(3rd November, 2014; Business Wire India); Biocon Ltd, Asia's premier biopharmaceuticals company, and U.S.-based CytoSorbents Corporation (OTCQB: CTSO) announced today that they have expanded the scope of their strategic partnership for CytoSorbents’ CytoSorb® cytokine reduction therapy to treat patients experiencing severe whole body inflammation, often called a Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (SIRS). SIRS is caused by a wide range of life-threatening conditions seen in the intensive care unit and can also be caused by surgical interventions, particularly cardiac surgery.
Biocon will now have the exclusive, region-wide rights to distribute CytoSorb® for all critical care applications in the intensive care unit (ICU) as well as cardiac surgery applications for India and select emerging countries. As part of the expanded agreement, Biocon will also play a prominent leadership role in the generation of new clinical evidence to support the adoption and usage of CytoSorb®. This includes commitments to conduct and publish results from multiple Investigator Initiated Trials (IITs) and patient case studies.
So far, the response to CytoSorb® for the management of sepsis has been very encouraging with hundreds of patients in India having benefitted from this novel therapy. The expanded usage of CytoSorb® in other applications could improve patient outcomes and save precious lives.
Mr. Ravindra Limaye, President, Marketing, Biocon, said: “CytoSorb® has been embraced by physicians as a safe and well–tolerated therapy for managing sepsis in critically-ill patients. Our expanded partnership with CytoSorbents will now enable us to address the huge unmet needs of patients experiencing a Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (SIRS) as a result of burns, lung injury, liver failure, pancreatitis, post-cardiac surgery complications, and tropical diseases like malaria and dengue fever.”
Dr. Abhijit Barve, President, Research & Development, Biocon, said: “While our initial focus has been on sepsis, physicians are increasingly identifying conditions where very high levels of cytokines are known to cause multiple organ failure. We also believe there is a significant unmet medical need to manage high risk patients undergoing cardiac surgery by using CytoSorb® to control inflammation. We are excited about working together with CytoSorbents and look forward to playing an important role in advancing the clinical development of this product.”
Dr. Phillip Chan, Chief Executive Officer and President, CytoSorbents, stated: “We are very pleased to expand our relationship with Biocon, which has been an exceptional partner in launching CytoSorb® in India. We take deep pride in the opportunity to potentially help more people in this part of the world by addressing a broader array of conditions. Moreover, Biocon is a world-class clinical development organization with strong capabilities in advancing new therapies. We look forward to working closely with Biocon as they generate clinical evidence to support the widespread use of CytoSorb®.”
Mr. Chris Cramer, Vice President of Business Development, CytoSorbents said: “Biocon’s results to date have been truly impressive and we are confident in their ability to lead the market development of CytoSorb® in this region. We are pleased to see Biocon making investments to establish a solid foundation for ongoing and sustainable growth that will benefit CytoSorb® commercialization not only in India, but throughout the world.”
Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
