Shantha Bio plans to launch more products

By Our Staff Reporter

HYDERABAD, AUG. 18. Shantha Biotechnics, which produces Hepatitis B vaccine (Shanvac-B), plans to market four more products - Interferon (under the brand name of Shanferon - for certain types of cancer treatment), streptokinase (for cardiac ailments), GM- CSF, and G-CSF - in 2002, according to Mr. K. I. Varaprasad Reddy, Managing Director.

Speaking on the future plans of the company at its facility in Medchal near Hyderabad on Saturday, Mr. Reddy said Shanferon was in the final stages of human trial and the company expected to launch it by November. The other three products would follow in 2002.

The company is planning to set up a Rs. 60 crore multi-product production facility adjacent to its existing R&D and state-of-the-art facility at Medchal. This will make eight or nine products in the pipeline. Plans have been finalised and work is about to commence.

Mr. Reddy said Shantha West Inc, one of its subsidiaries based in the U.S., had a patent to its credit - for TB 94 (for lungcell cancer) - and it was in the process of filing for two more patents. It is working on monoclonal antibodies.

Shantha Biotechnics at present has a capacity of 40 million vaccine doses and plans to produce 15 million in 2002. It also has a marketing agreement with Pfizer, under which the latter markets the Hepatitis B vaccine under the brand name Hepashield.

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Section  : Business
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