Lupin, Yoshindo Partner in Biosimilars for Japanese Market

The pharmaceutical companies Lupin Limited, headquartered in Mumbai, India, and Yoshindo Inc., based in Toyama, Japan
have formed a strategic joint venture agreement to create a new entity, YL Biologics (YLB). YLB will be jointly managed by both partners and will be responsible for conducting clinical development of certain biosimilars, including regulatory filings and obtaining marketing authorizations in Japan.

The new entity, YLB, will in-license monoclonal antibodies from Lupin and also partner with other companies globally to target the Japanese market. Lupin’s etanercept, a biosimilar, of Enbrel®, developed by Lupin’s Biotechnology Research Group in Pune, India, will be the first product to be licensed for clinical development to YLB. Etanercept is approved for treating autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis and ankylosing spondylitis. Enbrel® is marketed in Japan by Takeda Pharmaceutical.

Lupin will be entitled to milestone based licensing income in addition to commercial supplies of the drug substance. Both Lupin & Yoshindo will then market the product under their own brand names by leveraging their respective sales networks.


Source: Lupin

 

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