Candesartan Cilexetil
Will data integrity concerns on clinical trials done at GVK Biosciences go beyond Europe?
 Over 700 commonly used generic medicines were recommended for suspension by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) based on data integrity concerns, over clinical studies conducted at GVK Biosciences in Hyderabad, India.What will be the global fallout of the European decision? The European decision has impacted products from companies such as:Abbott Laboratories, Accord Healthcare (Intas), Actavis, Alembic, Apotex, Betapharm (Dr. Reddy’s), Brown & Burk UK, Fair Med Healthcare AG, Glenmark, Lupin, Micro Labs, Mylan, Orion Corporation, Ranbaxy, Ratiopharm, Sandoz, Sanofi-Aventis, Stada, Teva, Torrent, Wockhardt, Zydus… and many, many more.The original recommendation of suspending some of the medicines made in January 2015, was an outcome of an inspection of GVK Biosciences’ site in Hyderabad (GVK BIO is a Clinical Research Organization- CRO) by the French medicines agency (ANSM) through the EMA. The EMA stated in their official release: “The inspection revealed data manipulations of electrocardiograms (ECGs) during the conduct of some studies of generic medicines, which appeared to have taken place over a period of at least five years. Their systematic nature, the extended period of time during which they took place and the number of members of staff involved cast doubt on the integrity of the conduct of trials at the site.” 1000 drugs reviewed// 700 rejectedWhile over 1,000 pharmaceutical forms and strengths were reviewed at the GVK site, over 300 of them had sufficient supporting data available from other sources. As a result, these medicines were allowed to remain on the market in the EU.However, for the over 700 other medicines, the EMA after its second review, maintained its previous recommendation of January 2015, to suspend medicines, where no additional supporting data from other studies was available. Only one exception after that second review was spared from suspension, as the company was able to address the EMA’s concerns: it was Bivolet Nebivolol (5 mg tablets/ marketing authorisation holder: Neo Balkanika EOOD).While the agency noted that “there is no evidence of harm or lack of effectiveness linked to the conduct of studies by GVK Biosciences at Hyderabad. Some of these medicines may remain on the market” if they are of critical importance for patients. However, the recommendation will now be sent to the European Commission for a legally binding decision, which will apply to Member States regardless of the decision taken in the interim period.The updated list of medicines for which, the CHMP (Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use) recommends suspension, is available on the EMA website. Companies are given 12 months to submit additional data. The potential global impact of the European suspensions?The GVK Biosciences scandal is almost as severe in magnitude and impact, as the data falsification concerns, which were discovered at Ranbaxy (Katherine Eban’s stunning investigation in Fortune, “Dirty Medicine” covers this extensively). One of the main promoters of GVK Biosciences is Mr. D.S. Brar who was CEO & Managing Director of Ranbaxy from 1999-2004. The impact of GVK Biosciences’ misdeeds is already being felt on new product launches. Mylan recently withdrew its European application for generic Abilify (aripiprazole) (2014 sales US$6.2x billion) citing “identification of major GCP issues (Good Clinical Practices).” What about the impact on the US market?In 2010, FDA discovered data integrity violations, which bankrupted clinical research organization, Cetero Research/PRACS. Based on the Cetero findings in the United States, the EMA suspended seven drugs. Now it remains to be seen, how the FDA will handle the data integrity concerns found in Europe since products like repaglinide & candesartan cilexitil (Mylan), levetiracetam (Dr. Reddy’s), clonazepam (Sandoz), metformin hydrochloride (Actavis), tacrolimus (Panacea Biotech) all have U.S. FDA approvals.  Leading GVK Biosciences’ defense is the Indian government, who warned last month that if the European Union does not reconsider their decision, it may go to the World Trade Organization. The Indian government’s position is based on an appeal by GVK Biosciences, which made the “Indian government set up a panel of experts last year to investigate the matter and found no manipulation”, GVK Biosciences CEO Manni Kantipudi told Reuters.However, globally reputed GMP expert, Lachman Consultants, believes that the GVK Bioscience episode “could potentially impact data integrity, similar to the Cetero/PRACS case”.It’s clear for us that this is not the end of the story… 

