Ethypharm licenses cardio product to Ranbaxy for India

Mumbai, Sep 18 (UNI) Ethypharm India, subsidiary of French multinational Drug Delivery Company Ethypharm S A today announced out-licensing and supply contract agreements with Ranbaxy for a fixed dose combination of Fenofibrate micronized 160 mg and Atorvastatin 10 mg to be launched in the Indian market.

A company's release issued here today said this deal comes in quick succession after a similar deal that Ethypharm had signed with Ranbaxy for out-licensing and supply of Tramadol Flashtab in May this year.

The products will be supplied from Ethypharm's manufacturing facility near Mumbai as finished and packaged formulations and marketed and distributed by Ranbaxy under their brand name 'STORFIB'.

Fenofibrate is a drug prescribed to lower triglycerides in cases of Hyperlipidemia while Atorvastatin is a drug widely used to manage cholesterol levels.

Ethypharm's enhanced absorption technologies serve to increase bioavailability of drugs like Fenofibrate which suffer from poor availability in the human body. With this offering both companies aim to respond to patients and health authorities' increasing demands for more appropriate and safe medicines.

Combinational products are growing very fast in India and it is estimated that more than two thirds of all combination products worldwide are registered first in India. Ethypharm endeavours to ensure that the benefits of its Drug Delivery technologies now also encompass such combinational products. ''This product encapsulates the benefits of both Combination offerings and Drug Delivery technologies and will help the large Indian populace who suffer from Mixed Dyslipidemia which is a common culprit in the Asian subcontinent including India,'' Ethypharm Indias' Chief Executive Officer Ajey Kumar said.

Commenting on the agreement Ranbaxy's Regional Director India and Middle East Sanjeev I Dani said, ''Ranbaxy in India is the leader in Novel Drug Delivery System (NDDS) products and a pioneer in the Lipids management portfolio as well. 'STORFIB' very aptly symbolises both of these strengths and would further augment our leadership position in the cardio-vascular market.'' The Ethypharm pharmaceutical company focuses on developing, manufacturing and licensing pharmaceutical products based on optimization of delivery through proprietary technologies, mainly in the oral sustained release formulations. The company has a special focus on pain management, cardiovascular, oncology and CNS branded and generic products. Over the years, Ethypharm has developed more than 50 branded and generic products, based on its core proprietary technologies.

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