions highlight the latest issues and trends related to doing business in India, a press release said.

Source: http://ibnlive.in.com/news/pharma-cm-urge-to-raise-exports-to-50-pc/189210-60-121.html

HYDERABAD: Underscoring the contribution of pharma companies based in Andhra Pradesh, chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy on Friday urged them to increase their exports from the current 30 per cent to 50 per cent in the next three years.
Speaking at the valedictory ceremony of the fourday India-LAC Pharma Business Meet 2011, he said pharma companies have to perform irrespective of the economic slump.
“Our strengths are in bulk drugs and pharma industry. You should invest a little more in research and development (R&D) activities. Going further, AP companies should target to increase contribution to total exports from 30 per cent to 50 per cent in the next three years,” he said. Meanwhile, the Union Ministry of Commerce & Industry has set a target for the pharma sector to more than double exports from the current $10.3 billion to $25 billion over the next three years.
“India is the world’s largest pharmaceuticals exporter and pharma exports contribute over 4.13 per cent to the country’s total exports.
We intend to increase this percentage in the near future,” said NR Munjal, chairman, Pharmexcil.
He added the industry is growing higher than the global average at 17 per cent every year, while other nations are growing at about 10 and 15 per cent.
Currently, there are over 150 USFDA-approved plants across the country operated by both native and multi-nationals.
Bulk drugs make up 42 per cent of total exports, formulations 56 per cent and herbals and ayurveda two per cent.
The US imports 22 per cent from India, Africa 16 per cent and Commonwealth of Independent states eight per cent.
In all, pharma products are exported to 220 countries. Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Russia, Ukraine, South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya are now the focus countries for exports, he said. Meanwhile, Reddy also presented the export performance awards on Friday. While Aurobindo Pharma bagged the outstanding exports award in platinum category, Dr Reddy’s Laboratories won the outstanding exports award for bulk drugs in gold category.

Source: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/companies/article2514097.ece?homepage=true&ref=wl_home

Hyderabad, Oct 5:
Global pharma major Sanofi Aventis Group will set up its largest vaccine making facility in Hyderabad.
"The new plant, our biggest facility in the world, is coming up," Mr Christopher A Viehbacher, Chief Executive Officer of Sanofi told newspersons here on Wednesday.
Sanofi would continue to invest in creating its state of the art biotech and vaccine platform through Hyderabad-based Shantha Biotechnics, he added.
Sanofi had spent $300 million in increasing capacities in Shantha in three years, he added.
The World Health Organisation had pre-qualified Shantha's cholera and tetanus vaccines last week, Mr Viehbacher said.
0n possible acquisitions by his company in India he said it would depend on the availability of suitable candidates.
"We are driven return on investment in these decisions," he added.
At present, Sanofi employs 5000 in India and operates three manufacturing plants besides a formulation development centre.

Another example, Hyderabad a Global City.

Matrix Laboratories Completes Name Change To Mylan Laboratories
PITTSBURGH and HYDERABAD, India, Oct. 19, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — Mylan Inc. (NYSE:MYL), one of the world’s leading generic and specialty pharmaceutical companies, today announced that its India-based subsidiary, Matrix Laboratories Limited, has formally changed its name to Mylan Laboratories Limited. The name change is effective immediately. Mylan announced its intention to rebrand Matrix as a Mylan company earlier this year.

Mylan Inc. Chairman and CEO Robert J. Coury said: “We are pleased to complete the name change from Matrix to a Mylan company and are excited to operate in India under one powerful brand. For the last 50 years, the Mylan name has stood for high quality products, unmatched reliability, outstanding customer service, unrelenting integrity, continuous innovation and serving unmet needs. Mylan’s unwavering commitment to quality and long-standing track record of excellence set us apart from our competitors and will help to ensure our long-term success in India and around the world. We look forward to further educating customers, physicians, pharmacists and patients about the Mylan brand as we continue to grow our existing business and launch in the Indian commercial market in the coming months.”

The name change has been approved by the Registrar of Companies in India. Mylan intends to retain the Matrix name for its institutional ARV franchise.

About Mylan Laboratories Limited
Mylan Laboratories Limited, founded as Matrix Laboratories Limited in 2001 in Hyderabad, India, is one of the world’s largest manufacturers of low cost, high quality active pharmaceutical ingredients (API). Today, the company has a wide range of products, including those in the anti-asthmatic, antibacterial, antifungal, antiretroviral (ARV), cardiovascular, CNS, gastrointestinal and pain management segments. Mylan Laboratories also offers a growing line of finished dosage form products, predominantly generic ARV therapies for the treatment of HIV/AIDS, including both adult and pediatric therapies.

About Mylan Inc.
Mylan Inc., headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pa., ranks among the leading generic and specialty pharmaceutical companies in the world and provides products to customers in more than 150 countries and territories. The company maintains one of the industry’s broadest and highest quality product portfolios supported by a robust product pipeline; operates one of the world’s largest active pharmaceutical ingredient manufacturers; and runs a specialty business focused on respiratory, allergy and psychiatric therapies. For more information about Mylan, please visit www.mylan.com.

Source: The Hindu (http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Hyderabad/article2606358.ece)

http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/00829/pigeon_pea_829937e.jpg
Once referred to as an “orphan crop” mainly grown by poor farmers, pigeonpea is now set to join the world’s league of major food crops with the completion of its genome sequence.

The completed genome sequence of pigeonpea is featured as an advance online publication on November 6 on the website of the journal Nature Biotechnology

(http://www.nature.com/nbt/journal/vaop/ncurrent/abs/nbt.2022.html), the leading journal of biotechnology. The paper (http://www.icrisat.org/gt-bt/iipg/Genome_Manuscript.html) provides an overview of the structure and function of the genes that define the pigeon pea plant. It also reveals clues on how the genomic sequence can be useful to crop improvement for sustainable food production particularly in the marginal environments of Asia and sub-Saharan Africa.

Years of genome analysis by a global research partnership led by the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) based in Hyderabad, India have resulted in the identification of 48,680 pigeonpea genes. A couple of hundreds of these genes were found unique to the crop in terms of drought tolerance, an important trait that can be transferred to other similar crops like soybean, cowpea or common bean that belong to the same family, according to a note released by ICRISAT here on Monday.

Pigeonpea, grown on about 5 million hectares in Asia, sub-Saharan Africa and South-Central America, is a very important food legume for millions of the poor in the semi-arid regions of the world. Known as the “poor people’s meat” because of its high protein content, it provides a well-balanced diet when accompanied with cereals.

“The mapping of the pigeonpea genome is a breakthrough that could not have come at a better time. Now that the world is faced with hunger and famine particularly in the Horn of Africa brought about by the worst drought of the decades, science-based, sustainable agricultural development solutions are vital in extricating vulnerable dry land communities out of poverty and hunger for good,” says ICRISAT Director General William D. Dar.

Rajeev Varshney, the lead scientist and coordinator for the pigeon pea genome sequencing project explains how this breakthrough will unlock pigeonpea’s potential. “Having the pigeonpea genome sequence as a reference will significantly speed up and reduce the cost of screening the ‘good genes’ within the stored pigeonpea seed collections in gene banks like that of ICRISAT. This also means dramatically reducing the cost of developing new improved varieties for farmers,” he said.

"The pigeonpea collaboration with ICRISAT is a milestone in the partnership between India and China, showcasing the excellent working dynamics and understanding among Indian and Chinese genomics scientists. I hope more partnerships like this will be established in the future, and I believe this will surely bring a significant difference to the whole world," says Professor Huanming Yang, Chairman of BGI-Shenzhen. Pigeonpea is the first “non-industrial crop” and the second food legume (after soybean) with a completed genome sequence.

The sequencing was accomplished by a global research partnership, the International Initiative for Pigeonpea Genomics (IIPG), led by ICRISAT with partners such as BGI -Shenzhen (China), US research laboratories like University of Georgia, University of California-Davis, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, and National Centre for Genome Resources, and support from the CGIAR Generation Challenge Programme based in Mexico.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/companies/article2668110.ece

GVK Bio, Temple University in drug discovery tie-up

NEW DELHI, NOV 28:
GVK Biosciences has struck a multi-year drug discovery collaboration with the Moulder Center for Drug Discovery Research, Temple University, Philadelphia, US.

The Moulder Center is focussed on drug discovery in the area of pharmaceuticals and biotechnology. It works with industry and other universities in joint research projects.

In recent years, with new drug discovery and bringing to market becoming prohibitively expensive and success rates falling, large pharma companies, which had invested heavily earlier have started looking at Universities and academia for basic discovery research.

Keeping this trend in mind, GVK Biosciences, a contract research organisation has forged a partnership with the Temple University. The first priority will be to identify potential molecules that can be taken to the clinical stage. The target area will be cardio metabolic diseases, Dr J.B. Singh, Senior Vice-President (Collaborative Research), told Business Line.

Nearly 75 per cent of the collaborative work will be done at the facilities of GVK Biosciences near Hyderabad. This includes target validation, lead identification and lead optimisation of small molecules. “We have a dedicated group with integrated drug discovery expertise (including chemistry and biology) and technologies to identify interesting small molecules against selected targets”, he said.

This collaboration with Temple University is among several academic collaborations GVK Bio has with leading research institutions, Mr Manni Kantipudi, Chief Executive Officer said. The outcome of the research will be commercially exploitable and GVK Bio will be inventor on the patents.

Dr Magid Abou-Gharbia, Director of the Moulder Center for Drug Discovery Research and Associate Dean for Research in Temple's School of Pharmacy said working with GVK Bio we can further leverage both teams' talents to identify innovative drug candidates.

Asia’s Generic Drugs Boom Swells Cargo Sales for Lufthansa, UPS: Freight
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-12-06/asia-s-generics-boom-swells-cargo-sales-at-lufthansa-freight.html
When the patent on Pfizer Inc. (PFE)’s Lipitor expired last week, Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd.’s generic version was the first to hit U.S. drugstores, some 7,000 miles away from the northern Indian factory where the production process started.
Providing transport for Asia’s burgeoning generic-drug industry is an investment priority for Deutsche Lufthansa AG and United Parcel Service Inc. (UPS) The pharmaceutical logistics segment will grow 12 percent this year to 47 billion euros ($63 billion) as more drugs are made in Asia and other developing markets, according to research firm Transport Intelligence Ltd.
“Just about every airline is looking at this space with interest right now,” Dan Gagnon, UPS’s European health-care logistics director, said in an interview. “As more competition gets into this space, you need to come up with solutions that are more economical but provide the same level of service.”
UPS, which provides freight service for German drugmaker Merck KGaA, has invested in five new pharmaceuticals facilities in the past year and last week purchased drugs logistics company Pieffe Group in Italy. Lufthansa opened a cold cargo facility in Frankfurt today to add to a pharmaceutical hub in Hyderabad, India, which started operations in May.
Pharmaceutical logistics growth will average 7.6 percent in the coming years, reaching 63 billion euros by 2015, according to a report last week by Transport Intelligence analyst Cathy Roberson. Biotech and pharmaceutical products represent the highest value per airlifted pound for any cargo, she said.
Topping Electronics
The 12 percent growth predicted for pharmaceutical air freight over the next five years outstrips the 4 percent anticipated in electronics cargo, which has traditionally been the strongest sector for air freight demand, Roberson said.
“The growth will be driven by emerging markets,” in particular India, China and Brazil, Roberson said in the report. “Continued outsourcing to these locations, along with changes in government legislation, will drive increases in logistics spending.”
Lufthansa’s cargo unit, whose customers include Ranbaxy, is planning to dedicate six McDonnell Douglas MD-11s by 2015 to handle pharmaceuticals as the five Boeing Co. 777s the airline will start receiving at the end of 2013 free up capacity. “Far more” than 12 percent of Lufthansa’s annual growth in India is coming from drug transports, said Karl Ulrich Garnadt, who heads the cargo unit.
High-Value Cargo
“It has been our most successful product in the past few years,” Andreas Otto, Lufthansa Cargo’s head of sales and marketing, told journalists in Frankfurt today, adding that the cool segment now accounts for a little less than 10 percent of the unit’s revenue. “The value carried in one container can easily reach more than $30 million.”
UPS, aiming to exceed the market forecasts for pharmaceutical air cargo growth of up to 12 percent, is currently tying up deals to improve its Asian facilities, Gagnon said. He expects an announcement in “about a month.”
“Infrastructure for us in India has been quite limited,” Gagnon said. “For our strategic initiatives, that is an area in which we will be investing.” UPS already has a cold cargo facility in Singapore.
India’s pharmaceutical exports are expected to grow 23 percent annually to 2015 as the quantity of generic drugs produced in the country increases, according to a joint study by the Organization of Pharmaceutical Producers of India and Deutsche Post AG released in September.
FDA in India
With more than 100 plants, India is home to more U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities than anywhere else outside the U.S. The FDA has had offices in New Delhi since 2008 and Mumbai since 2009 to enable better regulation of drugs produced in India.
While not all drugs require a controlled temperature environment to maintain their efficacy, vaccines, some medical devices, diagnostic kits and so-called biological medicines -- which are made from a living organism as opposed to chemical processes -- often do.
Seventy percent of drugs expected to dominate the market over the next four years fall into this biological bracket, and will therefore require more stringent temperature control measures in their transport, said Savvas Neophytou, a London- based Panmure Gordon health care analyst.
CSafe LLC, based in Dayton, Ohio, leases its 200 temperature-controlled containers to UPS, Deutsche Post’s DHL unit and FedEx Corp. (FDX) The company plans to build another 100 containers in 2012, according to its president.
Temperature Control
“Our product is really designed for that strict two to eight degrees centigrade,” Brian Kohr, CSafe’s chief, said in a telephone interview. “It could be going from a really hot ambient to a very cold ambient or vice versa and it has to maintain the temperature.”
Also contributing to growth are drug companies’ efforts to consolidate their number of production sites, said Jack Scannell, a Sanford Bernstein analyst.
“The upshot of that is that you end up shipping as you have less local production,” Scannell, who is based in London, said by telephone. “There has been a long gradual process over the past ten years to try to rationalize pharmaceutical manufacturing.”
‘Vast Untapped Market’
Health-care companies’ predilection for carrying out many of their logistics needs in-house also presents a “vast untapped market” for external carriers, Transport Intelligence analyst Joel Ray said by telephone.
“For us the biggest opportunity and competition is in- sourced supply chains,” UPS’s Gagnon added. “Health care is behind when it comes to outsourcing, and if we break down the market, that’s where most of our opportunities come from.”
An added perk is that pharmaceutical demand is unlikely to be harmed by an economic slump, Joerg Bodenroeder, who manages Lufthansa’s new cool center in Frankfurt, told journalists today.
“We saw in 2009 that the need for medical products and pharmaceuticals is also stable in crises,” he said.
To contact the reporter on this story: Alex Webb in Frankfurt awebb25@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Chad Thomas at cthomas16@bloomberg.net.

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World’s first femtosecod laser cataract surgery machine launched in Hyderabad

http://pharmabiz.com/NewsDetails.aspx?aid=67297&sid=1

World’s first VICTUS femtosecond laser cataract surgery machine was inaugurated by Dr A P J Abdul Kalam, former President of India, at Maxivision Eye Care Hospital in Hyderabad.

VICTUS is the most advanced innovative technology breakthrough in the field of eye surgery. It uses very short pulses of laser which are of the duration 10-15th part of a second.

This technology essentially helps doctors to conduct cataract, refractive and therapeutic procedures of the eye on a single platform. The laser machine would enable eye surgeons to perform computer controlled precise, accurate and reproducible incisions compared to current manual procedures.

“Hyderabad is one of the intellectual hubs of India in the field of medicine. The medical fraternity should strive to develop innovative technology at affordable costs so that it reaches to the larger spectrum of people in need”, said the former nuclear scientist. Dr Kalam further suggested that teams of experts should be formed to explore the multidimensional uses of femtosecond laser in treating various eye ailments.

Application specialist, Tauf, from Germany, who was also present at the inauguration function, said, “It is the most advanced machine which uses femtosecond laser technology to perform eye surgeries. Already the machine was under test since 2010 and has cleared all performance tests with very high accuracy.”

So far 450 eye operations have been successfully performed by the hospital without any complications. This successful clinical research has enabled it to get approved of CE (European Conformity) mark in the European Union.

