Napo Enters Plant Screening Agreement with Nicholas Piramal India for Diabetes
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Napo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Nicholas Piramal India Limited (NPIL) have announced that they have entered into a Plant Screening Agreement to discover novel diabetes therapeutic agents.
As part of the agreement, NPIL will utilize its high throughput screening facility and natural product chemistry expertise along with biological testing capabilities to identify active compounds from Napo's library of medicinal plant extracts from tropical regions. Napo and NPIL will jointly own all products that are developed under the agreement.
Lisa Conte, Napo's CEO commented, "This agreement provides an excellent opportunity for us to expand our pipeline with potentially significant novel discoveries targeting the needs of global healthcare - in this case diabetes. Diabetes has become an illness of global proportions and the incidence is expected to reach approximately 30 percent of the population over the next 15 years, with the most staggering growth rates in developing and emerging economies.”
“Our agreement with NPIL is further indication of our commitment to develop pharmaceuticals through partnerships that can benefit global populations and at the same time provide enhanced financial returns to shareholders. Our joint efforts in this agreement complement Napo's ongoing effort to develop NP-500, a candidate for Phase II clinical development with a novel mechanism of action against Type II diabetes and metabolic syndrome," said Conte.
Dr. Somesh Sharma, CSO, NPIL added, "We are delighted to have this opportunity to work with Napo and look forward to a close working relationship."
He continued, "This agreement allows us to utilize our state of the art screening capabilities and expertise in working with natural products for both companies' benefit, and at the same time provide NPIL with access to new product opportunities. Diabetes is a major focus of NPIL and the incidence of diabetes among the populations we serve has grown significantly over the past decade to where it is a major health concern."
