Teva Pharmaceutical Industries has launched an authorized generic of Merck & Co.’s Cubicin (daptomycin for injection) 500 mg per vial, for treating adults with complicated skin and skin structure infections (cSSSI), in the US. Cubicin is one of Merck’s top 10-selling pharmaceuticals, with 2015 sales of $1.1 billion.

Cubicin was approved in the US by the Food and Drug Administration in 2003. Merck & Co. gained Cubicin through its $9.5-billion acquisition of Cubist Pharmaceuticals in 2015. 

Daptomycin for injection is indicated in adults for treating Staphylococcus aureus bloodstream infections (bacteremia), including those with right-sided infective endocarditis, caused by methicillin-susceptible and methicillin-resistant isolates. Daptomycin for injection is not indicated for pneumonia or for left-sided infective endocarditis due to S. aureus. Daptomycin for injection has not been studied in patients with prosthetic valve endocarditis.

Source: Teva Pharmaceutical Industries