Dr Kasu Prasad Reddy, a leading ophthalmologist and the founder of Maxivision Eye Care Hospital has played a vital role in bringing this technology to India. “The laser refractive surgery (LRCS) offered by VICTUS platform will allow ophthalmologists to create more precise, controlled and centred incision that allows access to the cataract clouded lens. It enables effective treatment in short duration as there are no physical cuts involved and the patients can be sure of 100 per cent success,” he said.

^^ when it comes to bio-technology ................. i think hyderabad is best in India :)

yes it is. This is one reason Lufthansa has set up a temperature controlled to export uni for generic drugs at Hyderabad Airport. There are many generic drugs which as demand in US are manufactured in Hyderabad.
^^ when it comes to bio-technology ................. i think hyderabad is best in India :)

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industry-and-economy/economy/article2875807.ece?ref=wl_industry-and-economy
HYDERABAD, FEB. 9:
The Andhra Pradesh Government is making its policies more industry friendly, according to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister, Mr N. Kiran Kumar Reddy.

Speaking at the inaugural ceremony of the BioAsia 2012 here on Thursday, he said Hyderabad and Andhra Pradesh had the best infrastructure in the country.

“Hyderabad has again become best destination for investments,” he said.:banana::banana::banana:

Dr J. Geetha Reddy, Minister for Industries, Government of Andhra Pradesh said the State was emerging as a hub for “all kinds of businesses.”

Dr Krishna Ella, Managing Director, Bharat Biotech, requested the Government to set up a panel on pollution norms for the biotech industry.

Prof Tissa Vitarana, Senior Minister for Science and Technology, Sri Lanka, said biotechnology had potential to eradicate many diseases and was contributing to significantly to heathcare.

Dr K.V. Raghavan, Vice-President, Federation of Asian Biotech Associations, said the Indian biotech industry had crossed over $3 billion in 2010-2011.

Referring to biotech industry growth the State, he said the Genome Valley near Hyderabad had over 100 biotech units.

The Chief Minister presented the Genome Valley Excellence Award to Dr Seth Berkley, Chief Executive Officer, GAVI Alliance, Geneva and Mr Kevin Ali, President, Emerging Markets, Merck, USA.

The three-day event is being attended by about 250 companies and delegates from 35 countries.

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“Hyderabad has again become best destination for investments,” he said.:banana::banana::banana:



Nice to hear that ^^

Source: http://pharmabiz.com/NewsDetails.aspx?aid=67465&sid=2

A Raju, Hyderabad
Friday, February 10, 2012, 09:00 Hrs [IST]
The scientists at the Indian institute of Chemical Technology (IICT), Hyderabad are on their way to have a breakthrough invention of generating electricity from dye based and organic based solar cells. The central government has sanctioned Rs.100 crore for research in luminescence technology, which can be used for development of organic light emitting diodes.

Thanks to the revolutionary research done by the scientists at IICT Hyderabad, they have initially achieved an efficiency of 11 per cent and research is on to improve the durability of the product to 10 years.

The luminescence technology is currently under development and it is likely to be available for commercial use in the next three years. It is believed that with just using only 1.5 volts of electricity the entire room will be illuminated using this organic light emitting diode technology.

If this technology becomes a reality, it is said that more than 50 per cent of the domestic power bills will be saved and it can also be used in street lights. This will be saving a considerable amount of power.

Dr L Giribabu, a scientists at IICT’s nano materials laboratory said, “We were working with a target of achieving 10 per cent efficiency, but we could achieve 11 per cent efficiency. The highest efficiency one can achieve is 33 per cent, which is currently quite difficult. We are working to improve the durability of the product to 10 years to make it more economical.”

Speaking on the sidelines of the 4th international conference on luminescence and its application, Dr Giribabu said the project is one of the prestigious projects taken up by the scientists at IICT.

The conference was organized by the Rajiv Gandhi University of knowledge Technologies, IICT and Society for information Display and Luminescence society of India. About 350 experts in light technology from across the world have visited the conference.

Source: http://pharmabiz.com/NewsDetails.aspx?aid=67478&sid=2

The Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh Kiran Kumar Reddy has called upon the industry leaders and new investors to explore and tap the best potentials available in the state. He emphasized that the government is giving more priority to the pharma and biotechnology sector and is devising more industry friendly policies to retain its past tag of a pioneering industrial state in the country.

While inaugurating the 9th edition of BioAsia 2012 at Hyderabad International Convention Centre at Hitex, Reddy said, “We are again on the track and looking forward for a sustainable growth. In that direction we are working hard to make Hyderabad to once again become the best destination for investments in the country.”

Over the past 2 years the industrial sector in the state has been worried over the past disturbances and uncertainties in the government. Moreover the unresolved contentious issues between the pharma industry, the regulatory authorities and the pollution control board have also halted growth activities in the state.

Now with the government’s assurance to support and devise friendly policies for the industrial sector, new investors are enthused to invest in the state especially in the vaccine and bio pharma sector. Companies like GSK, Pfizer, and Sanofi are planning to venture in to the state provided the state government takes proactive steps in accelerating its industry friendly policies.

Dr J Geetha Reddy, Minister for Industries, Government of Andhra Pradesh was also present at the inauguration session of the event. She said, “The government is ready to provide all the facilities to help industry to grow and make the State an emerging hub for all kinds of businesses in the country.”

With regard to speedy resolution of issues, Dr Krishna Ella, Managing Director, Bharat Biotech, requested the Government to set up a panel on pollution norms for the biotech industry.

“The biotechnology industry is growing on a faster pace in the state. There are more than 100 biotech units located in the Genome valley. During the year 2010-11 the Indian biotech industry has crossed $3 billion and is poised to grow further in the coming years,” said Dr K V Raghavan, vice-president, Federation of Asian Biotech Associations.

Genome Valley Excellence Award were presented by the chief minister to Dr Seth Berkley, Chief Executive Officer, GAVI Alliance, Geneva and Mr Kevin Ali, President, Emerging Markets, Merck, USA for their exemplary work in the area of innovation and research.

About 250 companies from across 35 countries are taking part in the BioAsia-12 event where they will be interacting with each other and involved in discussions over optimizing opportunities especially in the field of vaccine development and other related pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors.

Source: http://ibnlive.in.com/generalnewsfeed/news/shantha-biotech-pins-hopes-on-orders-from-global-agencies/961745.html

Hyderabad, Feb 10 (PTI) Shantha Biotech is pinning hopes on orders from international organisations for its flagship pentavalent vaccine which is currently undergoing clinical trials. The city-based company was bought by French vaccine maker Sanofi Pasteur in July 2009. Shantha Biotech's plant capacity, currently pegged at 500 million doses per annum, will be increased to one billion by 2015, the company's Managing Director & CEO, Harish V Iyer, said today. "We are hardly utilising our production facility, which was built to meet specific requirements of UNICEF and other agencies. Once we get the WHO pre-qualification, the target is to expand to more than a billion doses," Iyer said on the sidelines of a biotech conference here. Shan5 ,a five-in-one vaccine to protect infants against diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus, hepatitis-B and a bacterium causing pneumonia and meningitis, is currently undergoing the phase I trials and expected to hit the market by the end of 2013, he said. According to Iyer, the company is also in the process of developing a rotavirus vaccine. Over 1,00,000 children die each year due to rotavirus infection in India, while globally it's about 500,000. Shantha is also working, along with International Vaccine Institute, on a cholera vaccine, he added. "Once we have Shan5 and these products on track, we will go ahead with more vaccines for diseases such as measles, rabies and hepatitis-A. Also, we hope to introduce IPV (Inactivated Polio Vaccine) and a hexavalent vaccine too is in the pipeline," Iyer explained. PTI GDK RSY

National DNA training academy to come up in Hyderabad

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/226443/national-dna-training-academy-come.html

In a bid to provide a major boost to forensic science, the ''city of pearls'' is gearing up to accommodate an academy which will deal in training the young minds on the usage of DNA, which has proved to be crucial in decoding many mysteries.

The Hyderabad-based DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics (CDFD), an autonomous scientific institute funded by the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), has proposed setting up of a national academy to encourage widespread application of DNA fingerprinting methods in solving the criminal cases.

“The proposed Academy, in consultation with the Union Home Ministry and DBT, will train post-graduate science students in DNA profiling and analysis as there is a huge requirement for DNA analysis in the country,” CDFD Director J Gowrishankar said.
This technique now needs to be scaled up for widespread use and the required manpower needs to be created.

There is a requirement for at least 1,000 DNA examiners in the country while, at present, there are only 25 examiners, each of them handling about 100 cases annually.
The academy will offer short-term capsules for a six-week period and a one-year diploma course in DNA analysis.

It will also offer a two-year post-graduation programme in DNA technology.
There are also plans to get a deemed university status for the academy.

Procedural delay

Though the CDFD had submitted the proposal to the Centre long back, there has been a procedural delay in setting up the academy.

The main reason is the dilemma over whether the cadre of the proposed academy should be placed under the Home Ministry or the Ministry of Science and Technology.

However, the need for improving the efficiency in forensic investigations and adoption of new technologies has been recognised by the authorities. The CDFD officials hope that the academy would take final shape soon.

According to the official figures of the National Crime Records Bureau, the total number of violent crimes in the country in 2010, including murders, rapes and kidnaps, were 2,41,986, of which, only 27 per cent of the guilty were convicted.
In this scenario, the DNA profiling provides a fool-proof scientific method in crime detection.

Its results are beyond any doubt, when compared to other forensic tools like ballistic, chemical analysis and toxicology.

Source: http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/shantha-to-rampcapacity/464495/

Shantha Biotech, part of French pharmaceutical major Sanofi, is planning to ramp up its production capacity at the Hyderabad facility, which is touted as Asia’s biggest.

“Sanofi has earmarked $300 million to establish a new vaccine manufacturing unit in India over the next three years, as well as for augmenting capacities at the existing facility. We (Shantha) will be investing in training people on technical and quality aspects, improving quality standards, upgrading infrastructure etc,” said Harish V Iyer, managing director and chief executive officer of Shantha Biotech.

Sanofi had acquired a controlling stake in Shantha in July 2009, in a deal that had valued the Indian company at $783 million.
The drug maker is expected to introduce the rotavirus vaccine to the market by 2015. “Every year. Rotavirus kills around 100,000 infants in India, and 500,000 globally. The rotavirus vaccine, developed by Shantha, is in an early stage of clinical trials,” Iyer said.

The company is also planning to relaunch the pentavalent Shan5 vaccine by the end of 2013. Sanofi had completely stopped producing Shan5 after the World Health Organisation (WHO) delisted the vaccine from prequalification, based on complaints that a white sediment was found sticking to the vials. However, WHO stated that there were no side-effects reported from this aberration.

“We have made some changes in the manufacturing process of pentavalent Shan5 vaccine. It is the same pentavalent with changes in composition,” he said.

Nice to hear. the Genome valley is getting brighter.
Source: http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/shantha-to-rampcapacity/464495/

Source: http://ibnlive.in.com/news/zebrafish-aplenty-in-city-lakes/229718-60-121.html

HYDERABAD: These are one of the most commonly found fish in the local lakes of Hyderabad. Called as ‘chintaaku pariga’ in Telugu, they are just like any other fresh water fish and popular too as an aquarium fish.
But what many do not know is that this Zebrafish shares almost all the genes with human beings in a DNA sequence, thus making it an almost perfect vertebrate model organism for laboratory purposes. Experiments on the fish have proved to be very effective and efficient in studying the possible effects of any drug on human beings. From embryos to the 1.5-inch long adult fish, these are used in research relating to various diseases including cancer, diabetes etc and drug development for the same.
These small transparent fish with stripes are very useful when it comes to drug development, acknowledges Dr Kiranam Chatti, a senior research scientist at the Institute of Life Sciences, Hyderabad. According to him, Zebrafish embryos are living organisms with several of the organs and processes present in humans.
The embryos are small, transparent, and available in large numbers, which provides the added advantage over other animal models like rats, mice, rabbits, guinea pigs, and dogs, for studying the safety and effectiveness of drugs.
Zebrafish embryos are treated with drugs and their effects on organ functions and development can be observed under a microscope.
Dr Pushkar Kulkarni, an ILS scientist, has established sophisticated technology to obtain electrocardiograms (ECG) from Zebrafish to study and evaluate cardiovascular effects of drugs. “A major advantage with Zebrafish is that testing of a large number of drugs can be performed early in the process, so that risky drug candidates can be identified and rejected early and only effective ones are used for further studies,” says Dr Chatti.
Zebrafish in Dr Chatti’s labs are also genetically altered to create ‘disease models’, which imitate human diseases like cancer, diabetes and inflammation, and thus help us better understand diseases as well as develop therapies.
So how easy or difficult is it to maintain one such lab? According to Dr Chatti, it is quite simple and easy to maintain.
“We have a custom-made recirculation system with several interconnected tanks and a water pump so that the water does not remain static. The fish are provided with high quality live brine shrimp as food, and allowed to breed while the fertilized eggs are collected separately,” explains Dr Chatti. He says many interesting aspects of embryogenesis can be observed within the first five days of development- from the time the eggs are fertilized to the time when small fish begin to feed by themselves. “For the purpose of pharmacology, embryos up to a week old can be used to study the effects of drugs, apart from adult fish,” points out Dr Chatti.
The Institute of Life Sciences in Hyderabad is one of the very few institutes in India which use Zebrafish for research in pharmacology and drug development.
The institute also lets its researchers establish their own companies a few little known facts
* Zebrafish shares almost all the genes with human beings in a DNA sequence, thus making it an almost perfect vertebrate model organism for laboratory purposes * A major advantage with Zebrafish is that testing of a large number of drugs can be performed early in the process, so that risky drug candidates can be identified and rejected early and only effective ones are used for further studies * Institute of Life Sciences in Hyderabad is one of the very few institutes in India which use Zebrafish for research

Fidelity Growth Partners invests Rs 200 cr in Aptuit Laurus
http://ibnlive.in.com/generalnewsfeed/news/fidelity-growth-partners-invests-rs-200-cr-in-aptuit-laurus/963388.html

Mumbai, Feb 14 (PTI) Fidelity Growth Partners India, the India-focused private equity arm of Fidelity Worldwide, has invested around Rs 200 crore in Hyderabad-based pharmaceutical company, Aptuit Laurus. The Hyderabad-based pharma company manufactures active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) for anti-retroviral (HIV-AIDS), oncology, nutraceutical and several other products with a customer base spanning in India and abroad. The company also has a growing contract research and manufacturing business offering, which works with several global pharma companies, the release said. "In a short span of time, Laurus has established global leadership positions in its key product offerings, built world-class infrastructure and serves a top-tier customer base. The company continues to drive innovation in its strong product pipeline of difficult-to-make molecules, which, we believe will help it build a long-term defensible business," Senior Managing Director at FIL Capital Advisors (India), Raj Dugar said. However, the company didn't disclose the stake it will get in the phrma company after the announced investment. Referring to this equity investment, Chief Executive Officer of Laurus, Chava Satyanarayana said," Laurus has built a strong reputation in product development and manufacturing and a track record of high-quality products to its customers. We are glad to partner with FGPI in this phase of our growth, where, we will seek to continue the thurst on innovation and manufacturing excellence in offering cost effective products and services." This is the tenth investment of the PE arm of Fidelity since 2008, which has earlier invested in Coastal Projects, telecom power system manufacturer- VMC, logistics and retail analytics firm Manthan Software among others.

Dr Reddy plans Rs 500-crore capital expenditure in FY 12-13

http://www.hindustantimes.com/business-news/CorporateNews/Dr-Reddy-plans-Rs-500-crore-capital-expenditure-in-FY-12-13/Article1-811437.aspx

Dr Reddy's Laboratories, India's second largest drug-maker, is planning to invest around $100 million (around Rs 500 crore) as capital expenditure in the next financial year (2012-13) to expand its manufacturing capacity for meeting the increasing demand of pharmaceuticals


products.
"Though it is very early to give exact figures, we expect capital expenditure for the next financial year (2012-13) to be around $100 million," said K Anji Reddy, chairman, Dr Reddy's Laboratories. "Significant portion of this investment will be in constructing manufacturing facilities."

The company is setting up a formulation manufacturing plant in Vizag and Biologics manufacturing facility in Hyderabad. Currently, the drug maker has 18 manufacturing facilities of which 14 are in India and rest are outside.

Of the total 18 manufacturing facilities, 9 are of formulations, 8 for Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient (API) and one for biologics. The company's capital expenditure stood at Rs 465 crore during the first nine months of current financial year and the management expects it to be in the range of $100 million-$150 million (Rs 500-750 crore) for the full year.

