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Our Bureau

Mumbai , Aug. 9

SPECIALISTS have described it as the "designer-insulin, designed for the Indian meal." And Eli Lilly, the company bringing the `designer' insulin-pen into India, also expects to bring more diabetes-related products and research.

The estimated Rs 150-crore company expected to more than triple its global research work in India, said Mr Rajiv Gulati, Chairman and Managing Director of Eli Lilly in India. On the anvil are phase III clinical trials for pulmonary insulin, expected to start next year.

The company unveiled its analog insulin-pen Humalog Mix in India, priced at Rs 389 per cartridge. Mr Gulati said the product would bring more convenience and flexibility as it could be taken15 minutes before or immediately after a meal. It acts immediately on the meal and dosages are flexible.

The product was launched in two variations, Humalog Mix 25 and Humalog Mix 50 to suit different requirements. Humalog Mix 50, however, suited the Indian meal-pattern of two large meals a day and had hence been launched here after the Japanese market, he said.

The product was imported from France and the United States, he said and indicated that local manufacturing could be considered at a later date. He pointed out that the two new products facilitated better diabetes control and added that similar products were not available in the country.

Dr Shashank Joshi, endocrinologist at Mumbai's Lilavati Hospital, said the two Humalog variations suited Indian-meal patterns. While India stands at the top of the global diabetes chart with 33 million patients and a similar number undiagnosed, he said Mumbai looked set to take a dubious lead. At present every 10th or 12th Mumbaikar is diabetic and by 2012, every 5th or 6th Mumbaikar is expected to be diabetic. But current trends showed the timeline might be advanced to 2008, he said. And here, Mumbai competed with Chennai and Hyderabad, he cautioned.

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