Brazil's Ministry of Health, PharmaPraxis sign deal to manufacture biologic drugs

PharmaPraxis, from Axis Biotec, Cryopraxis, Silvestre Labs and CellPraxis Group, announces the formalization of an agreement with Brazil's Ministry of Health to manufacture biologic drugs.

The Health department of Brazil announced on April 5th, in Brasilia, the formalization of four new partnerships with private laboratories for the nationalization of the production of drugs for the treatment of AIDS, Arthritis and Alzheimers, that currently is imported. The measure foresees to reduce an annual deficit of more than US$ 10 billion of the trade balance of the health sector and to transfer technology to the Brazilian industry. Moreover, the local manufacture of the new drugs must generate annual economy of R$ 140 million in the governmental purchases and strengthen public politics that aim at to the magnifying of the access medicines in the Brazilian Health System named Sistema Unico de Saúde (SUS).

Instituto Vital Brazil (IVB), belonging to the government of Rio de Janeiro, and the Brazilian pharmaceutical conglomerate, PharmaPraxis, will develop a project for the manufacture of the drug Adalimumab, indicated for Rheumatoid Arthritis and Crohn's Disease. The new remedies will be added to a list of 25 items that are included in the public-private partnership (PPP - parceria público-privada) drawn in 2009, in accordance with the directive of the Industrial Development Organization (PDP - Politica de Desenvolvimento Industrial). The PPPs involve nine public laboratories and 20 private industries - ten national and ten foreigners. "We can say that with the teams entered in field, the model starts to generate products from this year forward," disclosed Carlos Gadelha, Secretary of Science Technology and Strategic Supplies of the Ministry of Health.

PharmaPraxis is part of Axis Biotec Group, where other biotech companies like Cryopraxis, Silvestre Labs and CellPraxis also belong to.

"This is a very important step towards moving into a new biotech platform that may take us very far," says Eduardo Cruz, CEO of PharmaPraxis.