"We had said in the beginning of the current fiscal year (2011-12) that roughly we will spend $100-150 million as capital expenditure and in the first nine months of the current fiscal we have spent $94 million," said Reddy. "It will be in the expected range."

Hyderabad-based drug-maker, which posted net profit of Rs 513 crore at the end of December 2011, has presence in gastro-intestinal, cardiovascular, diabetology, oncology, pain management, anti-infective and pediatrics.

Major markets of the company include India, US, Russia and CIS (Commonwealth Independent States), Germany, UK, Venezuela, South Africa, Romania, and New Zealand.

Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/healthcare/biotech/biotechnology-sector-to-have-more-ma-activity-due-to-fund-crunch-report/articleshow/11895715.cms

HYDERABAD: Paucity of funding for the Indian biotechnology sector for expanding its operations forces it to look towards mergers and acquisitions, according to Yes Bank.

The Indian biotechnology sector is not just finding it difficult to raise funds from the public, but also from the private equity sector as well, Yes Bank said in its report on biotech industry, titled 'Indian Biotechnology Ecosystem- an Investment Perspective'.

"Further, the investments, which are made, will be in several tranches tied to milestone payments and not in lump-sum, as was wont to be the case earlier. However, Yes Bank expects the M & A activity in the sector to see a significant rise, as small niche companies exhaust their cash surpluses and start exploring new models for restructuring their business, the report said.

Most investors are unwilling to invest in Life Science companies' R & D activities, as they prefer funding companies, whose product and market are clearly identified, forcing Life Science entrepreneurs to be unable to raise sufficient funds for basic R & D through equity investments, it says.

"The current conservative investor mindset is resulting in Indian investors looking to fund matured companies. Most of the deals done over the last few years have been for manufacturers of generic drugs or contract manufacturers, as these are perceived as fairly low-risk businesses," it further said.

The Bank opined that a majority of the IPOs will be from the pharmaceutical sector, as most companies in the biotech and medical devices sectors in India are still at a nascent stage as the recent years have not been successful for Life sciences IPOs owing to the current weak market conditions and global economic cues.

The situation has led to a huge gap between the companies' expected valuations and those arrived at by the investor community.

Within the Life Sciences Industry, Biotechnology has been identified as a key area of growth with the Global biotechnology market predicted to surpass $ 320 billion by 2015.

The global Biotech industry is lead by US, followed by advanced European countries. Developing countries such as India and China are soon emerging as major Biotechnology markets, according to the report.

Indian Biotech market has tripled over the last five years, and is projected to grow at a CAGR of over 20 per cent to achieve a market size of $ 8 billion by 2015.

The global biotech market for 2010 is around $ 85 billion and is expected to reach $ 320 billion by 2015. There has been a large gap between the funding available for this sector and the funding required by the players to achieve their full potential, it said.

Source: http://pharmabiz.com/NewsDetails.aspx?aid=67573&sid=2

Covidien, a leading global provider of healthcare products, today announced the opening of its first research and development (R&D) centre in India. The Covidien India Engineering Centre (CIEC) is a 40,000 square-foot facility located in DLF Cybercity Special Economic Zone (SEZ), Hyderabad. It plans to expand its facility based in the SEZ, which is currently under construction further in the near future.

In the last five years, Covidien had more than doubled its R&D investments and launched more than 100 new products. Over the next few years, the Company plans to invest five to six per cent of its sales to R&D activities. The CIEC will provide state-of-the-art engineering services to Covidien’s R&D organisation in the areas of design, hardware, software and testing, while developing a footprint for future product development.

The CIEC provides a range of engineering services for the company’s medical products business and eventually plans to employ upto 350 staff in the future. Randel Frazier, vice president R&D, emerging markets, said, “Innovation is at the heart of everything Covidien does. As a company we devote significant resources to invent and develop technology that physicians utilise to improve patient outcomes. Our company is expanding our R&D capabilities worldwide and this new facility in India is playing an integral role in our global strategy.”

Robert Frechette, vice president, Engineering Services, Covidien said, “India has a strong base of highly-talented engineers and bringing this talent into Covidien’s organisation is critical for our continued growth. By establishing our presence in Hyderabad, we are expanding Covidien’s R&D capabilities as well as enhancing the city’s reputation as a hub for life sciences.”

Further he added that their new facility is up and running with more than 30 engineers and staff involved in Covidien’s global R&D efforts.

Covidien has an important and growing commercial presence in India with offices based in Gurgaon, Mumbai, and Chennai. The company has nearly 200 employees in its commercial organisation with a strong network of distributors across the country.

According to Arjun Sarker, managing director, Indian Subcontinent, Covidien, “With a fast-growing economy, the demand for healthcare in India is growing at a rapid pace. Thus the establishment of this R&D facility will help expand Covidien’s presence and commitment to India.”

Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/healthcare/biotech/healthcare/pfizer-looking-for-indian-cos-to-partner-in-treating-cancer-patients/articleshow/11933883.cms

HYDERABAD: Pfizer, the world's largest research-based pharma company, will invest heavily into oncology research and is looking for Indian companies who could partner with the pharmaceutical giant in treating cancer patients, a senior Pfizer research head said.

The company has identified oncology as the therapeutic segment for research in the emerging markets such as China and India as cancer is one of the key causes of premature deaths.

Dr Richard Cornell, Vice President, Asia Research, Pfizer, said: "Oncology is where there is a massive medical need and there is a significant breakthrough in science. Indian companies are very strong in bio-chemistry and so we are looking for partners here."

However, he refused to specify how much they would invest in oncology research.

The company recently got the approval for Xalkori, a lung cancer drug that may help the New York-based company to offset $11 billion in revenue at risk to generic copies of the best-selling Lipitor cholesterol pill.

According to IMS data, since 2003, Pfizer has increased its number of oncology R&D projects by 400% and dedicated more than 20% of its overall budget to oncology. The company has more than 200 ongoing or planned, sponsored, oncology clinical studies.

Pfizer, unlike many Big Pharma companies is not moving away from primary care or metabolic segments. It will continue to focus on both primary care and speciality care segments for developing new products. Globally, pharma companies are making a paradigm shift in terms of R&D and their outlook towards emerging markets.

In terms of research, they are allocating more of their money in the speciality segments such as oncology and focussing on growing in countries with higher population in the East Asia.

Source: http://www.thehindu.com/news/states/andhra-pradesh/article2888394.ece

http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/00921/hy13bio_eps_921949f.jpg

The segment, however, is facing problems related to quality parameters as well as infrastructure

From the day it played host to the first biotech company to produce a locally-developed recombinant DNA-derived healthcare product in 1997 -- Hepatitis B vaccine -- Andhra Pradesh, known as the pharmaceutical hub of the country, has come a long way to become the biopharmaceutical capital of India.

The fledgling segment, however, is facing several problems related to quality parameters as well as infrastructure that would accelerate its growth. While the State is reckoned as the pioneer of the biotechnology industry setting up the Genome Valley, housing laboratories of several industry majors, it is also home to some unwelcome developments like suspension of procurement of certain vaccines by the World Health Organisation.

The Genome Valley cluster is currently housing about 200 biotech research, training and manufacturing units supported by world-class infrastructure and another 200 units are spread in different parts of the State. A couple of lakhs square feet area in the Genome Valley is exclusively dedicated for the laboratory space.

The flip side, however, is suspension of procurement of Revac B, the hepatitis B vaccine, manufactured by Bharat Biotech by the WHO after a site inspection. The procurement was suspended as certain deficiencies were found in manufacturing systems and quality management practices. Another pentavalent vaccine rolled out by Biotech major, Shantha Biotech, was recalled earlier as there were certain lacunae in the good manufacturing practices.

Coupled with these are the problems relating to power and roads for accessing the industry and branding of biotechnology sector along with the highly polluting pharmaceutical companies.

The entrepreneurs made no secret of their disappointment when they raised the issues in the presence of Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy during the BioAsia 2012 that was held here last week.

A home to leading names like Shantha Biotech, Bharat Bio and GVK Biosciences, the State made impressive strides in another area, though indirectly related, enabling setting up of bio-informatics, using IT as tool for designing and development of new molecules. There is, however, a gap in giving fillip to allied sectors like bio-industrial and bio-services.

Bharat Biotech chairman Krishna M. Ella said the State witnessed investments close to US $ 500 million (Rs. 2,500 crore) and is all set to grow six-fold in the next five years. “Industry slow down has nothing do with political problems as the State's policies have continuity irrespective of change of governments,” he noted.

Another advantage AP has for the growth of biotechnology industry is the support it gets from numerous research institutions such as the prestigious Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB), National Institute of Nutrition (NIN), ICRISAT, Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics (CDFD), Directorate of Rice Research (DRR) and others which provide access to high-level talent to industry and teaching institutions.

Notwithstanding this progress, the government should continue to play a significant role in the advancement of this high-tech and capital-intensive industry. In particular, the State Government can help the industry by ensuring access to efficient infrastructure to make it strong and viable player in the global arena”, says Harish V. Iyer, Managing Director of Shantha Biotech.

The industry, however, has several unfulfilled demands like incentives to biotech companies setting up their shop in the State, encouragement to those opting for research and development (given the fact that the market is worth over US $ 15 billion) and facilitating faster collaboration between the companies, relaxing some regulations.

The State, no doubt, has huge human resource potential, but when it comes to fields like biotechnology which involve cutting edge research, the youth need to be trained in practical skills, says GVK Biosciences president Manni Kantipudi.

Source: http://www.mydigitalfc.com/news/aurobindo-launch-3-products-pfizer-254

Aurobindo Pharma, which has been facing ire of the USFDA coupled with drop in sales, hopes to launch three-four products along with pharma major Pfizer in three months. This could help the company improve revenues from mid-February to June, according to its chairman Ramprasad Reddy.

The US formulations’ sales for the company remained flat this year, partly owing to the import alert by the USFDA on its manufacturing plants based out of Hyderabad. The company is also stepping back from its earlier guidance of $2 billion revenues by 2014, and extending it for a year.

Aurobindo now hopes the regulator would inspect its sites under scanner in the next 20-45 days. “Audit of unit III should have happened on February 13 but it was postponed by another 20 days. Now, it will happen between February 29 and March 4. Audit of unit VI will happen during June-July,” Reddy said.

Investors had, however, raised concerns that the company may attract a 483, which calls for a detailed corrective action plan of the company in writing, for these plants.

Talking about how the US market would do better for them, Reddy said, “Pfizer has some of the smaller low margin products. They are going to launch at least three products in next three months. We will have at least 8-10 million new orders for these products,” he said.

Aurobindo’s in-licencing deal with Pfizer covers 44 generic drugs which will be sold in emerging markets as well as developed ones like the US, Europe and Australia. Meanwhile, the company also plans to go slow on capex over the next six quarters, restricting it to Rs 25 crore per quarter towards maintenance. According to the chairman, the company has a pending capex commitment of Rs 175 crore as on December, which will, however, be complete only by July. This financial year, they had invested around Rs 400 crore.

Source: Biogenex at the Annual Molecular Medicine Tri-Conference, San Francisco 2012

Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh -- (SBWIRE) -- 02/21/2012 -- Biogenex laboratory is participating in Annual Molecular Medicine Tri-Conference, San Francisco in line with our mission to bringing affordable healthcare solutions for improved wellness of humanity. Biogenex is a technology leader in Molecular Pathology and provides total solution for the complete automation of cell and tissue diagnostics through its cutting-edge and patented technologies. It enables disease diagnosis at molecular level primarily targeting DNA, RNA and protein.

At this year’s Annual Molecular Medicine Tri-Conference from Feb 19 – 23, 2012 at Moscone north Convention Center, San Francisco. BioGenex, will offers total solution for the complete automation of cell and tissue diagnostics through its cutting-edge patented technologies and instruments Xmatrx, i6000 and EZ-Retriever.

Xmatrx is most advanced platform technology for molecular pathology laboratories of today, tomorrow and beyond. It automates more technologies and staining steps than any other system available today. It supports IHC, ISH, and FISH.

i6000 platform has two variants i6000Diagnostics and i6000 Infinity.

I6000 Diagnostics is Walk-away automation which providers high throughput, unsurpassed speed and versatility for IHC.

i6000 Infinity Is a research system which provides superior flexibility and freedom to customized protocols.

EZ Retriver System enables dewax, re-hydration and antigen retrieval all in one step.

BioGenex, is keen on attracting the medical research community at the Annual Molecular Medicine Tri-Conference at Booth no #606 with it latest technologies such as:

- micorRNA
- Co-detection of IHC & ISH and
- Double Staining techniques

MSD receives Genome Valley Excellence Award at BioAsia 2012, India
http://pharmabiz.com/NewsDetails.aspx?aid=67663&sid=2
MSD, subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc, has been awarded the prestigious Genome Valley Excellence Award at BioAsia 2012, India. MSD received this award for its commitment to patient health & vaccine research, its vision, cutting edge research & continual leadership status in the biopharmaceutical space, particularly vaccines and its support and contributions to the initiatives focused on preventing female cancers.

Kevin Ali, President, Emerging Markets, MSD was presented the Genome Valley Excellence Award - 2012 by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N.Kiran Kumar Reddy, who formally inaugurated the 9th edition of BioAsia 2012, at Hyderabad. The award ceremony was attended by members of the global biotech fraternity and other dignitaries.

While discussing MSD's commitment to research and the significance of the award, Kevin Ali, said, “It is an honour to accept the Genome Valley Excellence Award on behalf of MSD. We are proud that the State of Andhra Pradesh has recognized our commitment to cutting edge research and leadership status in the biopharmaceutical space, particularly vaccines. The award encourages us to continue developing better vaccines for the world's major infectious diseases, to innovate, and to work hard to find ways to make our products even more accessible to those who need them."

Instituted in 2004 by the Government of Andhra Pradesh, the Genome Valley Excellence Award recognizes and honours eminent individuals and organizations for their exceptional contribution to Life Sciences research & development and encourages path-breaking innovations and achievements. Since then it has been continued in every edition of BioAsia. The Awards reflect BioAsia 2012's commitment to enabling the proliferation of ideas and discoveries intended to elevate the quality of human life itself.

MSD operates its human health business in India through three separate legal entities: MSD Pharmaceuticals Pvt. Ltd., Organon India Limited and Fulford India Limited, which are subsidiaries of Merck & Co. Inc. MSD in India currently operates in various therapeutic areas including metabolics, cardiovascular, vaccines, critical care, immunology, virology, oncology, women's health, dermatology, respiratory, virology, musculoskeletal and primary care and offers a strong and diversified product portfolio of over 75 brands, of which 13 are already category leading products.

Source: http://pharmabiz.com/NewsDetails.aspx?aid=67725&sid=2

Yashoda Group of Hospitals recently conducted an international conference of neuroscience focusing on stroke and cerebral haemodynamics at Hotel Marigold in Hyderabad. The objective of this international conference was to exchange ideas and introduce cutting-edge research and therapy-oriented technologies in the key areas of clinical neurology.

The programme was inaugurated and presided over by chief guest, D Sridhar Babu, state minister for consumer affairs, food & civil supplies. The conference presented the latest technical advances and contemporary treatment options on stroke and cerebral hemodynamics. A panel of experts in neurology and stroke offered their perspectives on a series of cases that demonstrated the myriad challenges faced by physicians who treat patients with stroke or at risk of stroke.

A stroke or ‘brain attack’ occurs when a blood clot blocks an artery or a blood vessel breaks, interrupting blood flow to an area of the brain. As per the estimates of World Health Organisation (WHO) about 5.5 million people die from stroke worldwide making it second major cause of death in the world.

During this conference, Yashoda Group also organised a neurosonology workshop on extracranial doppler and transcranial doppler which was conducted by distinct neurologists who are certified in neurosonology by American Society of Neuroimaging (ASN).

Speaking on the occasion, Dr G S Rao, managing director of Yashoda Group of Hospitals said, “We have always maintained sustainable quality and continuous improvement in patient care over the last two decades. A perpetual effort to strive for excellence in medical education and research inspired us to organise this international conference on neuroscience. The conference is aimed at creating space for both international neuroscience experts and aspiring students to share thoughts and research results, as well as to develop a sense of community that will lead to future cooperation.”

Elaborating on the need to organise an international conference on stroke and cerebral haemodynamics, Dr R N Komal Kumar, senior neuro physician at Yashoda Hospitals and organising secretary of the programme said, “Stroke and its potentially debilitating consequences necessitate expedient and effective therapies that will minimize residual effects and ensure the best-possible quality of life for patients. This conference is an educational initiative, designed to bring eminent neuro specialists from India and other countries closer to stroke care by providing up-to-date and clinically relevant information applied to a variety of situations.”

