Glenmark to market Crofelemer despite Napo nix

Glenmark Pharmaceuticals is going ahead with the launch of Crofelemer, a drug used for treatment of diarrhea in HIV positive patients, despite US-based Napo Pharmaceuticals announcing the termination of a collaboration agreement for the drug.

Glenmark said on Tuesday that it is filing for arbitration after Napo terminated a collaboration agreement. The companies had entered into a pact in July 2005 for development and commercialisation of a drug for gastrointestinal diseases.

Glenmark said Napo Pharma's claims of breach with regards Crofelemer are unfounded.

Crofelemer, Napo Pharma's lead compound, is under development for four distinct product indications: diarrhoea - predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), AIDS-related diarrhoea, acute infectious diarrhoea, and paediatric diarrhoea.

The US Food and Drug Administration is fast-tracking the application for IBS and HIV conditions, Napo said on its website.

Napo Pharma had terminated the pact on 10 November, according to a posting on its website. That would put at risk Glenmark's ambitious plans to exclusively market the drug that is produced from the bark latex of the Amazonian tree - Croton lechleri, harvested in many countries in South America.