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TB research facility set up

By Our Staff Reporter

BANGALORE JUNE 3. Multinational pharmaceutical major AstraZeneca set up a Discovery Research Facility to develop new treatments for tuberculosis here on Monday.

Inaugurating the new research site, Tom McKillop, Chief Executive, AstraZeneca PLC, said: "Medicines for TB, which will be developed in this facility, will be made available for clinical development. They will be supplied at a low price to developing countries in partnership with governments, international agencies, and healthcare systems".

With a total investment of $ 40 million, the facility will work in collaboration with AZ's global network of research and development centres, particularly the genomics and infection research centres in the U.S. and U.K.

As of now, the research facility houses 67 scientists and plans are in the pipeline to increase this number to 100, depending on the progress of the project. Having started research on TB a year-and-a-half ago, the company has got some exciting leads.

"We expect to discover a candidate drug (a chemical compound that will be tested for toxicity in animals) by 2006 and we will move forward as per our announcement,'' Tanjore Balganesh, Head of Research, AstraZeneca R&D India, said.

AstraZeneca plans to launch new drugs for ailments such as breast cancer and hypertension in the Indian market.

The performance of the Indian subsidiary has been reasonably good with a sales increase of 35 per cent and net profit up by 60 per cent for the year 2002. The company recorded a turnover of $27 million and net profit of $4million during this period.

On Intellectual Property and the TRIPS issue, Mr. McKillop expressed optimism that India would pass the patent law by 2005, ''that is one of the reasons we invested here...there are matters however of implementing the law and the data-exclusivity arrangements which need to be taken care,'' he said.

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