About 150 eminent neurologists, neurosonologists, neurosurgeons and stroke specialists from India and abroad, including close to 200 general physicians attended the scientific sessions. The scientific sessions in the international conference covered key topics that include stroke prevention, acute stroke and cerebral haemodynamic.

Source: http://pharmabiz.com/NewsDetails.aspx?aid=67744&sid=1

The Andhra Pradesh Neuroscientists Association (APNSA) organized a Brain Tumour awareness campaign by conducting a solidarity walk at Necklace Road in Hyderabad.

Many dignitaries, neurosurgeons and celebrities took part in the walk to highlight about its noble cause of creating awareness and express solidarity with brain tumour patients and families. Prominent people present at the walk were D L Ravindra Reddy, Honourable Health Minister, A K Khan, Commissioner of Police and V V S Laxman, Indian test cricketer.

Speaking on the occasion Dr M R C Naidu, former professor & HOD Neuros, Osmania Hospital, said brain tumour can be prevented and can be cured if it is diagnosed at the early stage. He emphasized that there is a need to create greater awareness among the general public regarding the brain tumour and its available treatment.

“This is our endeavour to make the people aware and get proper treatment. We will conduct the camps in the rural areas and create awareness to them also. Services are available in all government and private hospitals. Neuro surgeons have to come forward and we are inviting eminent persons to share their scientific knowledge,” said Dr Naidu.

Recently there have been lots of cases emerging relating to brain tumour in the state. General population in the country is unaware of the dangers of brain tumour and they are also not able to identify the symptoms of brain tumour in the initial stages because of which many are approaching the hospitals after entering into serious conditions. Therefore it is high time the general public should be aware of the brain tumour and its causes.

Brain tumour is mainly caused when brain cells multiply excessively in an uncontrolled manner and do not function like normal brain tissue instead cause pressure on the adjacent parts of the normally functioning brain thereby producing various symptoms.

Usually the brain tumour develops from the local, native, brain cells. However, such cancerous (malignant tumour) cells can also come from distant body organs like lungs, breast, etc. This disease is not infectious and it will not spread from one person to another person as it is in case of T.B., skin contact Scabies, Sexual contact HIV, Malaria etc. In no case it is transmitted by one human being to another. However, they can be transmitted from one generation to another genetically. So far nobody knows fully about the actual cause of primary (native) brain tumours.

Brain tumours are relatively common and can occur in any age group including children less than one year old to elderly people. There is no sex predilection. Symptoms related to a brain tumour are directly related to the location of tumour and its size. Tumours in critical locations are likely to present much earlier than tumours in non eloquent regions of the brain. The most common symptom of presentation is headache. Headache is predominantly in the forehead region more in mornings and associated with vomiting. Vomiting usually relieve the headache. Headache can occasionally be associated with blurring of vision at the peak of headache. Other possible symptoms of a brain tumour include a new seizure in an adult, gradual loss of movement or sensation in an arm or leg, unsteadiness or imbalance while walking, loss of vision in one or both eyes, double vision etc. Diagnosis and confirmation of tumour is usually done by doing a CT scan or MRI of the brain.

Australian firm to pick up 74% stake in Hyderbad pharma firm Cheminnova
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/companies/article2942603.ece

HYDERABAD, FEB. 29:
Hyderabad-based pharmaceutical manufacturer Cheminnova has entered into a joint venture with Brisbane-based neutraceuticals firm Rapid Nutrition Ltd.

“The joint venture has been formed on the basis of our phased equity dilution up to 74 per cent,” Mr Vasudeva Rao, Managing Director, Cheminnova, told newspersons here on Tuesday.

The joint venture will result in the addition of significant business, brands of Rapid Nutrition and intellectual property rights to Cheminnova, he said.

Mr Simon St Ledger, Managing Director, Rapid Nutrition, said his company would have immediate advantage of access to manufacturing facilities of Cheminnova according to the agreement.

The deal, which is being described by Cheminnova as a creeping joint venture, would result in acquisition of 74 pc stake in Cheminnova by Rapid Nutrition in next 18-24 months.

The financial details and valuations were not disclosed. The joint venture will be executed by a special purpose vehicle to be formed by Rapid Nutrition in India.

The current turnover of Cheminnova is about $20 million with three facilities. “Our on-going contract manufacturing for the markets in West Asia, Africa and Asia will be shifted immediately to Cheminnova units in India,” Mr Ledger said.

Cheminnova has three facilities for injectiables and oral liquids – two in Hyderabad and one in Baddi, Himachal Pradesh.

Rapid Nutrition had a turnover of $68 million and is in the process of getting listed on the German Stock Exchange by end of March.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/Early-detection-crucial-in-curing-glaucoma/articleshow/12182414.cms

HYDERABAD: City-based eye specialists will take up a major campaign this World Glaucoma Week, between March 11-17, to spread awareness about glaucoma and the need for its early diagnosis.

Doctors say that the silent eye condition is the leading cause behind irreversible blindness in the country with as many as 1.1 million losing their eyesight to the disease. Doctors said that 90% of glaucoma cases are undetected, mostly due to a lack of awareness.

Speaking at a news conference on Wednesday, Dr Sirisha Senthil, glaucoma specialist at LV Prasad Eye Institute (LVPEI,) said that the disease was second only to cataract as a causal factor for blindness.

But while a cataract is curable, in glaucoma, there is no cure once a patient loses vision. Senthil said that diagnosis remained a major challenge as the disease has quite a late onset of symptoms, apparent only when the patient begins to experience a loss of vision.

A study conducted by LVPEI found that 50% of those diagnosed with glaucoma at an advanced stage had consulted an eye specialist in the last six months notwithstanding which the disease went undetected due to improper examination.

Glaucoma occurs when the optic nerve (which connects the eyes to the brain) gets damaged by increased pressure on the eyes due to accumulation of excess fluid.

The theme this year is: 'Don't let glaucoma darken your life". Explaining possible risk factors, LVPEI's senior glaucoma specialist, Dr G Chandrasekhar, said that people with a family record of glaucoma are the most vulnerable. Others at risk of developing glaucoma are those who have suffered an injury to the eye, or have used steroids over a long period of time for treating kidney diseases, depression. Also, those with diabetes, thyroid problems and hypertension, too, are susceptible to the disease.

Doctors say that no age-group was immune to glaucoma. They added that the disease would not be detected by specialists unless the patient went for a full eye check-up.

Dr Anil K Mandal, the glaucoma consultant at LVPEI who has performed the largest number of surgeries on paediatric glaucoma patients in India, said that several generations of consanguineous marriages had added to the paediatric glaucoma burden.

The incidence of childhood glaucoma, is a high one per every 3,300 live births due to the large number of consanguineous marriages. In the US, that figure is 1 per every 10,000 live births.

As part of the awareness drive, a continuing medical education (CME) programme - "Glaucoma- The Known and the Unknown - will be held at LVPEI on March 11. Week-long free glaucoma evaluation and family screening camps, too, will be organized at various LVPEI centres.

Also planned is a public glaucoma forum with patients, their families along with celebrity participation.

Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/ites/indegene-eyes-us-call-centre-buy-for-10-15-million/articleshow/12194162.cms

HYDERABAD: Indegene Lifesystems, a company backed by a former Infosys founder and a former employee, is close to acquiring a US-based call centre providing medical education and communication services to doctors and patients. Two potential targets have been identified and a Canadabased boutique investment banking firm is assisting Indegene with the valuation, the Bangalore-based company's chief executive Manish Gupta said.

The value of the acquisition will be $10-15 million (Rs 50-75 crore), Gupta said, declining to identify the potential targets. Indegene was started in 1998 by Infosys ex-employee Gupta, four of his associates and the Nadathur Holdings investment firm of Infosys cofounder NS Raghavan.

The acquisition will help Indegene gain a strong foothold in the United States and increase its ability to expand its service offerings to top pharmaceutical companies, Gupta said. Indegene also wants to provide patient analytics services to insurance companies in the United States. Once the acquisition is completed, Indegene, which at present employs 750 staff, would have increased its headcount by 100 and revenues by about $15 million a year, Gupta said.

The acquisition will help Indegene reach its target $100 million in revenue by 2015, he added, but declined to say what the turnover is now. Indegene, which has six delivery centres in the United Kingdom, United States, Australia, China, Singapore and India, gets 90% of its revenues from the world's top 10 pharmaceutical companies, among them GlaxoSmith-Kline, Novartis and Merck.

Big Pharmaceutical have been vigorously cutting costs after some of their top drugs, fetching billions of dollars in revenue, have gone off patent, opening up the market for generic players. As a result, they have begun outsourcing not just clinical trials but also marketing and medical content for new and mature drugs.

A 2011 survey by the Boston Consulting Group on the strategies adopted by pharmaceutical companies showed that 51% of their global departments outsource activities such as medical education, communication, publications, marketing and analytics, among others. This helps companies focus on research and development and minimise their outlay on marketing and other selling expenses.

"Big Pharma wants us to develop strategies for developing countries as the companies have their own infrastructure in bigger markets like the United States and Europe. They want partners who can accelerate the go-tomarket strategies for them in many of the emerging markets," Gupta said.

Source: http://pharmabiz.com/NewsDetails.aspx?aid=67924&sid=1

The much hyped organ transplantation ‘Jeevandhan” project which was proposed by the health department of Andhra Pradesh in 2010 has not yet been taken up beyond its initial stage and it still remains just on paper even after 2 years of its launch.

A gazette notification was issued in August 2010 to set up Jeevandhan organ transplantation project in the state. As there is a huge list of patents waiting for organ transplantations in the state, the government of Andhra Pradesh had proposed to form a committee to streamline cadaver transplants and create a centralized registered waiting list.

Every year thousands of people are being killed in accidents due to organ damages. It is estimated that every 15 minutes there is a name added in India to the waiting list of persons who needs transplantation. For every 10 minutes one death is recorded due to unavailability of organs.

Medical experts feel that with the delay of the project, it is even more confounding as thousands are added each year to the list of patients awaiting the transplants.

“So far Rs.1 crore has been sanctioned for the purpose of the Jeevandhan project, but nothing positive has happened. Even the proposed web portal has not been launched to provide information, despite a government order,” said Dr A Gopal Kishan, a leading nephrologist and former president of the Indian society of Organ Transplantation.

Experts and doctors feel that the government is showing a callous attitude” towards this important project. They feel that this project is essential in view of thousand of accidental deaths each year. They said organ harvesting centres are also required at government medical institutions.

In Osmania General Hospital alone the doctors have performed 430 kidney transplantations since past 1982. In the recent past now, the cases of transplantations have enormously increased and there is a huge dearth in the availability of organs. In view of this scenario experts feel that a committee should be formed and laws should be made regarding brain deaths to facilitate organ transplant in the state.

Accepting the fact, Dr Vasant Prasad, director of Medical Education, said, “There has been no progress on the project so far, the scheme needs coordination between various stakeholders, nodal officers, counsellors, patient’s attendants, NGOs, doctors and a panel to decide on brain deaths and transplantations. We also need organ-harvesting centres in public hospitals and a state-level registry.”

Taking the issue of the project further, the director said he would take the issue to the special chief secretary G Sudhir and give a report on its status.

Source: http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/mncs-circle-descendindian-vaccine-market/467319/

Global majors are trying to get into the high-growth vaccine market in India through standalone launches and alliances with local partners.

Introduction of the National Immunisation Programme (NIP) and aggressive rollout of innovative products by domestic companies is prompting multinational corporations (MNCs) to strengthen presence in the India market.

A McKinsey report on the Indian pharmaceutical sector states, “At two per cent penetration, the vaccines market of India is significantly under-penetrated. The private segment accounts for two-thirds of the $250-million market.” McKinsey expects the market to grow to $1.7 billion by 2020.
Last month, Sanofi Pasteur, the vaccines division of Sanofi-Aventis, signed a marketing and distribution agreement with Emcure Pharmaceuticals for Verorab, its anti-rabies vaccine. Verorab is to be imported and supplied by Sanofi Pasteur India, while Emcure would market and distribute it. Sanofi-Aventis is setting up Asia’s largest vaccine making facility in Hyderabad, for an investment of Rs 500 crore. It already enjoys a strong presence in the Indian vaccine space, following the buyout of Hyderabad-based Shantha Biotechnics in 2009 for Rs 3,000 crore.

“For driving growth in the vaccine segment, the companies need to produce locally or leverage supply partnership,” said Palash Mitra, partner at Mckinsey & Co.

GlaxoSmithKline is strengthening presence through launches. Last year, GSK India had launched Synflorix, a vaccine against invasive pneumococcal disease, the latter being a leading cause of childhood mortality in India. Hasit B. Joshipura, managing director, GSK India, had said, “The vaccine business showed a high growth trajectory, with the company continuing to expand its portfolio.”

Tapan Ray, director-general, Organisation of Pharmaceutical Producers of India (OPPI), comprising MNC majors, said, “If appropriate policy measures are initiated in the country without further delay, the domestic vaccine market , in turn, will receive further growth momentum, with newer players coming in and introduction of more and more novel vaccines by the global players.”

To tap the under-penetrated market, Indian counterparts are launching innovative vaccines and exploring niche segments. Panacea Biotec is in the process of launching a tetravalent chimeric dengue vaccine and a Japanese encephalitis vaccine by 2013-14. Rajesh Jain, joint MD of Panacea, told Business Standard: “The total demand for vaccines in the coming years will be driven by developed countries. Of the 131 million children born worldwide annually, 121 million are from developed countries. Also, the warcry for affordable healthcare forces MNCs to shift focus to countries like India as a low-cost manufacturing hub.”

Indian Immunologicals Ltd (IIL), the Hyderabad-based vaccine maker, says it is in the process of developing the world’s first vaccine for chikungunya. The other advanced stage candidates of IIL are a paediatric pentavalent vaccine against diphtheria-pertussis-tetanus, Hepatitis B, and H. influenza. Plus, a vaccine for preventing cervical cancer in women.

Bharat Biotech has rotavirus vaccines in its pipeline, expected to be marketed in two to three years.

there are other institutes like NGRI and CFTRI also in habsiguda uppal area

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/Older-than-DRL-little-known-Natco-comes-into-limelight/articleshow/12257293.cms

HYDERABAD: It may be older than Hyderabad's most wellknown drug giant Dr Reddy's Laboratories, but recognition has come rather belatedly in the day for Hyderabad-based Natco Pharma.

The pioneering judgement of the Controller General of Patents granting Natco a compulsory licence to make and sell Bayer's anti-cancer drug Nexavar in India has finally pushed this relatively unknown Hyderabad company firmly into the limelight. Natco was set up with an initial investment of Rs 33 lakh in 1981 by VC Nannapaneni, a US-returned technocrat and son of a farmer from Guntoor district of Andhra Pradesh much before Dr Anji Reddy set up Dr Reddy's Laboratories in 1984 in Hyderabad.

The 67-year-old Nannapaneni, who heads Natco as chairman and managing director, has over 42 year experience in the pharma industry and currently focuses his efforts on new drug discovery and development with his son Rajiv Nannapaneni looking after the day to day running of the company as director and COO. VC Nannapaneni spent nearly 15 years in the US working with pharma companies and has a bachelor's and master's degree in pharmacy from Andhra University. The Nannapaneni family controls around 57% stake in Natco Pharma that is gunning for Rs 550 crore revenues for the fiscal ending March 31, 2012. The company was performing rather indifferently till son Rajiv came back from the US and persuaded his father to give up his plans to diversify into the port sector. After that the company has been looking up.


With humble beginnings of a single unit manned by 20 employees, Natco today has 2500 employees and five manufacturing facilities spread across India with dedicated modern research laboratories, capabilities in new drug discovery. The company makes formulations and decided to focus on oncology in 2003 and went on to sharpen focus on the US with its first para IV filing in 2008. In fact the company's statement on the website states its mission is "to manufacture and market affordable medicines that comply with global standards and to achieve market leadership".

http://www.expresshealthcare.in/201203/market28.shtml
Covidien's New R&D Centre in Hyderabad
Covidien, a global provider of healthcare products has opened its first R&D centre in India. Known as the Covidien India Engineering Center (CIEC), it is a 40,000 sq ft facility based in DLF Cybercity Special Economic Zone (SEZ), Hyderabad and will be expanded into a larger facility in the future. The CIEC offers a range of engineering services for the company’s medical products business and in the course of time could employ up to 350 staff members.

