<div><em><strong>By C.H. Unnikrishnan</strong></em></div><div> </div><div>India's second largest drugmaker Dr Reddy's Laboratories Ltd, which is planning an array of product and technology collaborations with foreign counterparts as part of its recent business re-modelling, has signed at least a couple of new marketing and distribution deals in the last one week.</div><div> </div><div>The latest in the series is a product commercialisation agreement with Australian drug developer Hatchtech for an anti-lice technology. It had also collaborated with US pharma company PanTheryx Inc for an anti-infectious diarrhoea product four days ago.</div><div> </div><div>Dr Reddy's said on Monday (14 September) that it has signed an exclusive agreement with Hatchtech to commercialise a new haircare drug developed by the latter. The agreement on the new product, an innovative prescription anti-head lice drug branded as Xeglyze Lotion, is applicable for the territories of the US, Canada, India, Russia and the CIS, Australia, New Zealand and Venezuela.</div><div> </div><div>As part of the agreement, Dr Reddy's will pay Hatchtech an upfront amount of up to $50 million based on pre-commercialization milestones and an undisclosed amount based on post-commercialization milestones, linked to achievement of annual net sales targets.</div><div> </div><div>Hatchtech will be filing its new drug application for Xeglyze with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Monday for marketing approval in that market. If approved, the product will be marketed in the US by Dr Reddy's Lab's wholly-owned subsidiary Promius Pharma.</div><div> </div><div>In September 2014, Hatchtech had announced positive results from its two important Phase 3 clinical studies evaluating Xeglyze Lotion as a potential treatment for head lice infestation. The studies involved 704 people, across 14 clinical trial sites in the US and resulted in an 81.5 per cent success rate.</div><div> </div><div>The company said that this Lotion, a topical formulation containing abametapir, an inhibitor of metalloproteases, has demonstrated both ovicidal and lousicidal activity and offers the potential for a more effective treatment using only a single application. The active drug substance was developed in collaboration with Dr Reddy's custom or contract pharmaceutical services (CPS) business unit.</div><div> </div><div><strong>PanTheryx Deal</strong></div><div>On September 10, Dr Reddy's signed a multi-country supply and licensing agreement with Colorado-based medical nutrition company PanTheryx Inc to market and distribute the latter's breakthrough nutritional intervention product DiaResQ. An innovative treatment for infectious diarrhea, DiaResQ will be sold by Dr Reddy's Lab in India and Nepal. It may also extend the marketing to Russia, Myanmar, Vietnam, Ukraine, Sri Lanka, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Jamaica, and select Latin American markets. Dr Reddy's will market the product in India and Nepal under the brand name Reliqua.</div><div> </div><div>DiaResQ helps promote intestinal repair and boost natural immune defense, resulting in the restoration of normal digestive function. The product was recently recognized in Reimagining Global Health, a medical conference, as one of the 30 leading healthcare innovations with great promise to transform global health by 2030.</div><div> </div><div>PanTheryx president and chief executive Mark A. Braman had said at this announcement that since Dr Reddy's Lab is a recognized leader in the gastrointestinal market, this agreement covers some of the largest and most promising markets throughout the world for PanTheryx and its products.</div><div> </div><div>With DiaResQ, Dr Reddy's Lab is adding an important product to its existing gastrointestinal portfolio.</div><div> </div><div>"This innovative product will address a significant unmet need in the area of diarrhoea, and our agreement with PanTheryx is another step towards ensuring good health can be delivered to those who need it," said Dr Reddy's co-chairman and CEO G.V. Prasad last week.</div><div> </div><div><strong>unni@businessworld.com</strong></div><div> </div>
