Karo Bio and Zydus Cadila extend research collaboration
To develop anti-inflammatory drug compounds to treat rheumatoid arthritis
Sweden’s Karo Bio and Zydus Cadila of India are to extend their research collaboration with the aim of discovering and developing novel anti-inflammatory drug compounds for the treatment of diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowels disease and psoriasis.
Karo Bio, located in Huddinge and Ahmedabad-based pharmaceutical company Zydus Cadila initiated a three-year collaboration in 2008. The parties have now agreed to extend the deal for another year.
The companies aim to design novel, selective glucocorticoids for the treatment of inflammatory diseases which have the same anti-inflammatory properties as conventional glucocorticoid steroids, such as cortisone, but with significantly reduced side-effects and thereby the potential for broader use. Both parties carry their own costs within the collaboration and share potential rewards.
‘To date, the collaboration has generated several novel compounds that may have potential as drug candidates. We have decided to extend our collaboration for another year to allow us to continue to combine the strengths of Karo Bio and Zydus Cadila to study these further,’ said Karo Bio’s ceo Fredrik Lindgren.