Randel Frazier, Vice President, R&D, Emerging Markets said, “Innovation is at the heart of everything Covidien does. The company devotes significant resources to invent and develop technology that physicians utilise to improve patient outcomes. Our company is expanding our R&D capabilities worldwide and this new facility in India is playing an integral role in our global strategy.”

Covidien has increased its R&D investments substantially in the last five years and has launched more than 100 new products. The company intends to devote five to six per cent of sales to R&D activities in the next few years.

CIEC will provide engineering services to Covidien’s R&D organisation in the areas of design, hardware, software and testing etc.

Robert Frechette, Vice President, Engineering Services, said, “India has a strong base of highly-talented engineers. Bringing this talent into Covidien’s organisation is critical for our continued growth. By establishing this presence in Hyderabad, we are expanding Covidien’s R&D capabilities as well as enhancing the city’s reputation as a hub for life sciences.”

“Our new facility is up and running with more than 30 engineers and staff involved in Covidien’s global R&D efforts,” added Frechette.

“With a fast-growing economy, the demand for healthcare in India is growing at a rapid pace,” said Arjun Sarker, Managing Director, Indian subcontinent. “The establishment of this R&D facility expands Covidien’s presence and commitment to India,” he said.

Source: http://www.dailynews.lk/2012/03/19/news04.asp

The Sri Lanka Institute of Nanotechnology (SLINTEC) in a landmark agreement entered into a strategic collaboration with Nagarjuna Fertilisers and Chemicals Limited (NFCL) of Hyderabad, India, to develop the next generation of nanotechnology based plant fertiliser solutions.

It was the first technology providing programme from the country to the international market, SLINTEC science team leader, Professor in Chemistry, University of Peradeniya, Professor Veranja Karunaratne said.

The agreement was signed in the presence of Technology and Research Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi and India High Commissioner Ashok K Kantha at the Cinnamon Grand Hotel on March 15.

These are next generation nanofertliser products aimed at increasing productivity and income for farmers and creating a sustainable business for stakeholders engaged in agri-business, he said.

As part of this strategic partnership, SLINTEC is selling two patents covering their first generation nano plant fertiliser products, taking it from proof of concept to proof of value for commercialisation, he said.

“In addition we are entering into a long-term strategic technology development programme for the second and third generation nano

plant nutrition products. For SLINTEC, this is an opportunity to work with a global partner to take the product development journey from the lab to the field,” Professor Karunaratne said.

Head of Research and Innovation (Professor of Electronics Engineering Cambridge University) Professor Gehan Amaratunga, said however that SLINTEC has reserved the rights for Sri Lanka to exploit this technology on its own. Sri Lanka is known only for selling commodities and this deal between SLINTEC and NFCL heralds a new era in technology development in Sri Lanka, he said.

Source: http://www.globalatlanta.com/article/25413/

Metro Atlanta is continuing to position itself as a prime entry point for Indian firms looking to sell medical devices or conduct clinical research in the U.S.

David Hartnett, the Metro Atlanta Chamber's vice president for bioscience industry development, spent 10 days in February meeting prospective investors and gathering information in the Indian tech hubs of Bangalore, Hyderabad and Mumbai.

Since Atlanta hosted the Biotechnology Industry Organization's 2009 annual conference, the chamber and its partners have made a consistent effort to woo Indian firms and researchers to Georgia, Mr. Hartnett told GlobalAtlanta.

He and Jorge Fernandez, the chamber's vice president for global commerce, travel to the country separately at least once per year. They also invite Indian prospects to visit Atlanta when they happen to be in the U.S. for industry conferences.

India is lower than Europe on the chamber's life-sciences priority list, mainly because European firms are closer and have fewer problems dealing with Food and Drug Administration regulations.

India is a strong No. 2. After traveling there multiple times, Mr. Hartnett concluded that Indian firms have two main objectives in approaching the U.S.: exporting their products to the largest medical market in the world and advancing research that could help commercialize their devices and drugs.

Many are small companies that starting with research partnerships that could blossom into viable businesses. Others are large, healthy firms looking to buy facilities that already meet FDA standards to smooth the market-entry process, he said.

Not only is Atlanta a good place for companies to set up shop, boasting inexpensive land, labs and offices, but it also boasts some strong research assets, said Mr. Hartnett, who spent 20 years as an executive in the medical device industry before joining the chamber's staff.

He cited the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as universities like Emory University and Georgia Institute of Technology.

"The universities are a great way to play our first phase of the relationship. It's hard to go to a foreign country and convince a board of directors that they need to uproot and come here," he said, adding that relocation often comes only after relationships are formed.

He also noted Atlanta's hospitals and organizations like St. Joseph's Translational Research Institute, which was recently purchased by Emory.

The Global Center for Medical Innovation, a $2.6 million center that will help medical device startups create and develop prototypes, is set to open in April in Midtown.

But Atlanta also has a less evident advantage: a diverse patient pool, in terms of both ethnicity and diseases, which makes it easier to enroll participants in clinical trials, he said.

That's partially because the baby boomer generation is "retiring and they're moving South, and Atlanta is the capital of the South, so in a very interesting way, the business is coming to us," Mr. Hartnett said.

Closer ties with India will also help Atlanta medical-device startups looking for a place to develop products without the cost of FDA compliance. India has strict regulations, but they're not nearly as expensive to satisfy, he said, noting that some American firms first build up sales in India to prepare financially for the "holy-grail" U.S. market.

Mr. Hartnett visited India as a representative of chamber and as the co-chair of the Innovation Crescent Regional Partnership, an effort by more than 12 counties and organizations to showcase the life sciences assets of the region stretching from Atlanta to Athens.

The crescent is an answer to the Research Triangle in North Carolina, the Boston-Cambridge life sciences cluster in Massachusetts and LifeScience Alley in Minnesota, promoting Georgia's advantages in a field where it already excels.

"Atlanta is rapidly becoming known as the center for global health," Mr. Hartnett said. Georgia is the No. 1 state for health-care information technology, boasting more firms in that field than any other state.

Atlanta is also home to organizations like the American Cancer Society, CARE, the Carter Center, the Task Force for Global Health and others. United Parcel Service Inc. is the largest distributor of FDA-regulated products in the world.

"We like to say that if there's an emergency in the world, and its a public safety issue, they come here," Mr. Hartnett said.

Conversation between India and Georgia on such topics is growing. The Emory India Summit March 2-3 had a panel on medical tourism, while the USA India Business Summit, to be held in June, aims to attract Indian life sciences executives visiting the country for the BIO International Convention in Boston.

Though there have been few big wins validating the trips and recruitment efforts, the future will prove them successful, Mr. Hartnett said.

“There's a very optimistic pipeline of very active projects that will come to fruition within a short period of time, and within the next two years you will see some strong bioscience activity in Atlanta,” he said.

Source: http://pharmabiz.com/NewsDetails.aspx?aid=68086&sid=1

Joint Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) and Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council of India (Pharmexcil) had conducted a seminar on ‘anti-dumping’ of drugs, and cosmetics here in Hyderabad. The objective of the seminar was to create awareness among the traders and industry bodies about the unfair trade practices adopted by the overseas companies in India.

The seminar was basically aimed at sensitizing the pharmaceutical traders and industry about trade remedy instruments available under World Trade Organization (WTO) frame work to counteract the unfair competition from overseas companies and to protect the domestic industry.

In the recent times there have been growing incidents of unfair trade practices being adopted by certain overseas companies to counter the domestic Indian players. Most of them are flooding with cheap quality low cost products. Taking this in to consideration the DGFT wants to bring awareness among the domestic traders and local manufactures about the menace of anti-dumping and its impact on the local market players.

Under the existing WTO arrangement, and in terms of various provisions under the Customs Tariff Act of 1975 (as amended in 1995) and Rules framed thereunder, anti-dumping and allied measures constitute the legal framework, within which the domestic industry can seek necessary relief and protection against dumping of goods and articles by exporting companies and firms of any country from any part of the world.

‘As some of the overseas companies are taking advantage of certain terms and provision in the WTO agreement these measures have assumed a great deal of relevance in India in recent times, pointed an official at the seminar. Competitors from across the borders are resorting to anti-dumping tactics to the detriment of the domestic industry. This motive of certain foreign companies is viewed as a threat to local manufactures in the country.

In view of this the DGFT has asked the local trade bodies and industry to be vigilant. “In order to bring awareness among the traders and industry bodies we have organized seminars workshops across the country, this will sensitize the traders and enable them to take remedial measures under the WTO frame work,” said Dr P V Appaji, executive director, Pharmexcil.

Dr Neeraj Varshney, director, Department of Anti Dumping, and senior officials from office of Jt. DGFT and others, attended the seminar.

Source: http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/cnbc-tv18-comments/shantha-biotech-to-launch-5-in-1-pediatric-vaccine-_685973.html

The world of pediatric vaccines is about to be shaken. And it's Hyderabad-based Shantha Biotech that's going to do all the shaking, reports CNBC-TV18's Appaji Reddem and Animesh Das.
Offices belonging to Hyderabad-based Shanta Biotech look calm from the outside, but inside, plans are brewing to take the pediatric vaccine market by storm. This Sanofi-Aventis-owned drug manufacturer is all set to launch Pentavalent, a single vaccine aimed at protecting children from five illnesses- Diphtheria, Pertussis, Tetanus, Hepatitis B and Haemophilus Influenzae. This launch will bring global prices for the vaccine down drastically.
Harish V Iyer, managing director and chief executive officer of Shantha Biotech says, "One assumption you have to make in this market unfortunately is that the prices may come down. We are thinking in those lines and I don't want to speculate on where the prices would end up."
This will be the second time Shanta Biotech launches this vaccine.
It's first attempt had to be aborted after the World Health Organization (WHO) recalled the vaccine due to concerns over quality issues. Shanta now says the new process prescribed by WHO has been implemented and is betting on competitive pricing to corner a major piece of the international Penta and Hexavalent vaccine market, and giving competitors like Serum Institute and Panacea Biotec a run for their money. Shanta says prices could fall to below USD 2 a dose. It is also betting on high demand in India to boost sales.
"25 million children are born every year," says Iyer. "If you assume three doses, 75 million is the opportunity in India every year. Depending upon the rates of coverage and how thing work out, it could be somewhere in the range of 25-50 million at least if you assume 50% penetration," he says.
Shanta Biotech will invest over USD 300 million on a vaccine manufacturing facility at Hyderabad to supplement vaccine production.
Government of India had included Pentavalent in its universal immunization program in Kerala and Tamil Nadu last December. The vaccine is expected to be extended to six more states. However, regulatory approvals, safety concerns and pricing will be the major challenges.

Source: http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/scotland-woos-indian-pharma-it-companies/469363/

Indian pharmaceutical and IT majors, including Biocon, Bharat Biotech and Dr Reddy’s, are likely to invest and do research and development (R&D) activities in Scotland in the coming years, according to a top official from Scotland.

“We are now under discussion with almost all pharma companies, besides stem cell research companies including Reliance Life Science and Stempeutic, to set up their research centres, and for collaborative research activities with Scotland,” Mark Dolan, country manager, Scottish Development International (SDI), told Business Standard.

SDI, an investment arm of the Scotland government to promote overseas business opportunities, entered India in 2000 to promote investment opportunities. It is now eyeing big for Indo-Scottish partnerships across verticals including oil and gas, water drilling, off-shore wind technology, IT, pharma, renewable energy, healthcare and education from India.
Indian companies including Piramal, Hero BPO, Reid & Taylor, Infosys, Wipro and TCS, employing more than 5,000 people, have already done business in Scotland. And, around 15-16 companies from Scotland, including Standard Life Insurance, IES, Pixel and AGGreKo, have invested in India. The number of companies, which have shown interest in investing in India, increased to 84 this year from 34 in 2010, he said.

India now ranks among top 10 countries that have invested in Scotland along with US, Germany, France and Spain. “Seeing the current interest and the number of projects we have in the pipeline, we are bullish that India may become one of our top-5 investors,” he said.

“Scotland is on the high-investment radar for Indian companies across verticals like Essar, Reliance, Tata, Suzlon and Bharat Forge, besides pharma and IT majors,” Dolan said.

Outlining the advantages of investing in Scotland, he said Scotland worked out about 30 per cent cheaper than London. The Scotland government gives 35 per cent regional grant, 35 per cent R&D grant. Also, the government has reduced the corporate tax burden to 10 per cent from the earlier 24 per cent.

He said that contrary to the gloomy news coming about the Euro Zone crisis, there was brisk business happening on the ground, especially in sectors like financial services, utilities and life sciences. Dolan was here to promote Indo-Scottish business opportunities and encourage business partnerships.

Scotland, with key strengths in knowledge, quality manpower, innovative technology, has recently doubled its presence in India. It is also scouting for a new office location in Hyderabad or Bangalore.

Source: http://www.livemint.com/2012/03/29200111/Quality-issues-cast-shadow-on.html?atype=tp

Vaccine maker Bharat Biotech International Ltd attracted global attention in June last year when it offered to sell its version of the infant diarrhoea vaccine Rotovac for as little as $1 a dose when it was retailing for $20 in India. International vaccine makers were forced to cut the prices of their own shots in response.

Six months later, the Hyderabad-based company was back in the headlines, but not of the welcome kind, when the World Health Organization (WHO) disqualified it from supplying the hepatitis B vaccine Revac-B+ to UN procurement agencies. WHO also suspended the evaluation of all Bharat Biotech products awaiting so-called pre-qualification status that would make them eligible for use in UN-backed immunization programmes.

The punitive action came after an audit of Bharat Biotech’s plant in Hyderabad by an inspection team of the UN health agency found deficiencies in the “implementation of good manufacturing practices” and “quality management system of the company.”

For Bharat Biotech, a privately held company with revenue of Rs.270 crore in the year ended 31 March 2011, the order was a blow from which it may take months, if not years, to recover although Rotavac, which is still being tested on babies across the country in phase III clinical trials, was unaffected by the WHO action.

“We are in dialogue with WHO,” said Krishna M. Ella, chairman and managing director of Bharat Biotech, at a recent conference in Hyderabad. He gave no further details, did not respond to email queries and declined interview requests.

Bharat Biotech was the third Indian vaccine maker to attract such penal action from WHO in less than two years over quality issues, raising concern in the domestic pharmaceutical industry as well as agencies that procure vaccines for national immunization programmes.

Panacea Biotec Ltd lost WHO pre-qualification for three of its vaccines in August 2011. In July 2010, Shantha Biotechnics Ltd, a unit of French drug maker Sanofi SA, had its pentavalent vaccine Shan5 disqualified. Shan5 is a paediatric combination vaccine that includes protection against diphtheria, tetanus, whole cell pertussis, hepatitis B and haemophilus influenzae type B (Hib). Both companies said they are in discussions with WHO to address the issues.

A WHO spokesperson said in response to queries from Mint that “reassessment in the short-term is unlikely and may take months.”

Inexpensive vaccine supplies from India are integral to the success of global immunization programmes, explaining the worry among vaccine procurement agencies. Vaccine sales by Indian companies are estimated by the industry organization Pharmexcil to be worth $900 million in fiscal 2011 and are growing at an annual average growth rate of 23%. The country accounts for almost 43% of total vaccines exported globally by volume.

“Indian vaccine suppliers are critical to global security of vaccine supplies,” said Sandeep Sinha, director of the healthcare practice, South Asia and Middle East, at consultancy Frost and Sullivan. “Not only do they supply in huge quantities at a decent quality but they supply it at an affordable price.”

According to Pharmexcil, eight WHO-prequalified manufacturers in India produce 22 vaccines for export to 150 countries. The eight are Bharat Biotech, Serum Institute of India Ltd, Shantha Biotechnics, Panacea Biotec, Biological E Ltd, Chiron Behring Vaccines Pvt. Ltd, Haffkine Bio-Pharmaceutical Corp. Ltd, and Zydus Cadila.

“That (quality) is certainly the worry,” said Seth Berkley, chief executive of GAVI, a major buyer of Indian vaccine companies, in a recent interview. “One of the reasons it’s critical to have high quality is because you want people to know that India produces not only large quantity, not only produces inexpensively but it produces them (vaccines) at global quality,” said Berkley, whose organization was formerly known as the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization, a public-private partnership that focuses on saving children’s lives by increasing access to immunization in developing nations.

