Hyderabad - Biotech & Pharmaceutical Hub Updates

[rockystone]

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 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.

[rags123]

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.

[rags123]

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. .

[Cosmicbliss]

http://articles.timesofindia.indiati...s-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.

[Cosmicbliss]

http://articles.economictimes.indiat...ficer-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.

[Cosmicbliss]

http://articles.timesofindia.indiati...-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

[Cosmicbliss]

http://articles.timesofindia.indiati...tion-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.



Ads by Google

[rockystone]

CDFD campus to come up at Survey of India premises

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/c...ow/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.

[rockystone]

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.

[rizwan3]

http://www.hindu.com/2011/06/30/stor...3055802000.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.

[Prodigist]

Hands-free cataract surgery successfully conducted

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.

[ygvjs2000]

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/chann...ed-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."

[rags123]

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/...cle2418458.ece

[bhag]

National food technology regional centre likely in Hyderabad

http://www.business-standard.com/ind...erabad/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.

[Gudavalli]

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.

[Gudavalli]

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.

[Gudavalli]

Source: http://ibnlive.in.com/news/pharma-cm...10-60-121.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.

[Gudavalli]

Source: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/...ue&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.

[ygvjs2000]

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.

[S Chigurupati]

Source: The Hindu

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/va.../nbt.2022.html), the leading journal of biotechnology. The paper (http://www.icrisat.org/gt-bt/iipg/Ge...anuscript.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.