Centaur Pharmaceuticals in-licenses Herpes drug Sorivudine from aRigen Pharmaceuticals Japan

Mumbai-based Centaur Pharma, India's largest manufacturer and exporter of psychotropic active product ingredients (API), has in-licensed from Japan's aRigen the development and distribution rights for its topical antiviral drug Sorivudine.

The deal enables Centaur to market the product in India and neighbouring countries. Sorivudine is a local application, for Herpes Zoster, which will be introduced for the first time in India, by 2013.

aRigen, incorporated in 2001, is a R&D Japanese biotech company dealing in anti-infective products. aRigen also specialises in anti-bacterials, anti-virals and anti-protozoals.

Centaur now plans to approach the Drugs Controller General India (DCGI) for permission for Phase II and Phase III trials, and marketing rights in India.

Commenting on the deal, Centaur's managing director, S D Sawant, said, ''Our strategy is to ink similar in-licensing agreements with the world's leading drug discovery and development players like aRigen, and derive synergies by leveraging our proficiencies across the pharmaceutical value chain."

Centaur had earlier received the development rights for the new chemical entity (NCE), DPOCL (diperoxochloric acid) solution, for diabetic foot ulcer from Cyto Tools AG, Germany, which the company plans to launch in 2012.

Centaur, established in Mumbai in 1978, owns brands that are leaders in six therapy segments, including the ant-icold segment, with Sinarest.