The Hindu Business Line : IBPL signs R&D pact with Viropro of Canada

Ahmedabad, Oct 16 The Ahmedabad-based Intas Biopharmaceuticals Ltd (IBPL) has signed a research and development agreement with Canada’s Viropro International Inc, a subsidiary of Viropro Inc, for the development and production of therapeutic protein. This follows an MoU signed by the two companies in May 2007. An IBPL delegation recently visited Viropro to study its intellectual property and process development skills, a company official said here today.

Mr Mani Iyer, Director, said, IBPL was looking to leverage certain proprietary technologies and expertise of Viropro towards co-development of molecule for towards bio-therapeutic products. As part of the announcement made earlier regarding equity investment in Viropro, an initial sum of $50,000 has been sent to Viropro as a down payment towards the first milestone payable. IBPL and Viropro will explore opportunities to manufacture and commercialize the product.

The contract offers exclusive territories for both the companies and the opportunity to work together in non-exclusive territories. They will retain the IP rights throughout the term of the agreement.

In addition, IBPL has secured a first refusal right for new biopharmaceutical products developed by Viropro’s subsidiary. IBPL expects to commercialise the product and market it in India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal, Burma, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia and Vietnam; Viropro will retain all of Africa.

“The market was waiting for this announcement and we are proud to finalize the agreement with IBPL, said Dr. Jean-Marie Dupuy, President and CEO of Viropro.

IBPL is planning to generate clones for commercial production of protein using state-of-the-art technologies to improve yields, quality as well as adopting novel expression systems (including transgenics) with an objective to build Intellectual Property over the long run. It will screen technologies and new molecules and identify the most promising ones, prioritising them on the basis of their business potential and compatibility., Dr Rustom Mody, Head (Quality and Strategy Research), IBPL, said.

Viropro conducts operations through its subsidiary Viropro International Inc,headquartered in Montreal, Canada. Viropro specialises in the transfer of its technologies for industrial production of biogeneric therapeutic proteins for the treatment of various diseases including cancer, diabetes, hepatitis or multiple sclerosis.

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