Eisai to grant 625 mn yen to GHIT Fund for developing medicines for neglected tropical diseases, malaria

Eisai Co has announced that it will grant a total of 625 million yen to the Global Health Innovative Technology Fund (GHIT Fund) to fund the third phase of its activities, which will take place in the five-year period from FY2023 to FY2027. The GHIT Fund is a public-private partnership, co-established in April 2013 by Japanese pharma companies (including Eisai), the Japanese government, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, for the purpose of accelerating development of new medicines to cure infectious diseases in developing and emerging countries by facilitating collaboration between research organizations in Japan and overseas. Eisai has provided a total of one billion yen to the first phase (FY2013 – FY2017) and the second phase (FY2018 – FY2022) of the GHIT Fund.

Under a public-private partnership including governments, international organisations, and private non-profit organisations, Eisai has participated in 23 joint research projects to develop new medicines and vaccines for mycetoma, malaria and filariasis, with the support of the GHIT Fund.

Eisai has conducted a Phase II clinical trial of its in-house developed agent E1224 (generic name: fosravuconazole) in Sudan for the treatment of mycetoma in partnership with the non-profit organisation Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi). Eisai is also conducting a Phase II clinical trial of antimalarial agent SJ733 in collaboration with the University of Kentucky.