WHO acted against Shantha Biotechnics when it received quality complaints from Colombia, Comoros and Nepal about the presence of a white sediment sticking to glass vials containing the Shan5 vaccine. Studies later traced it to the manufacture of the pertussis component. Pertussis, also known as whooping cough, is a highly contagious bacterial disease.

WHO ordered the recall and destruction of all the batches of Shan5 vaccine because of the problem, which also caused the agency to terminate the pre-qualification evaluation of a three-in-one combination vaccine that had the same anti-pertussis component.

For the vaccine makers, there’s plenty at stake. For instance, the suspension of the Shan5 vaccine has cost Sanofi $340 million in sales from 2010 to 2012 on a contract with Unicef, or the United Nations Children’s Fund, Bloomberg News reported in November 2010. Sanofi acquired Shantha Biotechnics for €440 million from another French company, Mérieux Alliance, in July 2009.

As part of the corrective process, Shantha Biotechnics has to make changes to the manufacturing process, which mean it has to perform clinical trials again on Shan5, a costly and time-consuming process, to establish the safety and efficacy of the vaccine.

“We are living in an arena where standards are changing and becoming higher and higher,” said Harish V. Iyer, chief executive of Shantha Biotechnics. “A few years ago, maybe WHO may not have said this...I don’t know. But now they feel that it’s important. Again, I think it’s part of raising standards.”

Iyer took charge in September as part of a management overhaul at Shantha Biotechnics after the Shan5 debacle, with his immediate priority being to restore confidence in quality standards followed by the company. Shantha Biotechnics is investing around $300 million in augmenting capacity and improving overall quality standards.

“We are investing heavily in quality,” Iyer said. “We are trying to make sure that we have global standards, we are using Sanofi, our parent group, to help augment quality standards. This requires heavy investment in training, investment in infrastructure.”

Shantha Biotechnics expects to regain WHO’s pre-qualification status vaccine sometime in 2012.

“We are trying to recover from key events that have happened in 2010; we are well on our way back,” Iyer said.

For the year ended 31 March 2011, Panacea Biotec reported revenue of Rs.1,170.44 crore, of which vaccines account for 73.7%. One-third of the vaccine revenue was contributed by the five-in-one shot Easyfive, one of the three vaccines to be disqualified by WHO.

Mumbai-based brokerage Avendus Securities Pvt. Ltd has estimated a loss of Rs.66 crore in FY12 for Panacea because of WHO’s action.

The company reported losses of Rs.33.64 crore and Rs.71.72 crore in the second and third quarter, respectively. Panacea’s stock has declined by around 61% since WHO passed the order on delisting of two of its products. The stock closed up Rs.4.90, or 7.21%, on Thursday at Rs.72.85, compared with a 63.01 point, 0.37% decline in the benchmark Sensex to 17,058.61.

Panacea Biotec, in August 2009, won a Unicef contract worth Rs.1,067 crore to supply 75 million doses of Easyfive in the following three years, making it one of the largest suppliers to the world children’s agency.

“We are in constant discussion with WHO to resolve the problem,” said Rajesh Jain, joint managing director of Panacea Biotec. “It’s not a problem of one company; it’s a problem that the industry is facing.”

WHO’s pre-qualification status, attesting that vaccines are safe and effective, is essential for vaccine makers to bid for supplying their products to immunization programmes backed by the United Nations. The process of evaluation includes close scrutiny by the world health agency, which studies manufacturers’ production methods, vaccine composition and quality control and clinical evaluation systems, among others.

WHO teams undertake reassessments of prequalified products at regular intervals—at least every two years—apart from site audits and testing of lots supplied by UN agencies to monitor continued compliance by suppliers with the organization’s standards.

“The pre-qualification programme must continually evolve in order to keep pace with the progress in vaccine quality standards and the growing number and complexity of applications being submitted year after year,” WHO spokesperson Mansi Kumar Joshee said in response to emailed questions.

Source: http://pharmabiz.com/NewsDetails.aspx?aid=68264&sid=1

In a great sigh of relief to heart patients, top international researchers here in Hyderabad revealed that Stem Cell Technology can be used to repair damaged heart tissues without actually performing surgical incision into the chest.

While participating in the International stem cell conference at International School of Business at Gachibowli, scientists revealed that the stem cell technology can be used to repair heart tissues damaged by myocardial infraction commonly known as heart attack.

Taking it as a great break through in the medical sciences, doctors and heart surgeons felt that the stem cell technology will be a great boon to the millions of patients suffering from heart attacks.

According to eminent Scientist Prof. Minger, head global research and development at GE Healthcare UK, the heart tissues are usually damaged by the myocardial infraction. This is also commonly known as heart attack. By using the stem cell technology, it is easier and simpler to heal the heart tissues,” revealed the Scientist.

Usually in a conventional method of heart surgery doctors cut open the chest muscles to gain access to the heart, but now with the use of stem cell technology this practice can be put on halt.

By using the stem cell technology, the heart cells cultured in laboratory can be implanted in heart through a catheter from one of the arms. As this kind of treatment is not involving any physical incisions on the body, the patients can be discharged on the same day.

Further explaining in detail, Prof Minger said that heart attack occurs when blood supply to the heart is stopped for a long time and this damages the heart tissues. By using stem cell technology such damaged tissues can be treated without any complicated surgery.

The scientist advocated that as India is having a huge population of more than a billion, the country can play a key role in stem cells and regenerative medicine. “There is a need to create awareness among the population. If India and China could bank even one per cent of their annual births, they could supply stem cells to the whole world,” said Prof Minger.

“Public banking of cord blood will enable to treat many diseases which are incurable such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s. In the next 4-5 years developing heart tissues damaged by myocardial infraction will become a real possibility,” revealed the scientist.

Throwing light on recent developments, the professor said that heart cells derived from bone marrow have been implanted successfully in a patient, and the technology is helpful in transplanting new insulin-producing cells for diabetics and myelinating cells for individual afflicted with multiple sclerosis.

Source: http://pharmabiz.com/NewsDetails.aspx?aid=68281&sid=1

Bringing back the concept of family doctor, Srikon Healthcare services limited had launched a unique and first of its kind “Family Physician” programme here in Hyderabad.

Rechristening the tradition of appointing family physicians the new healthcare service concept is likely to provide a more comfortable, secure and continued healthcare service right at the doorsteps to the patients.

Explaining about the concept Dr Subrahmanyam Nanduri, chairman, Srikon said, “A family physician is the one who knows an individual’s health history, and reduces confusion during acute medical emergencies. Healing is not just about treatment but also human attachments, which is why family doctors were preferred a few decades ago. Today, doctors do not have adequate time for each patient. So, the family physician concept is again gaining steam.”

The main aim of the new concept is to develop and foster physicians and healthcare to provide best medical care to the targeted patients. The firm is targeting to serve families above the age group of 30 years and below 65 years.

With the growth of multiple specialities and an increasing number of care providers, options often leave the patients confused. In such a situation a family doctor can assess better the patient’s clinical, psychological and social situation. The family doctors can also counsel them about their medical condition, suggests various care options and refer to appropriate specialties in the existing hospitals.

In the recent times, the modern life styles have increased the stress burden on minds of the people. According to a study done by the National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences, around 50 per cent of the employees in India are under stress, 20 per cent suffer from depression and 30 per cent have problems such as addictions and marital discord.

India is expected to have the largest cardiovascular disease burden in the world by 2020 between the age group of 30 and 69 years, reflecting its loss in terms of losing potentially productive years.

Stressing up on the need for a family doctor, Dr Nanduri said, “Lifestyle diseases, including obesity, hypertension, diabetes and heart attacks, are growing and even affecting youngsters at an early age. In this case, a family doctor will play an important role.”

Srikon Healthcare has in-house doctors, who will be individually assigned for specific patients. Families can avail the service with an annual subscription package of Rs.8,000-Rs.10,000. Interested members can visit the website www.srikon.com to enrol for the service.

Initially the firm is operating its services from Hyderabad and in the next two to three years it is also planning to launch in Vizag and other parts of the state based on the demand and response.

Source: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industry-and-economy/agri-biz/article3294059.ece?homepage=true&ref=wl_home

HYDERABAD, APRIL 8:
The Indian stem cell industry is in a nascent stage. There is potential for fast growth and global players will enter the market through mergers and acquisitions, says a study by YES Bank and the Federation of Asian Biotech Associations (FABA).

At present, the top five players in the Indian private sector space in stem cells are — Reliance Life Sciences, Life Cell, Cryobanks India, Stempeutics and Trans-Scell Biologics. Most of the Indian companies are focussed on stem cell banking and research, the study released recently stated.

With the benefits of stem cell therapy growing, it is attracting several organisations and industry to invest, create and commercialise promising technologies. The global stem cell therapy market was pegged at $21 billion in 2010. It is projected to grow to $60 billion by 2015, the study pointed out.

Stem cells are unique as they have the ability to divide indefinitely and give rise to specialised types. Under specific conditions they can be induced to become tissue or organ specific cells with special functions. The main sources of these cells are embryos and adult tissues.

When it comes to treatment, it serves as an internal repair mechanism, dividing to replenish other cells. These characteristics of the stem cells are helping scientists to even tackle difficult diseases such as Alzheimer's or Parkinson's.

The market for stem cells will include specific products, services and technologies to aid in diagnosis to cure.

GOVERNMENT INITIATIVES

Though, the report did not give the size of the Indian market, it forecasts an annual growth rate of around 15 per cent, mainly driven by investments from the Government and private players.

The Indian Government has been quite proactive in promoting work in stem cells, especially in clinical trials, basic research and creating applications. The Department of Biotechnology has invested $60 million into stem cell research during 2005-2010.

The National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bangalore, is a major player. Similarly, the Hyderabad-based Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology has set up a clinical research facility for stem cell technologies with an investment of Rs 24 crore last year. Other important centres for stem cell work are National Centre for Cell Sciences at Pune, LV Prasad Eye Institute, Hyderabad, Centre for Stem Cell Research at CMC, Vellore, National Brain Research Centre, New Delhi and so on, the report identified.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/companies/article3306482.ece
DuPont sets up ballistics unit in Hyderabad
HYDERABAD, APRIL 12:
DuPont has set up an integrated ballistics facility that helps in development and testing of protective gear.

Set up at IKP Knowledge Park here, the centre can calculate the velocity of a bullet and impact of a bullet on a vest.

Mr Rajeev Vaidya, President (South Asia) of DuPont, said this centre would address the local needs by customising products for law enforcement agencies and manufacturers of such products.

This is the first such facility for Dupont in the Asia-Pacific region and third outside the US.

http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20120417-701842.html
Cathay Pacific To Expand Air Cargo Services To India
HONG KONG (Dow Jones)--Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. (0293.HK) plans to expand its air cargo services to India by launching a twice-weekly freighter service to Hyderabad and adding a third weekly freighter flight to Bengaluru, both from May 17, the Hong Kong-based carrier said Tuesday.

The plan will give shippers more choice and flexibility in connecting to the airline's international cargo network through the Hong Kong hub, the blue-chip carrier said in a statement.

"Hyderabad is one of the major hubs for the manufacturing of pharmaceuticals in India, accounting for around one-third of the country's drug production," said Cathay Pacific Director Cargo Nick Rhodes.

The Hyderabad service will operate on a Hong Kong-Delhi-Bengaluru-Hyderabad-Hong Kong routing on Thursdays and a Hong Kong-Chennai-Hyderabad-Hong Kong routing on Sundays, it said.

The third weekly flight to Bengaluru will operate via Mumbai on Saturdays, in addition to the current flights every Monday and Thursday.

http://www.expresspharmaonline.com/20120430/market14.shtml
Aurobindo Pharma receives approvals
Aurobindo Pharma has received final approvals from the US Food & Drug Administration (US FDA) to market Quetiapine Fumarate Tablets 25 mg, 50 mg, 100 mg, 150 mg, 200 mg, 300 mg and 400 mg (ANDA 091388) Quetiapine Fumarate Tablets 25 mg, 50 mg, 100 mg, 150 mg, 200 mg, 300 mg and 400 mg are the generic equivalent of AstraZeneca LP’s Seroquel Tablets 25 mg, 50 mg, 100 mg, 150 mg, 200 mg, 300 mg and 400 mg.

Quetiapine Fumarate Tablets are indicated for the treatment of serious psychotic disorders such as Schizophrenia and Bipolar Disorder and falls under the Neurological (CNS) therapeutic category. The product has been approved out of Unit III facility in Hyderabad. Aurobindo now has a total of 147 ANDA approvals (118 Final approvals and 29 Tentative approvals) from USFDA.

Aurobindo Pharma Gets US FDA Final Nod For Olanzapine Tablets (http://www.rttnews.com/1867769/aurobindo-pharma-gets-us-fda-final-nod-for-olanzapine-tablets.aspx?type=in&utm_source=google&utm_campaign=sitemap)

(RTTNews) - Aurobindo Pharma Ltd. announced that the company had obtained final approvals from the US FDA to manufacture and market Olanzapine tablets 2.5mg, 5mg, 7.5mg, 10mg, 15mg and 20mg covered under ANDA 091388.

Olanzapine tablets 2.5mg, 5mg, 7.5mg, 10mg, 15mg and 20mg are the generic equivalent of Eli Lilly and company's Zyprexa tablets 2.5mg, 5mg, 7.5mg, 10mg, 15mg and 20mg. Olanzapine tablets are indicated for the treatment of serious psychotic disorders such as Schizophrenia and falls under the neurological (CNS) therapeutic category.

The company said the product was ready for launch. The annual sale of Olanzapine tablets is around $3.2 billion.

The product has been approved out of Unit VII (SEZ) formulations facility in Hyderabad, India.

The company now has a total of 149 ANDA approvals (121 Final approvals including one from Aurolife Pharma LLC and 28 Tentative approvals) from US FDA.

At the BSE, Aurobindo Pharma closed Wednesday's trading at Rs.127, down 1.89 percent from the previous close.

http://www.thehindu.com/news/states/andhra-pradesh/article3369758.ece
State to become focal point in achieving bulk drug and pharma targets
The Stage is set for the State to emerge as a focal point in achieving the ambitious targets being planned for accelerating the growth of pharmaceutical and bulk drug industry.

The Centre is focussing on achieving turnover of Rs. 2.87 lakh crore (Rs.1.3 lakh crore exports and Rs. 1.5 lakh crore domestic markets) by the end of the Plan period from the current level of pegged at over Rs. 1 lakh crore. The State, Hyderabad in particular which has the reputation as the Bulk Drug Capital of the country contributing more than one-third of the total bulk drug production of the country, is all set to continue its contribution during the Plan period.

The State accounts for 30 per cent of the total pharma and bulk drug turnover with a naturally evolved pharma cluster around Hyderabad and two special economic zones proposed in Mahabubnagar and Visakhapatnam districts, is expected to maintain the tempo in the coming years too. In value terms, the State's share is likely to be around an estimated US $ 15 billion by the year 2020 from the current export level of US $ 500 million.

There are presently 391 companies, 266 bulk drug manufacturers and 125 engaged in formulations, contributing significant chunk to the employment potential in the sector. Several reputed names in the bulk drug and pharma sectors including Dr. Reddy's Labs, Aurobindo Pharma, Matrix Laboratories, Granules India Limited have their manufacturing bases located here with capital investment expected to be close to Rs. 10,000 crore including over Rs. 2,400 crore in the small and medium sector.

After its contributions to the IT and ITeS segments, the State will be a major hub for providing talented manpower in the pharma research sector if the plans of the Centre fructify.

Building on the city's reputation, the National Institute for Pharmaceutical Education and Research will be upgraded to a national centre for research and development in bulk drugs that will aim at building up competitiveness in active pharma ingredients and a hub for tapping opportunities in the global generics market.

Institutions of international reputation such as CCMB, IICT and CDFD around the city are expected to act as catalysts in accelerating the R&D activities as also providing qualitative human resource to meet the emerging requirements of the sector which is expected to achieve a turnover of close to US $ 15 billion by 2020.

Research should, however, not be at the expense of the environmental concerns and a majority of the large units realized that unless they complied with quality assurance, including validation of equipment, premises, environment and processes it would be difficult to survive in the regulatory regime. Accordingly, all the major units introduced Quality Assurance measures, Good Manufacturing and Laboratory Practices as a preparation for the post-2005 regime.

IDPL TO BE REVIVED

As the pitch for research into emerging areas like Biosimilars is increasing, the State has been selected by the Centre to house one such centre, a regional centre for expertise in Biosimilars.

