e-Therapeutics and Khandelwal Laboratories sign share agreement for sales in India

Drug developer e-Therapeutics has entered into an agreement with Khandelwal Laboratories (KLab), a specialist pharmaceutical company based in Mumbai, India, for three drug candidates.

Under the agreement, KLab will undertake all further formulation and clinical development necessary to gain regulatory marketing approval for the drugs in the Indian market. The two companies will split revenues from the medicines in India 50:50 after manufacturing costs. e-Therapeutics will retain its exclusive rights in all other markets to all data and IP developed in the partnership with KLab.

The agreement follows successful Phase II trials of e-Therapeutics’ oral asthma (ETX9101) and anti-depressant (ETS6103) medications, and preclinical studies of a topical antibiotic (ETX1153b).

Sanjeev Khandelwal, KLab’s ceo, said: ‘The market potential for these drugs is currently more than £220m a year, and all three markets are growing swiftly. The properties of these experimental medicines, if borne out in the Phase III clinical studies we will shortly be starting, will bring benefit to very many patients and yield substantial market penetration.’

KLab has a team of more than 800 sales representatives, covering 160,000 doctors, and 64,000 pharmacies throughout India.