Sun Pharma enters licensing pact with Lundbeck to unveil novel anti-depressant pill in India

INDIA – Sun Pharma announced that it has entered into a unique patent licensing agreement with Danish drugmaker Lundbeck to market and distribute its own brand of antidepressant medicine Vortioxetine in India under the brand name Vortidiftm.

The licensing agreement’s jurisdiction will be limited to India.

Vortioxetine is a novel antidepressant with multimodal exercise that has been approved for the treatment of Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) in adults.

The product is accepted in over 80 countries, including the United States, the European Union, Canada, and Australia.

MDD is one of the leading causes of disability, affecting 246 million people worldwide and 35 million in India.

MDD is distinguished by pronounced mood changes that are accompanied by distinct psychological and vegetative changes, such as sleep disturbance, appetite disturbance, subjective fatigue.

Other symptoms include loss of motivation and drive, ruminative feelings of guilt and despair, difficulties maintaining mental focus, and suicidal thinking and behavior.

Kirti Ganorkar, chief executive of Sun Pharma’s Indian business, said: “Sun Pharma is the leader in neuro-psychiatry therapy in India and we always endeavor to bring innovative medicines that fill a need gap.

 MDD is a serious and complicated disorder and Vortidif will serve as an important novel treatment option for patients in India.”

Earlier, Sun Pharmaceutical Industries announced that it has entered into a share purchase agreement with Daiichi Sankyo Company of Japan to acquire the latter’s 11.28 percent stake in Zenotech Laboratories.

According to a regulatory filing, the primary goal of the transaction from the acquirer’s perspective is to consolidate its holding in the target company.

Sun Pharma’s stake in Zenotech will rise from 57.56 percent to 68.84 percent following the acquisition, according to the company.

Sun Pharma is ranked first in India by prescriptions and value among Neurologists and Psychiatrists and its CNS division has a strong product portfolio.

Meanwhile, Sun Pharma’s US subsidiary Ranbaxy have signed settlement agreements with two plaintiff groups in the generic pharmaceutical pricing antitrust litigation in the US, agreeing to pay a total of US$485 million in exchange for the full release of claims against them.

Sun stated in a regulatory filing that it had signed a binding term sheet to settle lawsuits filed by direct purchasers of the drugs, such as drug wholesalers, and indirect purchasers, such as health plans, accusing Ranbaxy of racketeering and antitrust violations.

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