Pharma News
Samsung Bioepis expands biosimilars agreement with Biogen
Korean biosimilars giant Samsung Bioepis has extended its commercialization agreement with Biogen to include biosimilars to two ophthalmology drugs, Lucentis (ranibizumab) and Eylea (aflibercept). The agreement also allows Biogen to commercialize Samsung’s blockbuster anti-inflammatories in Europe for an additional five years.
Alvotech signs agreements with Stada and Yas Holding
Alvotech has entered into a strategic biosimilars collaboration with German company Stada. The company has also announced a significant investment from Abu Dhabi-based company Yas Holding for the exclusive supply of biosimilars in the Middle East and North Africa.
Lupin to sell its Japanese arm and Sandoz to acquire Aspen’s Japanese business
On 11 November 2019, India-based Lupin announced that it has agreed to sell its entire stake in its Japanese subsidiary Kyowa Pharmaceutical Industry Co to Japan-based private equity firm Unison Capital for an enterprise value of Yen 57.36 billion.
Alvogen gains exclusive rights to market parathyroid biosimilar in three countries
American pharmaceuticals firm Alvogen has announced exclusive commercialization agreements to distribute and market a teriparatide biosimilar in Canada, Israel and South Korea.
Biocon acquires Pfizer research facility and signs licensing agreement with Evotec
India-based biologicals specialist Biocon has announced the acquisition of a research and development facility from Pfizer Healthcare India Ltd and signed a strategic licensing agreement for an early-stage biosimilar with Evotec Biologics.
Lupin to sell Japanese injectables business and collaborates with German drugmaker on anticancer treatment
India-based generics manufacturer Lupin Ltd – the eighth biggest generics company in the world – has announced the sale of its Japanese injectables business to a subsidiary of the United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) largest pharmaceutical manufacturer.
Further collaborations formed to penetrate China’s generics market
The Chinese pharmaceutical market is the second largest in the world, and generic drugs make up 70% of its value. Continued growth of China’s generics industry is anticipated owing to rapid population ageing and government policies to promote generics [1]. It is therefore not surprising that generic drug manufacturers are keen to penetrate this market, and indeed over the last few months there have been a number of collaborations with this objective [2-4]. Most recently, Japanese drugmakers Eisai and Nichi-Iko Pharmaceutical entered into a collaboration agreement to sell generic drugs in China, while Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (Sun Pharma) partnered with China Medical System Holdings (CMS) to develop and commercialise generics in China.
Celltrion contracts Lonza to manufacture autoimmune treatment Remsima
South Korean biosimilars manufacturer Celltrion have announced a deal with Swiss contract manufacturing organisation (CMO) Lonza to produce its autoimmune biosimilar Remsima at a facility in Singapore.
Shanghai Pharma and Russia’s Biocad form joint venture to sell cancer and autoimmune drugs in China
Shanghai Pharmaceuticals Holding and Russia’s Biocad Pharmaceutical have agreed to form a joint venture to develop, manufacture and market cancer and autoimmune disease treatments in China.
Sandoz makes deal with Polpharma for natalizumab biosimilar
Sandoz, the generics division of Novartis, and Poland-based Polpharma Biologics announced on 3 September 2019 that they had signed a worldwide agreement giving Sandoz commercialization rights to Polpharma’s candidate natalizumab biosimilar (PB006).
