Recognition for Biocon's technology

By Our Special Correspondent

BANGALORE, MAY 14. The Bangalore-based Biocon India, a pioneering biotechnology venture in India, has been awarded the 2001 `Biotechnology Product and Process Development and Commercialisation Award' by the Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science and Technology, for its invention - a solid matrix bioreactor. The company's President for R & D, Mr. Shrikumar Suryanarayan, the main inventor of the technology, received the award from the Vice President of India on May 11 at a special ceremony in New Delhi.

In a press release, Biocon India's CMD, Ms. Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, described the invention, which has been trademarked as The Plafractor, as a hybrid fermentation device that captures the best elements of solid and liquid phase fermentation. It offers, for the first time, containment and micro-automation features for a solid phase fermentation process. The Plafractor has received a U.S. Patents grant last year and has since also received Indian and PCT patents.

Fermentation derived drugs account for about 60 per cent of the 20 top-selling therapeutics and it is envisaged that this figure will increase to more than 75 per cent within the next five years, given the speed at which biotechnology-based therapeutics are replacing conventional drugs. Biocon India is alrady using the Plafractor technology to manufacture high value immunosuppressants and expects to extend this propreitary technology to other high value therapeutics.

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Section  : Business
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