Lotus Pharma subsidiary secures diabetes drug patent
Shanghai. October 20. INTERFAX-CHINA - Beijing En Ze Jia Shi Pharmaceutical, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Lotus Pharmaceutical Inc., has received a patent for a controlled-release oral gliclazide tablet from China's State Intellectual Property Office (SIPO), Lotus Pharma announced Oct. 19.
According to the announcement, the patent covers both drug composition and preparation methods, and will give En Ze Jia Shi Pharma market exclusivity in China for 20 years.
Lotus Pharma expects the drug to start clinical trials in 2012 and receive manufacturing approval in 2014. The product is projected to generate annual sales revenue of approximately $15 million.
Gliclazide is commonly used to treat Type 2 diabetes. Controlled-release tablets provide more stable and sustained delivery compared with conventional dosage forms.
Beijing-based Lotus Pharma registered total revenue of $34.1 million in the first half of 2010, up 34 percent from a year earlier.
- MS