This is in addition to the financial assistance proposed for pharma growth cluster, one among the 10 proposed across the country meeting all regulatory and environmental standards and revival of the IDPL with over Rs. 960 crore.

---wrong thread----

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/Desi-companies-dominate-US-generic-space/articleshow/12987184.cms
Desi companies dominate US generic space
MUMBAI: India is playing a dominant role in the US generic pharma space, having cornered over half the certified dossiers filed globally for active pharmaceutical ingredients (API). Drug companies from India filed 51% of the overall global applications, also called drug master filings (DMF), in the US market during calendar year 2011. DMFs are essentially approvals to supply complex raw materials to all generic manufacturers servicing the US market, which is the most lucrative of all global markets.

Over the last three years, there has been a sustained increase in the trend of such applications from India. Of the global DMF filings in the US, India accounted for 45% in 2009, which increased to 49% in 2010 and 51% in 2011 (see chart).

Against this, China which is the leading API supplier in emerging markets, cornered only 18% of the total DMFs filed in the US in 2011, down from 20% in 2010. Interestingly, mid-rung companies like Hetero, and even smaller ones like USV, Nectar Life Sciences, Shilpa Medicare and Gland Pharma are now filing for such approvals from the US Food and Drug Administration.

Says Glenn Saldanha, chairman and MD, Glenmark Pharma, "Indian companies are playing a huge role in providing tangible, long-term value to generic players in the US market. US being the largest standalone generic market, continues to offer attractive partnership opportunities as most US dosage manufacturers (barring the top four or five) are not backward integrated."

Among the companies, Hyderabad-based Hetero had the maximum new filings at eight during the fourth quarter of 2011.Others like Alembic, Emcure and Gland have filed four DMFs each. Among large players, Lupin and Dr Reddy's filed three each, while Sun Pharma had two filings, and Cadila filed for one. Other significant filers were Jubilant, Aurobindo, Ipca (two each), while Orchid and Torrent filed for one each.

It was the first time that domestic players filed for 22 molecules during the quarter (higher than eight in 3Q11), of which the Prasugrel filing by Dr Reddy's may lead to a new chemical entity, according to a JM Financial analyst.

Says Sujay Shetty, partner, PwC India, "Domestic companies have moved up the value curve by filing complex certified dossiers. These filings are important for domestic as well as US companies, which are filing for approvals to launch generic drugs (abbreviated new drug application), and are truly indicative of the quality and regulatory compliance, which has become critical. Also, for Indian manufacturers in the US, sourcing APIs from Indian companies, lowers costs." Sales of APIs in the US have also started augmenting US revenues of these Indian companies.

In the past, industry experts say domestic companies targeted less-regulated markets for API and this space is now extremely competitive. So, many of them decided to make the transition of supplying APIs to regulated markets. And to do this they naturally had to build on their R&D capabilities to meet the stringent requirements of countries like the US.

"Basically, two aspects have emerged... Not only are Indian companies offering standalone APIs but are also increasingly offering finished dosages as part of vertically integrated partnership deals. This is most true for mid-rung players which presently do not have a direct presence in the US market," adds Saldanha.

DBT's SBIRI scheme receives good response, more than 100 projects get funding (http://pharmabiz.com/NewsDetails.aspx?aid=68805&sid=1)

The Department of Biotechnology's (DBT) Small Business Innovation Research Initiative (SBIRI), an innovative scheme to promote research and development (R&D) in small and medium size biotech companies in the country, has received tremendous response from the industries during the last more than three years since the launch of the programme. The department has assisted more than 100 companies under the scheme so far.

The DBT has funded a total of 98 companies under the programme till January 10, 2012 through 17 batches and the process for the 18 th batch of companies for funding is going on in the DBT.

SBIRI was launched by the government for funding early stage, pre-proof of concept research in the field of biotech under the National Biotechnology Development Strategy. The scheme provides early stage funding to enable scientists in private industries for high risk, innovative and ready-to commercialisation product proposals.

The scheme aims to strengthen existing private units with in-house innovative R&D and to create opportunities for starting up technology-based or knowledge-based businesses in biotechnology and to stimulate technological innovation and product commercialization. The department also uses the scheme to support public-private partnership model between industry and public funded institutions.

Some of the companies which have availed the scheme successfully included ABL Biotechnologies, Chennai; Virchow Biotech, Hyderabad; Actis Biologics, Mumbai; Ara Healthcare, Gurgaon; Bejo Sheetal Seeds, Jalna; Reliance Life Sciences, Navi Mumbai. Bharat Biotech, Hyderabad; Bharat Serum and Vaccines, Mumbai; Bharavi Laboratories, Bengaluru; Stempeutics Research, Bengaluru; and Bhat Bio-Tech India, Bengaluru in collaboration with National Institute of Malaria Research, New Delhi.

Other companies which have availed the scheme successfully are Customised Technologies, Bengaluru; Yashraj Biotechnology, Navi Mumbai; Cadila Pharmaceuticals Ahmedabad; Excel Matrix Biological Devices, Hyderabad in collaboration with National Institute of Immunology, New Delhi; Frontier Lifeline, Chennai; Healthline, Bengaluru; Hydrolina Biotech, Chennai; IMGENEX India, Bhubaneswar in collaboration with Institute of life Sciences, Bhubaneswar; Labland Biotech, Mysore; and Lead Invent Technologies, New Delhi in collaboration with Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi.

Skilled Professionals, Lower Costs and Increasing Government Support Drives the Biotechnology Industry in India, According to New Report by Global Industry Analysts, Inc. (http://www.prweb.com/releases/biotechnology/bioinformatics_biopharma/prweb9494449.htm)

GIA announces the release of a comprehensive report on the Biotechnology Industry in India. The Indian Biotechnology Industry is forecast to garner revenues of $11.7 billion by the year 2017. Skilled professionals, lower costs, increasing government support, well established infrastructure, strong private and public sector participation, and a large domestic market are some of the key factors driving growth in the Indian Biotechnology Industry. Other growth drivers include improving incomes, growing population, increasing R&D and infrastructure investments by private and public sectors, rising lifestyle diseases, increasing opportunities to outsource manufacturing, and an emerging market for contract research.

Although biotechnology as a science is not new to India, the area developed into an established and promising industry only during the past two to three decades. Presently, biotechnology represents a fast-growing, knowledge-based sector in India, which plays an important role in the rapidly growing economy of the country. Biotechnology in India is a highly technology-based industry, which presently accounts for a share of 2% in the global biotech industry. From playing a supplemental role until the recent years, biotechnology industry in India is expected to play an increasingly important role in the global biotechnology arena. Major growth areas within the industry include bio-pharmaceuticals, bio-agriculture, and bio-services, although other sectors are expected to post substantial growth in the coming years.
The Indian biotech industry managed to emerge out of the global recession largely unscathed, registering only a slowdown in revenue growth. In the upcoming years, the industry is estimated to witness another period of high growth, as drug developers worldwide are looking to India as a low-cost destination for outsourcing their discovery and production work, and as global developers continue to scout for more efficient and cost-effective ways to develop novel therapies. For instance, multinational biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies from the US and Western Europe are using India and China to undertake phased studies on markets in the emerging countries. Due to the stringent policies and escalating R&D expenses, producers in the regulated markets are expected to undertake increased cost cuttings. To offer improved outsourced and collaborative R&D services, pharmaceutical production hubs, such as Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai, Delhi, Ahmedabad, and Mumbai, are expanding at a brisk pace.
Biopharmaceutical represents the largest sector in the Indian biotechnology industry, as stated by the new market research report on Biotechnology in India. Bio-services trails behind Bio-Pharmaceuticals. Growth in the market is primarily expected to emerge from the Bio-agriculture sector, which is forecast to emerge as the fastest growing sector in terms of revenues during the analysis period. Exports continue to account for the largest share in the revenues of the Indian biotech industry, reflecting the continued focus of Indian biotech companies on the international markets. While segments, such as Bio-pharma, bioinformatics and bio-services represented a substantial chunk of the export market, bio-industrial and bio-agri generated a major share of revenues serving the domestic market.
However, some of the biggest challenges that the Indian biotech industry currently faces is the need for superior organized resources in the form of large animal and transgenic animal facilities, molecular and chemical screening libraries, wide accessibility of technology platforms, trade related testing as well as accreditation facilities, and level-3 biosafety facilities to assist research on the infectious diseases. The industry also faces challenges in the form of manpower shortage, especially in finding skilled manpower at the high-end. This includes experienced high-end personnel in the area of oncology, medicinal chemistry, drug delivery, and in-vivo pharmacology. Besides, the industry is also in serious shortage of experts in the areas of intellectual property rights management, technology transfer, technology management, clinical services, and early drug discovery and innovation.
Over 350 companies operate in the biotechnology sector in India. Major players profiled in the report include Biocon, Serum Institute of India, Panacea Biotec, Nuziveedu Seeds, Reliance Life Sciences, Quintiles, Rasi Seeds, Novo Nordisk, Shantha Biotechnics, Mahyco, Bharat Biotech International Limited, Jubilant Life Sciences Limited, Dr. Reddy's Laboratories Ltd., GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals Ltd., among others.
The research report titled “Biotechnology In India: An Indian Market Report” announced by Global Industry Analysts Inc., provides a comprehensive review of the Indian Biotechnology Industry, current market trends, key growth drivers, overview of major sectors, recent product approvals, recent industry activity, and profiles of major/niche global as well as regional market participants. The report provides revenue estimates and projections for biotechnology industry in India for the years 2009 through 2017 by the following sectors – Bio-Pharmaceutical, Bio-Agriculture, Bio-Industrial, Bioinformatics, and Bio-Services. Also, a six-year (2003-2008) historic analysis is provided for additional perspective.

Global generics sales growth lifts Dr Reddy's Q4 profit



http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/multimedia/dynamic/01080/Satish_1080808f.jpg
Hitting $2-b mark: Mr K. Satish Reddy, Managing Director, Dr Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd, at a press conference in Hyderabad on Friday
Hyderabad, May 11:

Pharma major Dr Reddy's Laboratories Ltd's net profit increased two per cent at Rs 343 crore in the fourth quarter ended March 31 compared with Rs 334 crore in the year-ago period.

The total revenue had gone up by 32 per cent at Rs 2,658 crore (Rs 2,017 crore) driven by growth in revenue from global generics, among others.

After adjusting the interest on debentures and impairment in Germany, the net profit grew 38 per cent at Rs 423 core, Mr G.V. Prasad, Chief Executive Officer, Dr Reddy's told newspersons here on Friday.

“The year 2011-12 had seen very good overall growth. We have crossed the $2-billion mark in total revenues at an average dollar rate of Rs 47.9,” said the Managing Director, Mr Satish Reddy.

The growth in revenue and profit was driven by significant sales growth in global generics segment in the US market and Russia.

“The revival of pharmaceutical services and active ingredients and over-the-counter business also resulted in good growth during the year,” Mr Satish Reddy said.

While North America, Russia, Russia and India grew, revenue from Germany declined 15 per cent due to tenderisation of German market and pricing pressures.

The domestic business grew by 11 per cent to yield Rs 1,293 crore, while the market growth as per industry estimates was at 15 per cent.

“We are not happy with the performance in India. We are working on improving the sales further,” Mr Prasad said. During the year, 16 and 23 products were launched in the US and India, respectively.

The company has lined up a higher number of products for launch during the present financial year subjected to regulatory approvals.

“The sales growth during the current financial year could be similar to what we achieved in FY 12,” Mr Satish Reddy said.

On the US FDA ban on import of products from Mexico plant imposed last year, he said the US regulator had visited the plant in March and the outcome was awaited.

The board proposed a divided of Rs 13.75 (275 per cent) an equity share of Rs 5 face value subjected to the approval of shareholders.

Dr Reddy's scrip declined 2.24 per cent to end at Rs 1661.65 on the Bombay Stock Exchange on Friday.

US generics provide a lift to Dr Reddy's sales

May 12, 2012:

Dr Reddy's reported operating margins look muted (decline of 340 basis points year-on-year) due to the impairment charge taken in the quarter under review. Excluding this, operating profit margins have improved by 60 basis points to 24.9 per cent.

The sharp reduction in the reference prices in the German market and signing up of new tenders at lower rates, led to writing down of brand values to the tune of Rs 100 crore.

Dr Reddy's revenue growth of 32 per cent for the quarter was facilitated by strong performance in the US generics (32 per cent), Russia (19 per cent) and pharmaceutical services and active ingredients segment (21 per cent).

The low base effect in the India formulations did not help in the last quarter and the segment posted a dreary 11 per cent growth (in rupee terms) lagging the market. Europe was yet another laggard with a decline of 16 per cent largely due to severe pricing pressure in the German market.

US growth was led by older OTC products such as omeprazole Mg, lansoprazole as well as tacrolimus and new launches like ziprasidone, fondaparinux, in addition to products from Shreveport facility. Lower-than-expected offtake of olanzapine by Teva due to tardy generic substitution led to inventory write down, which, coupled with withdrawal of DEPB benefits, unfavourable business mix, dragged Dr Reddy's gross margin down by 170 basis points (bps) to 52.6 per cent.

Reported net profit for the quarter showed a paltry two per cent growth, on the back of 520 bps increase in tax rate (19.6 per cent). The company has filed 17 ANDA's (Abbreviated new drug application) during the year and 80 filings cumulatively are pending approval, of which 41 are Para IV's and seven are first-to-file (FTF's).

Though the company has commenced filing for bio-similars in the emerging markets, filings in the key regulated markets is likely to be back-ended, pending clarity on the regulatory pathways and delays in roping in a development/marketing partner.

While the management is confident of meeting their FY13 guidance of $2.7 billion (Rs 14,000 crore) and return on capital employed of 25 per cent, with a slew of launches lined up for the next 12 months, the real challenge lies in sustaining growth beyond FY13.

Shantha Biotech hopes for revival as it aims to relaunch Shan5 (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/healthcare/biotech/pharmaceuticals/shantha-biotech-hopes-for-revival-as-it-aims-to-relaunch-shan5/articleshow/13127986.cms)

NEW DELHI: Two years after surrendering a $340-million supply contract, there is a glimmer of hope for ailing vaccine maker Shantha Biotech. Its French owner, Sanofi Aventis, has endorsed a revival plan that aims to win a part of the multi-million dollar WHO supply programme this year.

A five-in-one drug of Shantha was disqualified, and subsequently banned, by the World Health Organisation in 2010, pushing the Hyderabad-based drugmaker into the red, within nine months of it being acquired by Sanofi for 3,770 crore.

"We are on track to participate in the UNICEF bidding process for Shan5 for the 2013-2015 period. This should allow Shantha to be back on track in terms of revenues by 2015," a spokesperson for Sanofi India said.

Last month, India's Foreign Investment Promotion Board gave approval to Paris-based Sanofi Pasteur Meriexu to infuse 514 crore this fiscal to "meet its operational deficits and fund requirements".

The spokesperson said the money would be used to build capacity, upgrade quality standards for vaccine production in India, and develop new vaccines for infections such as those caused by rotavirus and human papillomavirus. However, some experts say Shantha's revival may not happen so soon.

Shantha is not yet allowed to supply Shan5 to WHO programmes. The vaccine was developed to treat diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, haemophilus influenza B and hepatitis B.

"Companies have to submit their bids for the 2013-15 contract by early next month, and Shan5 is yet to get approval from either the Indian regulator or pre-qualify for WHO supply," a senior vaccine industry executive said. "I am not sure Shantha has time on its side," the executive added.

The UNICEF contract is likely to be awarded by October, around the time Shantha is planning the vaccine's relaunch.

The executive, however, pointed out that WHO allows companies whose vaccines are in the process of getting pre-qualification to participate in the bidding process, provided they are able to spell out details of delivery plan, capacity and price. Besides, if there is fresh demand, WHO may also give the contract to firms that missed out in the initial round.

In August 2010, WHO banned Shan5 after the vaccine maker failed to address the issue of white sediments sticking to glass vials. This cost the company a $340 -million WHO contract it had won the previous year. According to reports, the company's annual sales subsequently fell to a fifth from about 450-500 crore when Shan5 was in the global markets.

But Sanofi says it bought Shantha to make it its vaccine hub for emerging markets and sell them at affordable rates. "The fundamentals that led us to acquire Shantha are still in place," the spokesperson said.

Shantha's original promoter, Varaprasad Reddy, continues as its chairman, though his stake, which was around 10% in 2009, has fallen to 3%. His shareholding will further drop as the latest fund infusion would be done through a combination of rights issue and issue of fresh shares to the foreign firm.