Impressions: 4047

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#PharmaFlow by PHARMACOMPASS
28 May 2015
Dr. Reddy’s expansion plans for API production
Unrelated to the inspection of the USFDA at the Dr. Reddys Srikakulam facility, Dr. Reddys sought permission from the Ministry of Environment, Forests & Climate Change to expand their drug and intermediate manufacturing at three locations. All three chemical technical operation (CTO) units, CTO-I, CTO-II & CTO-III are located in Medak district and the announced planned capacity increases along with the anticipated capital investment were   Existing Capacity Planned Capacity Anticipated Investment CTO I 14.7 TPM 45.5 TPM Rs 30 crores CTO II 21.9 TPM 68.9 TPM Rs 45 crores CTO - III 4.45 TPM 28.1 TPM Rs 12 crores  *$1 million is approximately about Rs 6.2 crores & TPM is tons per month In addition, the declaration given by Dr. Reddys also mentions the various products which will be produced at each facility (table below). Needless to say, the plans are ambitious however with the growth witnessed by the Indian pharmaceutical industry over the past decade, one can understand Dr. Reddys commitment to investing further in their business.   Table Dr. Reddys production plans at various facilities Product Name Planned Capacity (TPM) Facility Location Alendronate Sodium Trihydrate 6.67 CTO - III Alfuzosin 2.33 CTO - I Altretamine 0.03 CTO - I Amlodipine Besylate 33.33 CTO - II Amlodipine Besylate 133.33 CTO - III Amlodipine Besylate ( Ethyl 4 [2- (pthalamide)ethoxy] aceto acetate (TDM-2) 100 CTO - II Amlodipine Maleate 30 CTO - III Amsacrine 0.07 CTO - I Anastrazole 0.83 CTO - II Aprepitant 3.33 CTO - III Aripiprazole 0.33 CTO - II Atomoxetine 1.67 CTO - III Atorvastatin  375.83 CTO - II Azacitidine 0.67 CTO - I Bicalutamide 0.03 CTO - II Bivalirudin 0.03 CTO - II Bivalirudin Trifluoro Acetate 0.03 CTO - I Bortezomib 0.03 CTO - I Cabazitaxel 0.02 CTO - I Candesartan cilexetil 6.67 CTO - II Cetirizine Hydrochloride 66.67 CTO - I  Cetirizine 16.67 CTO - II Ciprofloxacin 176.67 CTO - II Ciprofloxacin HCl  533.33 CTO - II Ciprofloxacin Lactate 33.33 CTO - II Clopidogrel Bisulfate 500 CTO - I Clopidogrel Premix 166.67 CTO - II Diluted Everolimus 5% (Everolimus) 0.33 CTO - II Disodium Pamidronate 0.33 CTO - III Docetaxel 1.9 CTO - I Dutasteride 3.33 CTO - II Esomeprazole magnesium 66.67 CTO - III Ezetimibe 3.33 CTO - II Fexofenadine Hydrochloride  500 CTO - I Finasteride 10 CTO - II Fluoxetine 110 CTO - I Fondaparinux Sodium 0.33 CTO - II Galantamine 0.03 CTO - II Gemcitabine 13.33 CTO - I Glimepiride 13.33 CTO - II Imatinib 0.17 CTO - I Irinotecan 0.33 CTO - I Ketorolac 66.67 CTO - II Lacidipine 5 CTO - III Lamotrigine 33.33 CTO - I Lansoprozole 8.33 CTO - III Letrozole 0.03 CTO - II Levocetrizine Di HCl 10 CTO - III Levofloxacin 200 CTO - II Lomustine 1.33 CTO - I Losartan Postassium 150 CTO - I Meloxicam 0.03 CTO - I Memantine HCl 3.33 CTO - II Mesalamine 0.03 CTO - II Metoprolol Succinate 266.67 CTO - II Moxifloxacin 116.67 CTO - II Norfloxacin  0.03 CTO - I Omeprazole 133.33 CTO - III Omeprazole Magnesium 50 CTO - III Omeprazole Sodium 10 CTO - III Omerprazole Form B 33.33 CTO - III Paclitaxel 0.33 CTO - I Pantoprazole Sodium 100 CTO - III paroxetine HCl 0.03 CTO - II Pemetrexed 0.67 CTO - I Rabeprazole Sodium 83.33 CTO - III Raloxifene 33.33 CTO - II Ramipril 100 CTO - III Repaglinide 6.67 CTO - II Rivastigmine 6.67 CTO - II Risperidone 13.33 CTO - I Rivastigmine 6.667 CTO - I Rizatriptan Benzoate 1.33 CTO - II Rocuronium Bromide 0.03 CTO - II Ropinrole HCl 1.83 CTO - III Rosiglitazone 3.33 CTO - II Sparfloxacin 3.33 CTO - I Tacrolimus 5 CTO - II Tadalafil 3.33 CTO - II Telmisartan 100 CTO - II Temozolamide 0.03 CTO - I Terbinafine HCl 133.33 CTO - III Tizanidine HCl 16.67 CTO - III Topotecan 0.07 CTO - I valganciclovir 0.03 CTO - I Vardenafil 3.33 CTO - II Voriconazole 8.33 CTO - III Ziprasidone Hydrochloride 100 CTO - I Zoledronic acid 0.33 CTO - III Zolmitriptan 0.83 CTO - I Zonisamide 0.03 CTO - II

Impressions: 3073

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#PharmaFlow by PHARMACOMPASS
03 Apr 2015