Allergy Drugs: November 2006 Archives

China Biopharmaceuticals Holdings, Inc., a leading Chinese pharmaceutical company focused on the development, manufacturing and marketing of innovative drugs in China, today announced the completion of all required clinical trials for Desloratadine tablets for seasonal allergic rhinitis, also known as hay fever. The trials were conducted in six hospitals throughout China. The trial results have been sent to the Chinese State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA) for manufacturing and marketing approval. The Company anticipates an approval response from the SFDA in the second half of 2007.

Desloratadine is indicated for the relief of the nasal and non-nasal symptoms of seasonal allergic rhinitis. It is also indicated for the symptomatic relief of pruritus and the reduction in the number of hives, and size of hives, in patients with chronic idiopathic urticaria. In China, 30% of the population has suffered from an allergy at least once. The $1.5 billion allergy drug market in China continues to grow at a rate of 15% per year.

DUBLIN, Ireland--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Research and Markets has announced the addition of Espicom Business Intelligence’s New Drug Futures: Respiratory Chapter to their offering.

This chapter of New Drug Futures evaluates, compares and contrasts the prospects for the compounds that will revolutionise the pharmaceutical industry over the next 5 years and beyond in the respiratory sector. The report includes unique sales forecasts by major product.

The Respiratory market is the fourth largest therapeutic category by sales and generated nearly US$32.4 billion (+8% YoY) in 2005. Sales grew steadily in the US, which accounted for around 54% of global respiratory sales, driven by growth in Advair, GlaxoSmithKline's leading combination therapy for the treatment of asthma/COPD and Merck's Singulair for the treatment of asthma and allergic rhinitis. Sales in Europe are now growing steadily; around 5% following the uptake of new treatments such as Symbicort (AstraZeneca) and Alvesco (Altana/sanofi-aventis) which have yet to be approved in the US markets.

New research at Wake Forest University School of Medicine suggests that certain inhaled asthma medications – as well as similar chemicals our bodies produce during times of high stress – may worsen diseases such as asthma , heart failure and lupus that involve inflammation.

The scientific team led by Raymond Penn, Ph.D., and Matthew Loza, Ph.D, found that beta-agonists, such as those used in the treatment of asthma, increase the accumulation of type 2 T cells, a type of white blood cell that participates in immune system defense mechanisms. In certain diseases such as asthma and lupus, an over-reactive type 2 T cell response occurs and is believed to contribute to the disease.

“Inhaled beta-agonists are very effective in opening up airways and allowing asthmatics to breathe, but their ability to address the underlying inflammation that causes most asthma has been debated for years,” said Penn, an associate professor in the Department of Internal Medicine and the Center for Human Genomics.

The asthma drug AstraZeneca Plc. plans to bring to the United States next year could be just what the doctor ordered for the pharmaceutical giant as it works to rebuild a drug development pipeline hamstrung by the termination of several once-promising prospects.

In mid-2007, AstraZeneca, whose U.S. headquarters is in Fairfax and which employs about 5,000 statewide, plans to roll out Symbicort.

Symbicort is an asthma inhaler that combines two drugs to treat both the swelling of the airways and constriction of the muscles around the airways.