Aurobindo Pharma receives final approval for Lamivudine+Zidovudine Tablets (http://www.equitybulls.com/admin/news2006/news_det.asp?id=105157)

Aurobindo Pharma Limited has received final approval from the US Food & Drug Administration (USFDA) to manufacture and market for Lamivudine & Zidovudine tablets USP 150/300 mg (ANDA 202418) and is ready for launch.

Lamivudine & Zidovudine tablets USP 150/300 mg is the generic equivalent of ViiV Healthcare company's Combivir® tablets USP 150/300mg and is indicated as part of antiretroviral (ARV) combination therapy for the treatment of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infected adults and children. The annual sale of the product is approximately US$265 million.

The product has been approved out of Unit VII (SEZ) formulation facility in Hyderabad, India.

Aurobindo now has a total of 150 ANDA approvals (122 final approvals including 1 from Aurolife Pharma LLC and 28 tentative approvals) from USFDA.

The Aurobindo Pharma Ltd stock was trading at Rs.103.80, down by Rs.2.45 or 2.31%. The stock hit an intraday high of Rs.104.90 and low of Rs.102.

The total traded quantity was 0.53 lakhs compared to 2 week average of 1.03 lakhs.

http://pharmabiz.com/NewsDetails.aspx?aid=69021&sid=2

Aurobindo Pharma Limited, Hyderabad-based pharma major, has received final approval from the US FDA to manufacture and market lamivudine and zidovudine tablets USP 150/300mg (ANDA 202418) and is ready for launch.

Lamivudine and zidovudine tablets USP 150/300mg is the generic equivalent of ViiV Healthcare company's Combivir tablets USP 150/300mg and is indicated as part of antiretroviral (ARV) combination therapy for the treatment of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infected adults and children. The annual sale of products is approximately US$ 265 million.

The product has been approved out of Unit VII (SEZ) formulation facility in Hyderabad, India.

Aurobindo now has a total of 150 ANDA approvals (122 final approvals including 1 from Aurolife Pharma LLC and 28 tentative approvals) from US FDA.

Aurobindo Pharma has manufacturing facilities that are approved by several leading regulatory agencies like US FDA, UK MHRA, WHO, Health Canada, MCC South Africa, Anvisa Brazil.

Goose launches pharma project management solution (http://www.newstrackindia.com/newsdetails/2012/05/21/299--Goose-launches-pharma-project-management-solution-.html)

Hyderabad, May 21 (IANS) City-based Goose Monday launched API (Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient) manager, a fully configurable solution that enables pharmaceutical companies manage complex projects.

The API manager will also improve project delivery, quality, yield and significantly bring down the cost of project management.

It is an essential component of any quality by design initiative, providing the necessary automation, integration and database reporting functionality that ensures all multi-variety data are tracked and measured, said the specialist pharmaceutical business re-engineering solutions provider in a statement.

"In an environment of extreme cost containment a well-integrated project management solution contributes significantly to pharmaceutical business that require product quality enhancements and compliance with strict regulations, as well as improved efficiencies which can lead to reduced costs," said Goose founder Deb Pattnaik.

Goose has been able to rapidly introduce new pharmaceutical industry solutions to meet growing market demands by leveraging its pharmaceutical re-engineering expertise having worked closely with a number of big pharmaceutical companies offering regulatory compliance and enterprise management solutions.

http://www.drugstorenews.com/article/dr-reddys-launches-heartburn-treatment?utm_source=GoogleNews&utm_medium=Syndication&utm_campaign=ManualSitemap

Dr. Reddy's launches heartburn treatment
HYDERABAD, India — Dr. Reddy's Labs has launched a generic version of a popular over-the-counter drug for treating heartburn, the company said Monday.

Dr. Reddy's announced the launch of lansoprazole delayed-release capsules in the 15-mg strength in pack sizes of 14, 28 and 42. The drug is a generic version of Novartis Consumer Health's Prevacid 24 HR capsule brand, which had sales of $115 million during the 12-month period ended in March, according to SymphonyIRI InfoScan Reviews.

Nephroplus introduces 'Nocturnal Dialysis' for working patients in Hyderabad (http://pharmabiz.com/NewsDetails.aspx?aid=69111&sid=1)

Nephroplus, the leading kidney care organization based at Hyderabad has recently introduced ‘Nocturnal Dialyses’ for working professionals. Nocturnal dialysis can be a real boon for working professionals as it allows patients to work at day and get treated at night without affecting their normal lives.

In India around two to four lakh people develop end stage kidney disease each year indicating alarming rise in problems related to kidney. At times, the kidney patients are required to undergo dialysis three to four times a week, affecting their work schedules and at times their treatment. Nocturnal dialysis or dialysis done during night can provide the much needed panacea for working professionals who are undergoing dialysis regularly.

Coining out the new concept, Kamal Shah, co founder and director, patient services, Nephroplus kidney care clinics says, “Nocturnal dialysis is a new concept and yet to gain momentum in India. However, it can help people balance their personal and processional lives better. It also provides very good quality of life and patients generally feel very close to normal.” Interestingly, Kamal Shah is a dialysis patient himself for the last 15 years and undergoes nocturnal dialysis at his house every night.

Dr Krishna, medical director of Nephroplus says, “Nocturnal dialysis helps reduce stress level among patients. It is popular among corporate executives and young kidney patients, who have hectic professional life. It is a slow, gentle and lengthy process compared to normal hemodialysis as it purifies the blood better.”

According to other experts, apart from helping patients lead a normal life, nocturnal analysis has many benefits both emotionally and medically. Patients undergoing nocturnal dialysis respond better to treatment. This in turn improves the health of patients and they are allowed to live a less restrictive life. Not only that, nocturnal dialysis also helps patients to correct sleep apnoea and increase restorative sleep. These benefits can continue even on the dialysis off-nights.

In addition to this, studies have found that psychologically, nocturnal dialysis patients have better control over their lives. As the treatment is done during night, patients undergoing nocturnal dialysis are able to do more with their life. They are able to channelize their time to work, attend school, take care of their children and enjoy social events during the day. Moreover, as the schedule does not interfere with their working or social lives they need not tell people they are on dialysis and makes them feel more normal.

Camp BizSmart develops the entrepreneurs of the next generation (http://www.mercurynews.com/los-gatos/ci_20676644/camp-bizsmart-develops-entrepreneurs-next-generation)

TWEENPRENEURS: Where are tomorrow's entrepreneurs going to come from? Well, the next generation, obviously, and Los Gatans Mike and Peggy Gibbs want to make sure these fledgling leaders get organizational exposure early on. And so they offer Camp BizSmart to 11- to 15-year-olds.
The cost for the five- or 10-day programs ranges from $450 to $1,400. Sounds like a pretty steep ticket, but the camp's success speaks for itself: since its start in 2008, enrollment has doubled each year. Mike is a former executive in a Fortune 500 company; his wife was an executive with nonprofit agencies.
The camps are held at Stanford, Santa Clara U., Punahou School in Honolulu and Hyderabad, India. There will be 11 camps this year where students will learn about team building, problem solving, cost analysis and how to put a business plan together. At Stanford they can pitch their ideas to Microsoft execs for possible development.
Grads of the camp are working with the nonprofit HopeLab to develop a fitness monitor to help teens become more physically active.
SHEDDING LIGHT ON ALZHEIMER'S: Turn of Mind is written in the voice of a 64-year-old orthopedic surgeon who is undergoing the terrifying stages of Alzheimer's. When her best friend is murdered and found to have four fingers surgically removed, the former surgeon is also suspected of murder.
This provocative murder mystery is local author Alice LaPlante's first novel and won the California Book Award. LaPlante teaches creative nonfiction at San Francisco State and Stanford and spoke at the Saratoga library recently. The author has three relatives in the throes of Alzheimer's now, so knows whereof she writes.
Since her mother, grandmother and so on back in her maternal line have had the disease, writing about Alzheimer's had been on her mind for years. She tried various approaches, but nothing clicked until her husband suggested a murder mystery with Alzheimer's at its core.
LaPlante is an intuitive writer, she says: She doesn't plot out her book as do most mystery authors. She didn't even know who the murderer was herself until she wrote the final 50 pages. The book is LaPlante's take on how Alz-heimer's victims must feel: that they are visitors from another country--and the natives are unfriendly.
It's life in the shadows, like going to a party when you don't know any of the other guests. There are laughs and joy, though, along with the tragic, when one is in the grip of Alzheimer's. This was what she wanted to show: that there was still a whole person there. "Your book made me feel better" about the grim subject, said one reader.
POETRY ON THE MOVE: These poetic insights are from Los Gatans who answered the call of county poet laureate Sally Ashton to write about Silicon Valley's inventiveness. The winning five poems showed up on placards on county public transit vehicles during the month of April.
"Going Home" by Stan Garber: People come from everywhere and wind up on Stevens Creek/Some talk to friends on their cell phones, while others, they don't speak/Some read a book, others sleep as down the road they sail/I'm happy to be headed home today on the light rail.
"The Little Spider" by J. Richard Gaskill: Designer and builder/No degree from a school/She builds what she needs/Without blueprint or tool./Climbing, rappelling/Trailing silk all the way/Constructing radials and circulars/ It's done in a day./Apprehending a fly/ She binds him up tight/Using loops of her silk/He'll be dinner tonight.
BABY SECRETS: Here's the answer to a new mother's qualms about taking care of her newborn. Its titled Secrets of a Baby Nurse: How to Have a Happy, Healthy and SLEEPING Baby from Birth and is written by Marsha Podd, 63, a baby nurse for more than 30 years, and former Saratogan.
Podd, the daughter of Gretchen Podd, now lives in Novato and works at Marin General. Her nursing degree is from UC-Davis. Marsha dedicated the book to her sister, Jennifer Kresge, who shared her four children with her.
Much of the book's advice focuses on how to create a calm and comforting environment to establish healthy sleeping patterns, as well as tips on what to do at each age when that pattern is disrupted. Podd includes advice about how to read your baby's signals and how to build comforting daily rhythms.

Goose Launches world’s first fully configurable ‘API Manager’ - A Key Tool for Pharmaceutical Project Management (http://pharmalive.com/News/index.cfm?articleid=840711&categoryid=32)

Hyderabad, India, May 21, 2012: Hyderabad based Goose (www.goose.co.in) a specialist Pharmaceutical business re-engineering solutions provider, announced today the launch of API (Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient) Manager, the only of its kind in the world, fully configurable solution that enable Pharmaceutical companies manage complex projects and improve Project delivery Quality, Yield and significantly bring down the cost of project management.

‘Goose API Manager’ is an essential component of any Quality by Design initiative, providing the necessary automation, integration and database reporting functionality that ensures all multi-variety data are tracked and measured.

The areas that are likely to witness quantum performance leaps using ‘Goose API Manager’ will be in the 5 phases of API Project Management that include project initiation, feasibility, optimization, validation and Drug Master filing process, also their integration.

Making the announcement Goose Founder CEO, Deb Pattnaik said “In an environment of extreme cost containment a well-integrated Project Management solution contributes significantly to Pharmaceutical business that require product quality enhancements and compliance with strict regulations, as well as improved efficiencies which can lead to reduced costs.”

Goose has been able to rapidly introduce new Pharmaceutical industry solutions to meet growing market demands by leveraging its Pharmaceutical Re-engineering expertise having worked closely with a number of Big Pharmaceutical Companies offering regulatory compliance and enterprise management solutions.

"Laurus has implemented Goose Task Manager as an enterprise solution. Currently, it is being used in the organization in areas of Project Management, R&D and Contract Research in collaboration with various functions and departments." Dr. Satyanarayana, CEO of the Laurus Labs. Laurus Labs is one of the leading names in API manufacturing industry with multiple manufacturing sites and capabilities in a wide range of areas including high potent molecules.

With acknowledgement of its product potential from market leaders such as Laurus Labs, Goose is confident of adding up more enterprise customers in its ‘API Manager’ portfolio.”Our goal is to become an industry standard when it comes to API Project Management,” Deb added. The Goose API Manager is designed for better control and efficiency, ensuring successful completion of projects on time, thereby saves both time and money for Pharmaceutical companies.”



An important feature of ‘Goose API Manager’ is sequencing and synchronization of multiple project management activities which is the key to the success of enterprise wide, large scale project management right from initiation stage to Drug Master Filing Process. It gives clear visibility of action points related to a project in terms of completion time, reasons for delay and when it could be completed.

The Goose API Manager meets cGMP guidelines and enables Pharmaceutical companies to connect crucial project management practices maximising business value, communicate project objectives more effectively internally or with third party partners that include systematic treatment of data as well as provide effective technology transfer into the first site of commercial active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) manufacture.

According to a report from Markets and Markets, the Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient (API) forms the most vital part of every formulated end product, and is an important part of the whole Pharmaceutical industry. The overall API market was valued at $101.08 billion in 2010, and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 7.9% from 2011 to 2016.

Additional Information



Challenges in Pharmaceutical API manufacturing division:

Over the past decades, the API Industry have entered into a challenging period where the market and the regulators have imposed significant pressure for making regulatory changes within the manufacturing sector of the API Industry. With the increasing demand to reduce timelines and costs in Pharmaceutical production, as well as the need to maintain high quality whilst stringent regulatory and safety requirements, API manufacturing process has never been more challenging. Improving the management of projects is one of the main areas for realizing productivity gains.



How API manager helps to solve these challenges



Goose API Manager accomplishes the Indenting process, receipt & approval of raw materials for the company and it easily visualizes the status at every stage. Regulatory Affairs Department users manage their Drug Master Filing (DMF) preparation with ease using this application. It tracks the phases & tasks and enables automated periodic reminders to the task owner for task completion thereby minimizing follow up chain and maintain Drug Master File (DMF),feasibility, optimization, Lab Validation and stability detail reports. The dashboards and predefined KPIs such as Schedule, Critical Milestone, Submission Batch Hit Rate, Filing Hit Rate, Cross-selling dossier, Bio-study, Evaluation features help in real time decision making.

http://pharmabiz.com/NewsDetails.aspx?aid=69159&sid=2
Novartis calls students to participate in BioCamp at Hyderabad from July 30
Novartis India is conducting Novartis Biotechnology Leadership Camp (BioCamp) at Hyderabad from July 30 to August 1, 2012 and invited students to participate from 100 Indian universities. BioCamp is a pioneering seminar organized by Novartis that brings young, talented students from diverse faculties and different universities closer to the pharmaceutical industry.

BioCamp is open to postgraduate students and young researchers in natural sciences, medicine, biotechnology, bio-informatics, pharmacy, business administration or law (specialization in Intellectual Property Rights) interested in pursuing a career in the pharmaceutical/biotechnology industry. Last date for receiving applications is June 14, 2012.

Selected students will have the opportunity to learn from and network with leaders in the pharmaceutical/biotechnology and business sector as well as hone their team building skills. The top three students from the India BioCamp will represent India at the International BioCamp being held at Novartis global headquarters in Basel, Switzerland from August 26 to 29, 2012.

Ranjit Shahani, vice chairman & managing director, Novartis India Ltd said, “BioCamp offers an opportunity to young talented individuals to exchange views and thoughts with leaders in the pharmaceutical industry. It serves as a platform to bring young minds to think of making a positive contribution to changing the face of healthcare in India. BioCamp is an example of the Novartis commitment to supporting the student community and building relationships with academia to address the healthcare needs of our country.”

Since launching the BioCamp initiative in 2004, Novartis has introduced nearly 500 top graduate students to the biotech industry and entrepreneurship. Besides regional events in various countries, global BioCamps have been held in Taiwan (2004), Singapore (2006), Tokyo (2007), Hong Kong (2008) and Cambridge, Massachusetts (2009) and since then in Basel, Switzerland.

Interested students should visit www.novartis.in or email biocamp.india@novartis.com for more information.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/companies/article3449126.ece?homepage=true&ref=wl_home
Aurobindo gets USFDA nod for HIV generic drug
HYDERABAD, MAY 23:
Aurobindo Pharma Ltd has received final approval for Nevirapine tablets and oral suspension from the US Food and Drug Administration.

The tablets are indicated for the treatment of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and were the generic version of Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceutical Inc’s Viramune tablets and oral suspension, the Hyderabad-based company said in a release.

The product, being manufactured at Aurobindo’s Hyderabad facility, would soon be launched in the US market.

According to IMS data, the products had a market size of $125 million for the twelve months ended December, 2011.