Venus Remedies has launched its R&D drug, Elores, in Oman.
Elores is effective against bacterial strains resistant to the last-resort carbapenem class of antibiotics. It is clinically proven to be effective against ICU infections caused by multidrug-resistant extended spectrum beta lactamase (ESBL) and metallo beta lactamase (MBL)-producing gram negative bacteria.
Oman has alarmingly high rates of ESBL and MBL-producing gram negative infections, as high as 54 per cent. About 63.4 per cent of K. pneumoniae isolates from Oman are multi-drug resistant and produce ESBL against which Elores exhibits remarkable efficacy.
The Oman antibiotics market is primarily dependent on imports from India. Oman had imported antibiotics worth $6.8 million in 2021. The launch of Elores in Oman is expected to open the doors for the entry of the novel antibiotic adjuvant entity in other important Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member countries as well.
“We expect this product, which has been patented in 46 countries, including the largest pharmaceutical markets of the US and Japan and many European countries, to generate a revenue of around $0.5 million by 2025. With Elores launched in Oman, we are now targeting the $237-million antibiotic market in the GCC region, out of which 54 per cent accounts for ESBL and MBL resistance segment. We are aiming to secure a 0.1 per cent share in this segment, which amounts to $0.23 million,” said Aditi K Chaudhary, President, International Business, Venus Remedies.
While Venus Remedies had outlicensed Elores to Cipla in the domestic market in 2020, the worldwide marketing rights for Elores are still vested in the company, which has launched the product in eight countries so far, including Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Myanmar, Oman, Saudi Arabia and Tanzania. It is awaiting marketing authorisation for the drug from another 16 countries.
Globally, the systemic antibacterial market, which is growing at a compounded annual growth rate of 4.26 per cent, is set to reach $60 billion by year 2030. Elores is capable of fighting multidrug-resistant ESBL/MBL-producing gram negative infections, which comprise 24 per cent of this market.
A company release informed that clinical studies of Elores on more than 1,000 patients have shown that it has resulted in more than 30 per cent reduction in treatment time and about 50 per cent reduction in the cost of treatment.
The statement also informed, “Elores has been recognised as the best innovation by a team of experts from Stanford Business School, US, IC2 Institute at University of Texas, Austin, US and Lockheed Martin Foundation in collaboration with the Union Department of Science and Technology under the Indo-US joint science and technology innovation programme. It has also been selected among the top eight technologies to be commercialised in the US. ”
Elores comprises a third generation cephalosporin, a beta lactamase inhibitor and a non-antibiotic adjuvant, disodium edetate, for intravenous administration. It contains the spread of resistance by countering the cell impermeability mechanism of multi-drug resistant bacterial strains, breaking bacterial biofilms and preventing transfer of resistant plasmids.